The movie Heart Of The Beast is a love letter to the thousands of hard-working, heroic, loyal service dogs everywhere.
Jase Kelly and Rocky (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images for Paramount Pictures)
Ex-Special Forces officer James Belmont (Brad Pitt) is enjoying time out on a stunning secluded Alaskan beach with his loyal ex-combat dog Odin. When the weather turns, he decides it’s time to get out of there, which means packing up everything into his seaplane.
As they fly out the weather gets worse and soon the plane crashes deep in the Alaskan wilderness.
What follows is an intense fight for life as the pair must rely on each other to find a way out through dense jungle and seemingly insurmountable odds, including flashbacks to their service in the army.
Jase Kelly and Rocky (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images for Paramount Pictures)
As the credits rolled I pondered:
- The movie deals with loyalty, the man/beast connection and PTSD, with an all-new look at PTSD in animals, something I’ve not thought about much;
- It’s not often Brad Pitt gets upstaged but Odin does this in spades;
- I wouldn’t be surprised if the movie was a passion project for Pitt;
- If the aim of the movie was to raise awareness and funds for service dogs, then it’s definitely done its job;
- As a piece of entertainment it’s interesting although, some parts drag a little while others are clunky, such as how you can be swept down a river only to seemingly quickly make your way back up to retrieve your gear;
- Prior to the movie we met service dog Rocky and his handler Jase Kelly who explained that most service dogs retire after around 6 years service. The dogs usually go home with their handler, who’s left to foot the bill for food, medical bills etc. Often the owner struggle to cover these costs. Enter organizations such as Working Paws Australia. I urge you all to check them out and donate.
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