A Prayer for the Dying

by Mike McGranaghan

A Prayer for the Dying takes place in the small town of Friendship, Wisconsin during the 1850s. Jacob Hansen (Johnny Flynn) wears multiple hats, serving as the local sheriff, pastor, and even undertaker. Those positions put him in a tough spot when the town doctor (John C. Reilly) informs him that an outbreak of diphtheria has arrived and is starting to spread. Hansen’s first instinct is to quarantine the town. Doc advises against this, saying it will cause a panic that could lead people to flee, thereby spreading the epidemic even further.

Meanwhile, Hansen struggles to keep his wife Marta (Kristine Kujath Thorp) and infant daughter safe by forcing them to stay indoors. Given that he’s constantly around the infected, that task becomes increasingly difficult.

Directed by Dara Van Dusen, A Prayer for the Dying tries to be two things at once. Part of it is a straightforward, realistic story about the efforts to prevent diphtheria from wiping out an entire town. When sticking to that idea, the movie is pretty good. The spread of the infection is eerily portrayed, especially since none of the townspeople know what’s going on. They think they’re merely under the weather. An ongoing debate about the best way to handle the situation provides compelling drama.

Then there’s the other half, which is stylized in a dream-like manner. It’s intended to mine the depths of Hansen’s troubled past. Red lighting is frequently used to suggest his inner torment, and there are fragmented images that are like witnessing his trauma flashbacks. Right here is where the film stumbles. The arty half clashes with the tone of the gritty half, making it feel as though we’re watching two different movies that have been awkwardly mashed together. Any urgency developed from the diphtheria arc is completely undone by an absurd CGI-heavy finale that goes on for nearly twenty minutes and is totally unsatisfying.

Aside from that, this is a very grim, depressing picture. Dead children factor into the plot, as do illness and disease. By the halfway point, you may find yourself inclined to pop a Zoloft. Reilly and Flynn give good performances, but their work is undermined by a choppy narrative, courtesy of the opposing tones. A Prayer for the Dying is half an interesting movie, half a complete bummer.