A sheriff attempts to keep panic at bay in his town as a plague begins to infect it in the horror western A Prayer for the Dying, playing Fantastic Fest 2026.
Even five years on from the worst part of the COVID-19 pandemic, one still can feel the dread of the unknown of what felt like the plague to end all plagues. A Prayer for Dying, the new western from writer/director Dara Van Dusen starring Johnny Flynn and John C. Riley, invokes some of that same nightmarish anxiety of those early days of COVID-19.
Sheriff and Preacher Jacob Hansen (Flynn) leads the quiet, uneventful community of Friendly, in post-Civil War Wisconsin. It is when Hansen investigates a dead Union soldier that his town is turned upside down. Warned by Doc (Riley) not just to keep this quiet, but to ensure cleanliness and distance from people before he can figure out what it is. As Doc realizes it is a diphtheria outbreak, Hansen tries to get a handle on his town, who are nowhere near agreeable to anything. As diphtheria begins to spread, Doc and Hansen find they are unable to stop the death that comes quickly and violently to the town.
Anyone looking for a traditional western should look elsewhere. The film has more in common with the nihilistic noirs of Jim Thompson than Louis L’Amour. This is not a story of revenge or homesteaders. Rather, one of the inability and ineffectiveness of a town’s leadership that causes the death of many. A slow, literal and figurative descent into hell, A Prayer for the Dying is not some ode to the past but rather one that heeds warning. The road to ruin and hell is paved with good intentions. Doc and Hansen, even as those closest to them begin to contract the virus, continue to stand by their principles and the adage “this too shall pass,” not realizing the townsfolk cannot stop what they do not.
Though slow and methodical, the movie is visually stunning, shot in a claustrophobic 1.33 framing by Kate McCullough. Van Dusen and McCullough never shy away from the horrors that infect the town. Their still frame speaks volumes, often with both the lawmen and the doctor impotent to do anything other than collect bodies.
A Prayer for the Dying is as challenging as a film one will see in 2026. One that reminds us of how harrowing even our recent past was.
A Prayer for the Dying plays at Fantastic Fest 2026
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A sheriff attempts to keep panic at bay in his town as a plague begins to infect it in the horror western A Prayer for the Dying, playing Fantastic Fest 2026.
Even five years on from the worst part of the COVID-19 pandemic, one still can feel the dread of the unknown of what felt like the plague to end all plagues. A Prayer for Dying, the new western from writer/director Dara Van Dusen starring Johnny Flynn and John C. Riley, invokes some of that same nightmarish anxiety of those early days of COVID-19.
Sheriff and Preacher Jacob Hansen (Flynn) leads the quiet, uneventful community of Friendly, in post-Civil War Wisconsin. It is when Hansen investigates a dead Union soldier that his town is turned upside down. Warned by Doc (Riley) not just to keep this quiet, but to ensure cleanliness and distance from people before he can figure out what it is. As Doc realizes it is a diphtheria outbreak, Hansen tries to get a handle on his town, who are nowhere near agreeable to anything. As diphtheria begins to spread, Doc and Hansen find they are unable to stop the death that comes quickly and violently to the town.
Anyone looking for a traditional western should look elsewhere. The film has more in common with the nihilistic noirs of Jim Thompson than Louis L’Amour. This is not a story of revenge or homesteaders. Rather, one of the inability and ineffectiveness of a town’s leadership that causes the death of many. A slow, literal and figurative descent into hell, A Prayer for the Dying is not some ode to the past but rather one that heeds warning. The road to ruin and hell is paved with good intentions. Doc and Hansen, even as those closest to them begin to contract the virus, continue to stand by their principles and the adage “this too shall pass,” not realizing the townsfolk cannot stop what they do not.
Though slow and methodical, the movie is visually stunning, shot in a claustrophobic 1.33 framing by Kate McCullough. Van Dusen and McCullough never shy away from the horrors that infect the town. Their still frame speaks volumes, often with both the lawmen and the doctor impotent to do anything other than collect bodies.
A Prayer for the Dying is as challenging as a film one will see in 2026. One that reminds us of how harrowing even our recent past was.
A Prayer for the Dying plays at Fantastic Fest 2026
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