All My Friends Are Funeral Singers
Director: Tim Rutili

Dead Oceans
Sundance Film Festival 01.26

For those of you familiar with the Chicago-based rock and Baroque pop outfit Califone, chances are you have been waiting since 2007 to see this film. If you aren’t an indie music junkie but enjoy artful films with fairy tale elements, you’ll love this work just as much.

All My Friends Are Funeral Singers was written and directed by musician Tim Rutili. His screenplay is lyrical, poetic and is ultimately about learning to let go. Rutili wrote the film to coincide with an exclusive soundtrack that is to be played live by his band, Califone—In fact, the screening I attended in SLC was the first public screening of All My Friends Are Funeral Singers without the band’s live accompaniment.  While I enjoyed Rutili’s narrative storyline (especially the gypsy and ghost elements) as a Califone fan I couldn’t help but wonder how my cinematic experience would have been heightened with the bands’ live musical energy, playing in conjunction with the picture show. After all, this was the original way Rutili intended the film to be viewed. However, I do understand that in a film festival environment this isn’t possible for every single screening. Watch this movie either way, but peep their record labels’ site (deadoceans.com) first to make sure Califone gigging with the film. –Angela H. Brown

Screening Times:

  • Tuesday, January 26, 2010 – 9:00 pm – New Frontier on Main
  • Wednesday, January 27, 2010 – 9:00 pm – Egyptian Theatre
  • Thrursday, January 28, 2010 – 2:00 pm – Holiday Village Cinema 2
  • Friday, January 29, 2010 – 7:30 pm – Broadway Centre Cinemas 4
  • Saturday, January 30, 2010 – 3:00 pm – Yarrow Hotel Theatre