Man, it’s weird to say that a movie is actually worse off without Stephen “We’re All Adults Here” Dorff. I don’t mean that as a jab at him, I think he’s a decent actor, but he’s not the type of guy who one typically thinks of as elevating a movie. In the new thriller Heatstroke, he comes off like a Shakespearean veteran compared to his co-stars. His character plays second fiddle to Maisie Williams (“Game of Thrones”) and Svetlana Metkina, two actresses who I’m sorry to say can’t carry a movie. The always great Peter Stormare is criminally underused as well – more of his menacing gait would have done wonders to strenghten this overall drab thriller.

Josie (Williams) is the petulant, estranged daughter of research scientist Paul (Dorff – Space Truckers). When she’s busted with some weed, her mother insists Paul take her along to Africa, where he studies hyenas. A little time in the desert might do this young girl some kid before she falls down a pit of drugs, booze, and hooking, I guess. His girlfriend Tally (Metkina) doesn’t get along very well with Josie, but that’s okay because what better way for a daughter to bond with her dad’s new girlfriend than by being chased by homicidal rhino poachers and hungry hyenas through an African veld?

Heatstroke is a slow build with the first act dealing essentially with the dynamic between Paul, Tally, and Josie. They’re trying to get her interested in hyenas and the stark beauty of the desert, but she’s more interested in her iPad. There’s some nice intimate moments between her and Paul, and I think Dorff is really damn good in these scenes. He’s got a fatherly warmth coming off him, though you can still tell he thinks his daughter is a peevish brat.

Once the action does kick in, the film see-saws between suspense and what basically amounts to down time where Josie and Tally look for water. The poachers, led by Stormare are always one step behind them. The time we spend with him and his crew is interesting enough, but they’re all one-dimensional villains and like I mentioned earlier, not enough Stormare. The ebb and flow of the suspense means that by the time the climax comes around, there’s nothing built up. So what could’ve been a tense moment is just a flaccid fizzle out.

One thing Heatstroke director Evelyn Purcell does a great job is portraying the desert as the harsh mistress (I assume) she is. During Josie’s first ride out to Paul’s camp, she looks out at the landscape and there’s just nothing. “There’s nothing for me here,” she tells her dad at one point. Even when they come across a watering hole, the water’s filled with bacteria, undrinkable. Then, of course, there’s the hyenas, who do a better job playing villains than the humans here.

Heatstroke will available on VOD, iTunes, and in-theaters July 4th.