“The Dustwalker” (2019) is about how a small Western Australian town deals with a strange phenomenon that hijacks the brains of the affected residents. How will they be able to survive and stop the infected?
“The Dustwalker” has some solid parts, but never quite comes together. The cast had great chemistry, felt like ordinary people, and gave the impression that they knew each other for a long time. Unlike other movies, killing the infected was not as viable. Even though the film does not devote enough time to establishing the relationship between the characters outside of the protagonist Sergeant Joanne Sharp (Joanne Sharp), her sister, Samantha Sharp (Stef Dawson) and her nephew, Simon (Jackson Lucas), the glimpse of normal life in a brief diner scene gives viewers a picture of a close knit, loving community among people who have known each other for years with the exception of one character who seemed suspicious with no lines before all hell breaks loose-think Australian discount Amanda Seyfried, which is a compliment. She was memorable, and I have no idea who she is.
The Sharp family stands out because they are planning to move to the big city for more opportunities and to stop being reminded of their grief, loss of parents, which is not evoked in a sustainable way. The emotional goal of “The Dustwalker” is to convince the Sharps to stay. When the plot relies on us knowing the relationships among the characters, it falls apart and can only be appreciated in retrospect, which is too late. The film needed to decide whether it wanted to only show Joanne’s perspective or establish earlier that the narrative would rely on an ensemble.
At one point, “The Dustwalker” seemed as if it wanted to follow Samantha, but the writer and director Sandra Sciberras gave too many awesome moments to the kids, Lucas and Katie (Shyla Vivian). If you ever find yourself trapped inside a movie, you want to find these kids and follow their instructions. I am normally not into kid actors, but they killed every scene. Samantha did not save them. They saved Samantha. When Katie stopped the adult and said that she needed a weapon, she won my heart. While everyone else was whinging about morality, they switched to “I don’t know you” so quickly that they could give a TED Talk on how to survive. Remember they are kids growing up in a peaceful, small town with no strangers, but they were ready. Samantha was annoying. For the sister who wants to stay, she was ill-prepared for any hardship that came her way. She should move to the city.
“The Dustwalker” strikes a strong horror pose. The affected residents are reminiscent of fast zombies meets Invasion of the Body Snatchers’ wailers retaining their hosts’ intelligence with a dash of possession. The film’s description is not accurate. They do not become indiscriminate killing machines but favor old school Dracula vampires’ approach to choosing victims, which makes the proceedings tragic. When the film was building up what the infected are doing, it had a John Carpenter vibe reminiscent of “Ghosts of Mars” (2001) and was effective. The soundtrack was also initially reminiscent of John Carpenter’s “Halloween” (1978) during the first scene with the geologist. After awhile, it became annoying with a heavy-handed highlighting of the violence like a cheesy horror film.
Unfortunately these discovery scenes become redundant and one note when “The Dustwalker” stops following Joanne and shifts to show the point of view of other characters, specifically Luke (Richard Davies), her coworker, witnessing violence around the thirty-nine minute mark. The film incorrectly conflates showing the character’s revulsion upon uncovering each act of violence with escalating violence advancing the story. While these scenes provide great action scenes, it did not tell us anything new about the infected’s agenda. At first, I thought there was a reason that younger people were the infected’s target, but nope. The film never recovers its momentum or finds its rhythm subsequently. I am bored with demonic possession horror, but am here for scientific possession themes. If the film had considered the psychological profile of the collective entity that possessed the townfolks, i.e. their goals, needs and desires, it would have strengthened the movie.
Usually horror acts as a metaphor for a real life problem. I do not think that Sciberras considered that concept though a theme emerges: domestic abuse. Good men are depicted as killing their families—the violence is tasteful and mostly occurs off screen. While the film never entertains the characters mistaking these homicides for anything other than related to the change in their environment, the dialogue’s language still attributes the fault to the men in a moving, but baffling interrogation scene in a cell. I was surprised that Joanne did not reassure the assailant that it was not him, but says the opposite. I wish that “The Dustwalker” had devoted more time to exploring this issue. It is too important to introduce but not tackle.
If you are tired of zombies, rest assured that the cause of the phenomenon is based in science. Not since “The Girl with All the Gifts” (2016) has a film used a pathogenic fungus as the vehicle for infection. This fungus works similarly to the terrestrial version found in ants, but this fungus’ origins differ. The source plays a pivotal role in the denouement but is not as satisfying as it could be because it is too open ended. Was the outbreak accidental or deliberate? Are there two forces at work warring with each other or one that screwed up? Regardless of the answer, how did they generate a dust storm? When a film enters the sci fi genre, the filmmakers must be cognizant of what viewers are subconsciously looking for. A sci fi backdrop does not require explicit mythology exposition, but it should feel as if the filmmakers have one, and it did not. After the discussions regarding the ethics of how to handle the infected, the resolution disregards it. For the record, I agree. I will cosign killing it with fire, but maybe the dialogue could have teased out other themes instead.
Initially “The Dustwalker” draws a parallel between Joanne’s resistance to the charms of their “dirt” referring to their desolate red dusty landscape. There is even an American geologist who asks, “This area is precious. You don’t see that?” In contrast, the fungus alters the landscape and the biology. It can appear metallic then red. Ultimately the filmmakers just abandon this theme after the first act, which makes it feel like another loose thread. This film had a real knack for creating beautiful moments, but was inconsistent.
The opening scene of “The Dustwalker” was a bit confusing. The way that the camera pans made it seem as if the cell tower was sinking, but subsequent scenes showed that it was still standing and just a little damaged.
“The Dustwalker” is a visually gorgeous film that features great performances, but more thought should have gone into the story. While it starts strong, it is ultimately disappointing and will leave viewers with more questions.
