filippaberry84 I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Orla Zuniga It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

Ezmae Chang This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Freeman This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

Leofwine_draca Richard Stanley's second film after his android-on-the-loose debut HARDWARE is a disturbing, over-long tale of a magical serial killer on the loose in Namibia. To be fair, it's an original concept, and Africa isn't exactly the place you think of when it comes to horror films. The use of the isolated desert landscapes (just like in WALKABOUT) is good, and the artistic nature of the film is also a major plus.However, once again Stanley gives us a bunch of uninteresting, unlikable characters, and we don't really have too many feelings about them. The film is also far too long, and there's not a lot going on to retain interest, apart from repeated artistic scenes and images, which to be fair are nice to look at but there's not much depth. There is a lot of mumbo-jumbo involving witch doctors and the like. Robert Burke brings a certain level of complexity to his character, but the final revelation is somewhat disappointing. Chelsea Field is a tough heroine but never makes us feel for her character, while Zakes Mokae is rather good as the policeman investigating.There are a number of gory shocks along the way, such as a dream where the policeman has his internal organs pulled out by a burnt skeleton, or the severed fingers, or the moment where the hitch-hiker's head literally explodes, in a scene worthy of Cronenberg's SCANNERS. If you're into arty films like this then you'll probably enjoy DUST DEVIL, but I'm afraid they're not really my cup of tea. There can be no understating the disturbing nature of the film, however, and it played on my mind afterwards.

Edgar Soberon Torchia This comment is related to the director's cut of "Dust Devil", one of the biggest film disappointments I have had in recent years, in part due to the story surrounding its release: it creates expectation and anticipation, making one think that this is another case of American distributors ravaging a fine work. Perhaps the 87 minutes version produced by Miramax is execrable (if -as they say- everything supernatural was cut, and the role of policeman Ben Mukurov was reduced), but I can understand the reaction they had. No one can justify damaging a work, but at least we can understand the intention to "fix" what was seen as bad. Later director Richard Stanley was able to rescue the negatives and finish the film as he wanted. Unfortunately the result is not good. Starting with the casting, there is actor Robert John Burke as a villain that is more repellent that frightful, wearing a long coat, perhaps to make a connection to Sergio Leone's westerns: considering that this is a demon conceived in African soil, the entity had a bad wardrobe consultant in Hell, as he looks like a product of globalization, a Texan by way of an Italian costumer. Then you have a female character (played by Chelsea Field) that alternates between being a nasty, racist, promiscuous woman, and being plain dumb: even by the standards of horror film, what young woman would give a ride twice to an entity that, when she picked it up the first time, literally vanished from her moving car, and who was nowhere to be found when she got off? But this lady does, and by minute 59 she is seduced by the entity, dances with the dust demon and then they have sex, anticipating the ending of this silly tale even to a spectator who is a non-expert in demonic possession. However "Dust Devil" has the visual virtue to make you feel that you are watching something magnificent: besides the splendid locations in Namibia, Stanley deserves an applause for introducing pseudo-mythic elements -very nicely evoked by late John Matshikiza, as a film projectionist, in dreams as well as in what is left of a drive-in cinema in the desert; or proposed by Marianne Sägebrecht, as a forensic surgeon- that create an atmosphere of terror associated with the ancient religions that had good and evil divinities related to Nature. On the other hand, there is an interesting subplot pointing at political and social unrest. But in the end this is an underdeveloped aspect of the story that makes little contribution to the story, and that seems as "local color", comparable to the camera flourishes (including aerial shots or travelings in and back) that add to nothing. The key character of Mukurov (Zakes Mokae), the only one who seems to have a strong purpose and a credible dark past, gets lost in all the mumbo jumbo and dusty events, until the film reaches its predictable end.

fedor8 DD is not a run-of-the-mill horror film, and that certainly can't be a bad thing. A serial-killer premise, but fantasy-based i.e. not your typical "Copycat" type of garbage. When you make your serial-killer a demon, then you have all the excuses you need to make him near-invincible - unlike the plethora of modern-day horror thrillers in which the very human killer seems to have God-like powers. Set in Namibia, which helps give the film a more-or-less unique look and feel. The movie does tend to move very slowly in the first hour, but the decent soundtrack and the visuals mostly make up for it. At times I couldn't get past the funny South African accents.Just one noteworthy objection: why didn't they cast the first female victim as the star of the movie and killed off "Wendy" at the beginning instead? The former is much prettier...I didn't quite buy the casting of Marianne Sagebrecht as a pathologist. She is your classic Putzfrau or fat housewife.

K_Todorov A mesmerizing look into African lore and ghost stories, Richard Stanley's Dust Devil is an ingeniously crafted piece of cinematic marvel. A Sergio Leone western imbued with supernatural horror and surrealism it is a self-destructive journey filled with sorrow and regret.Loosely based around the stories of a Namibian serial killer "Dust Devil" is the supernatural tale of a creature, ancient as the earth itself. He takes many forms, wandering throughout the deserts, searching not for salvation but for Death. He is attracted to those (if only subconsciously) wishing, praying for their own demise. Hungry for souls he can only offer his prey a less painful death. The true gruesomeness comes afterwards, the flesh is torn, the body severed, some parts eaten, the blood is drained and used for what it seems a ritual, the whole act after the death is a ritual. That thing caring the disguise of a man (John Robert Byrke), that Dust Devil as the people of the Namib had named him, takes a finger from his victim as a souvenir and leaves, searching for the next one. On his trail is a broken-down police detective tortured by his own inner demons. He chases the Dust Devil refusing to believe that maybe he is dealing with something supernatural. A woman, runs away from her husband, she travels past the SAR border and into Namibia. The dying town of Bethany is where she first crosses paths with the creature. There will be some romance, beliefs will be put to the test, there will be regret and there will be blood."Dust Devil" has this gloomy mystical atmosphere like a "High Plains Drifter" or a "Once Upon A Time in The West", whichever you prefer. The way the story is told, through small hints rather than a complete explanation about everything, it leaves room for interpretation. The way the tension builds up from the opening introduction to the Dust Devil legend and with every bit of information we learn about him after wards until the culmination. There isn't an explosion, and the tension doesn't leave after the credits start rolling, it stays with you for sometime.Surreal imagery combined with what looks like an Italian western. Marvelously shot. The scenery combined with the Leone-sque camera-work, the least to say is that it's beautiful. The lifeless desert becomes a character of its own, brought to life thanks to Richard Stanley's stylistic choices. Simon Boswell's grim score is a perfect match to the movie's feel, endless torment for those involved in the plot.Stanley's choice for a small cast is a good one, not just for financial concerns. The trio leading characters are fleshed out, whether likable or not, when the final confrontation comes you know you've learned everything you need to learn about them. The acting is sort of a mish mash, there some things that could've been done better I suppose but still overall pretty good stuff."Dust Devil" is what "High Plains Drifter" would have been had Eastwood pumped up the supernatural factor. It's a horror movie with superb atmosphere and griping plot, shot brilliantly. A forgotten masterpiece, Richard Stanley crafts artistic terror equal to some of the greatest classics in the horror genre.