Tenacious D fan? Flight of the Concords obsessed? Check out our review of The History of Future Folk.
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| "Did you just call me Devo?" |
Some would say if you have seen one cute, comedy-based,
indie folk band you have seen them all, and I would tend to agree with them.
Flight of the Conchords and Tenacious D have pretty much dominated that scene
for a long time (and I happen to love both of those bands). However, The History of Future Folk, as well
as the namesake band Future Folk, still managed to put a big, goofy grin on my
face and charmed the hell out of me in the process.
The movie explains the origins of the real life band Future
Folk which consists of two guys who dress up in snazzy red spacesuits with
bucket helmets. They were sent from the
alien planet Hondo with nefarious intentions but the power of Earth’s music,
especially banjo music, sways them to our side.
The story is silly but they play it straight and with a solemn tone that
adds to the hilarity. It’s quite a low
budget film but they make everything work somehow. It does help if you
appreciate B movies or 1960’s style Martian films.
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| "Welcome to BanjoDome!" |
It’s adorable without
being cloying and with the short runtime it never overstays its welcome. The two leads
are very likable and the music
is really awesome. Fans of acoustic
guitar or bluegrass will absolutely love it.
Apparently, Future Folk have been around for almost a decade and I’m
glad this movie brought them to my attention.
Some parts of the film veer into quirky overload and if that isn’t your
cup of tea, you might find it grating. I
can see the more cynical hipsters trashing this movie because it does use
tropes common in indie style film.
However, if you are in the mood for a light comedy with some
knee-slapping banjo music, The History of Future Folk will fit the bill quite
nicely. They have helmets made out of
painted buckets—come on, how cute is that?!
-Review by Michelle Kisner