Trailer For A PRAYER FOR THE DYING Brings John C. Reilly Into a Haunting Civil War-Era Western
There’s a new Western that will eventually ride into theaters, and this one looks intense. New Europe Film Sales has released the first promo trailer for A Prayer for the Dying, the feature debut of filmmaker Dara Van Dusen, and it looks like a grim, faith-shaking frontier drama anchored by John C. Reilly and Johnny Flynn.
This isn’t a remake of the 1987 film starring Mickey Rourke. This is a completely new adaptation of Stewart O’Nan’s novel, set in 1870 in the small Wisconsin town of Friendship, a Scandinavian settlement still reeling from the Civil War.
The story centers on Jacob Hansen, played by Flynn, a former Civil War hero who can’t shake the weight of what he’s done. He’s trying to build something better in Friendship, taking on the roles of sheriff, undertaker, and pastor.
He’s a man trying to atone while holding together his young family and a fragile town. That balance shatters when a deadly epidemic hits.
Reilly plays the town’s doctor, simply known as Doc, who finds himself unable to contain the spreading illness. As fear tightens its grip on the town, Jacob is forced into impossible decisions. Protect his wife and child, or stand with the community that gave him a second chance.
The official synopsis reads: “In 1870, the town of Friendship, Wisconsin, is enduring a dry, hot summer. The small town revolves around Jacob Hansen (Johnny Flynn), a hero of the American Civil War who, in spite of his many accomplishments, is unable to cast off the violence and darkness of his past as a soldier.
“Feeling compelled to atone for the wrongs he has committed, Jacob takes on the responsibility not only of providing for his young family but also of serving as sheriff, undertaker, & pastor for Friendship. He thus considers the town to be under his protection – a claim that comes to haunt him when Friendship is hit by an epidemic that the town’s doctor (John C. Reilly) cannot contain.
“As every decision becomes a choice between two evils, Jacob is increasingly haunted by his war-ridden past. It is unclear how much longer he can continue in his self-imposed role as protector or whether he will ever be able to forgive himself for what he's done.”
The film has been described as a “powerful account of the choices we must make when disaster strikes and everything we hold dear, including faith, family and community, is shaken to its very core.”
No release dates have been announced yet, but it’s a movie that I’d like to see. It will premiere at the Berlin Film Festival.