Black Dog boasts stunning photography, with wide shots, pans, and tracks capturing the vastness of the Gobi Deserts and the desolation of the town where our story takes place.
The quiet but cool protagonist and his dog share amazing chemistry, with touching parallelisms to their “stray dogs” behaviour and relation to society and their surroundings.
Unfortunately, the other stories in the film, particularly the love story, fail to reach the same level of engagement and quality.

Elevated by a stellar performance of Ralph Fiennes, who brings depth to a PTSD-ridden Odysseus filled with a sense of guilt and shame. The story thrives in its lack of focus on the usual looks on the travel to Ithaca and the occurrences in Troy, as well as it manages to reach a serene yet powerful climax, leaving a lasting impact.
However, elements to enhance the Greek tragedy undertone, such as the fact the no one seems to recognise Odysseus, seems absurd. While at the same time, the threat that the thugs that control Ithaca and drive the narrative forward seems like an unjustified danger.
Finally, it is unfortunate that the performance of Charlie Plummer as Telemachus is quite underwhelming. Even a 10-second scene with Odysseus’ dying dog feels more powerful than any of his appearances.