All My Friends Are Funeral Singers (2010) Reviews

• Fascinating innovative imaginative supernatural thriller

  mrcibubur2010-07-31

  This is a quite wonderful film to watch if you like a supernatural thriller. Not sure if it is really a thriller but its certainly not a horror movie or a comedy. It is a ghost film with a difference and despite the eerie music will keep you entertained and engrossed from beginning until end. the film begins (and ends)with non-explicit sexual references but that gives nothing away about the story that the film tells. Zel is clearly a lonely fortune teller living alone (with a load of 'trapped' ghosts) in a big house which we must assume she inherited from her grandmother. Zels relationship with the 'little girl' is fascinating just for that and how she acts out 'Frankie' for example in the brief moments that she is 'called upon' is captivating viewing in the movie. The earlier commentator is critical of the music but the movie deals with life and death and the eeriness of the music is representative of a sombre mood within the mood. I am not quite sure why one of the ghosts relates to the child the connection and coincidence of the Lincoln/Kennedy assassinations but I have kept a special note about it since and researched it further on the internet. We can suspect that Zels boyfriend (is it Alan or the man asking the ghosts about themselves and why they died?)does not live at the house and is an occasional visitor himself (but not a ghost). The narratives which appear constantly on the screen, at first annoying, we soon realise are essential to the telling of the story, thank goodness for DVD and the ability to 'pause'! I loved the way one of the ghosts was prompted to explain why she was trapped and attracted to the 'light'. So much to commend about this film, I am just surprised that I am only the second person to make comment about it on this website. It is an unmissable film simply because it is different and makes us wonder.

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• Thoughtful suspense

  ctan01-5-9814462011-03-18

  The characters and plot of this film are a delight to watch. It takes a bit of patience for them to tell their stories, but when they do, it makes sense for how they have behaved. Zel is both brave and fragile at the same time. She is very aware of her odd circumstances and seems at a crossroad as whether to continue on or allow for big changes. The surprise ending leaves the viewer amused because it is so surreal. This movie is definitely a supernatural story. Because of the gentle manner in which the tale unfolds, it is a refreshing as well as haunting viewing experience. If you want an in-your-face movie experience, you might want to pass on this one. If you are ready for a sublimely told story of a woman and her ghosts this is a film for you.

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• If You're Expecting Horror, Think Again

  TheExpatriate7002010-06-23

  Before we go any farther, one thing needs to be made clear. Angela Bettis fans who are expecting a gory horror movie along the lines of May or Sick Girl are going to be disappointed. This is basically a quirky comedy with supernatural elements, focusing on a backwoods fortune teller and the small army of ghosts that inhabit her house. Although not a bad film, there isn't much to recommend about it either. For the first half of the picture, the plot does not so much flow as drift, going from one vignette to another with no real reason or logic behind them. Only in the second half, in which we focus on the ghosts' struggle to leave the house, do things begin to pick up. The tendency of the film to spend minutes on end watching the performances of a group of ghost musicians, which serve no purpose other than to promote the Califones, the band of director Tim Rutili. These sequences are distracting, and detract from the film overall. Nevertheless, the film strangely works, with a quirky sense of humor that is at times genuinely amusing. The denouement in particular is quite funny.

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• a delightful cull from antique superstitions

  xordu12012-05-28

  All My Friends Are Funeral Singers is a mood-appropriate title for this folksy, low-key, surreal story of a woman and her inherited ghost family. It takes one out of time; there's very little that dates this film to 2010, short of one character's cell phone ring. Besides that this film exists purely in its own world and time-frame, much like the main character Zel herself, whose independence makes her immediately relatable. Her love for the ghosts feels as natural as anything, as if there were nothing supernatural about it. And in many senses that's the approach whole movie seemed to take, taking the charms and superstitions of a dead magick and putting them in a down-to-earth context. The ghosts themselves keep the film quite entertaining, either through beautiful creative music from the wonderful Califone playing themselves as dead blind men, or through very amusing unpredictable anecdotes and dialog ("I hung myself with my something blue…" says the one in the wedding dress). Even the silent Nyla burned as a radiant core for the film's dreamlike heart. The mood is half this film, and so it won't be for everyone. Sometimes the shifting images and cacophonous soundscapes can be chaotic, but never in an abrasive or confrontational way. Everything about this film is inviting. Easily put, it's a 'good vibe'. And there is very creative use of imagery and especially props and set design. I can imagine upon repeated viewings, there's always going to be some strange new novel item spotted in Zel's house so full of these uncommon trinkets. There's much to explore in its authentic-feeling space. All these elements and more craft this mood that is like a wonderful dream that you want to tell everyone about but can't find the words to explain. There's also something quite moving about this film. As one might imagine for those like me who were aware of Califone first, its has that warming but sometimes bittersweet emotion that Califone's music often has. Despite using motifs of superstition, this film also dispels them in a very subtle way. The final moment brings it all together, and I will admit that I applauded when it was done. I recommend it for lovers of mood films, and its worth watching with loved ones, as you might find yourself appreciating them very much at the films completion.

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• a fun flic for snacks and a big glass of cold wine!

  cekadah2012-12-02

  munch those goodies and sip that wine and i guarantee you will have fun. this movie is not a laugh riot. instead it's a chuckle time story full of trapped spirits that just play all day. the owner of the spirit filled house is a so-so fortune teller that has a regular clientèle which add to the chuckles. especially the argumentative widow - what a character! then the fortune teller has reason to get the spirits out but how that happens is revealed at the end of the story. expect no great acting nor expect a logical plot line - i didn't (maybe it was the wine). but it's fun to watch and enjoy for lite entertainment.

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