In South Africa, a series of grisly murders performed in ritualistic way plague the landscapes, committed by a shape-shifting demon known as the "Dust Devil". This spirit doesn't just prey on anyone, specifically targeting lonely and/or suicidal individuals who have nothing left to live for or fear. Wendy, a strong-minded woman, has recently left her husband, driving across the South African desert. Soon after picking up a mysterious drifter, Hitch, Wendy begins to notice strange occurrences that may be related to this mysterious man. Meanwhile the police investigate these murders, with Ben, a internally tormented detective, slowly beginning to realize that the murders may in fact be of supernatural origin. Richard Stanley's Dust Devil is a subversive horror film that combines spaghetti western imagery with African spiritualism, to create one of the most unique and transfixing genre films I've ever seen. Dust Devil is a film that is intentionally opaque, much more interested in creating an atmospheric mood piece rather than a traditional narrative. Nothing is spelled out in the film, but the characterizations of all three main characters are fascinating, each seemingly wrestling internally with despair. For anyone familiar with Richard Stanley's previous film Hardware, it should come to no surprise that Dust Devil is a visually-striking film with stylistic decisions that only aid creating this atmospheric experience. Full of barren landscapes drenched in reddish hues, Dust Devil visually portrays the death, isolation and despair of its characters, creating a truly unsettling experience from start to finish. Full of intriguing ideas and conversation pieces, Dust Devil is a truly compelling film from start to finish, though some of Stanley's intentions are hard to decipher. It's interesting how much of Dust Devil seems to be a symbolic representation of suicide, with Hitch almost being a representation of the Devil - someone who pushes these lonely and despair-filled individuals over the edge. While this interpretation may not hold much water to some, this is what makes Dust Devil so intriguing, being a film that welcomes a vast amount of interpretations. Slow-paced yet hypnotic, Dust Devil is an extremely beautiful piece of genre filmmaking that subverts the horror/thriller genre, giving the audience something truly unique.
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AuthorLove of all things cinema brought me here. Archives
June 2023
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