‘Unsettling’ Western drama is a must-watch for Yellowstone fans

Guy Pearce stars as a doctor escorting a freed slave and her daughter across the American West in the gritty thriller, Devil in the Dust

issing Yellowstone? The gritty Western thriller, Devil in the Dust, has just arrived on Paramount+, and fans of the genre will definitely want to add it to their watchlists.

Viewers are transported back to the Arizona Territory in 1859, where Guy Pearce stars as a doctor escorting a freed slave and her daughter across a treacherous landscape to find a distant Faith Healer.

© Signature Entertainment/Michael Moriatis
Guy Pearce stars in Devil in the Dust

Unlike Yellowstone, Devil in the Dust is a period piece with a supernatural twist, but it still captures the gripping atmosphere, visceral violence, and high-stakes action that Yellowstone fans love. But be warned, this R-rated film isn’t for the faint-hearted!

What is Devil in the Dust about?

Set in the bleak 1850s American West, the supernatural thriller follows a grief-stricken doctor hired to escort a freed slave, Sarah (DeWanda Wise), and her young daughter across the plague-ridden West.

Their goal is to reach a distant, enigmatic faith healer (Bill Pullman), who Sarah hopes can cure her daughter of a deadly curse – one where everything the child touches dies.

© Signature Entertainment
Guy Pearce stars as a doctor escorting a freed slave and her daughter across a treacherous landscape

The official synopsis reads: “A widowed doctor escorts a freed slave and her daughter across

the West to find a distant faith healer, battling the mother’s belief of possession and the doctor’s suspicion of disease as everything the child touches dies.”

Who stars in Devil in the Dust?

Guy Pearce leads the cast as Dr. Bender, alongside DeWanda Wise as Sarah and Bill Pullman as Preacher Ross.

Other cast members include Raoul Trujillo, Jamie Neumann, Jack Alcott and Joanna Cassidy.

© Signature Entertainment
Dewanda Wise plays Sarah

What have audiences said about the film?

The film, which boasts a 76 per cent score on Rotten Tomatoes, has been described as “unsettling” with “lots of violence and gore”.

One viewer praised the film’s “subtle building of dread,” while another hailed it as “terrific” and “original”.

What have critics said about the film?

Reviews from film critics were mostly positive, with The Guardian hailing it as “impressive” in its four-star review, while Film Threat praised the “masterful” tension building.

© Signature Entertainment
Devil in the Dust is available to stream now on Paramount+

Devil in the Dust is available to stream on Paramount+.

More Western dramas to stream now

Lawmen: Bass Reeves: This compelling drama, executive produced by Yellowstone creator Taylor Sheridan, is set near the end of the American Civil War and tells the real-life tale of an enslaved man turned US marshal in the American West. Watch on Paramount+.

The Madison: Taylor Sheridan’s hit neo-Western drama centres on the Clyburn family, led by matriarch Stacy (Michelle Pfeiffer), as they relocate from New York City to the Madison River valley of central Montana following a devastating plane crash that kills her husband, Preston (Kurt Russell). Watch on Paramount+.

The Abandons: Lena Headey and Gillian Anderson star as the warring matriarchs of two very different families living in the Washington Territory in 1854. Watch on Netflix.

CRE: https://www.hellomagazine.com/film/907037/unsettling-western-drama-devil-in-the-dust-yellowstone-fans-must-watch/