THE HISTORY OF FUTURE FOLK Review

Release Date: May 31, 2013 (Limited)
Available on VOD Platforms June 4th
Directors: John Mitchell, Jeremy Kipp Walker
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Film Pulse Score: 8/10

When discussing independent comedies, many times there’s buzz words that get thrown around like “quirky” and “charming.” Often when films intentionally try to achieve this, it proves detrimental and the end result is a forced sentimentality that is never truly earned. Fortunately, when looking at The History of Future Folk, this is not the case. It’s a charming, quirky, light comedy that is accessible and simply a joy to watch.

Future Folk are a real life bluegrass duo that hails from New York by way of a far off planet called Hondo.  This film provides a reenactment of how they ended up on Earth and subsequently saved it from total annihilation. The film stars Nils d’Aulaire and Jay Klaitz as Bill and Kevin, aliens sent here to destroy our planet in order to save their own. However, after discovering music, they instead form a bluegrass band.  How’s that for quirky?

The film, and the band, could most readily be compared to another comedy musical duo, Flight of the Concords, however everything Future Folk does feels like it’s their own style and creation. From their goofy lyrics, to their even more goofy space suits, it’s simply too hard not to love these guys.

Creating a musical comedy can be a fairly risky endeavor, with a lot of opportunities to have everything fall apart. It’s necessary to not only keep the laughs flowing, but also inject good music at an even and relevant pace.  The History of Future Folk excels on both accounts with great music that comes in at the right time coupled with hilarious dialogue.

It’s a film that doesn’t take itself too seriously, but at the same time it knows when to rein it in. Though most of it is ridiculous in a good way, there are several sweeter moments that show genuine human hondonian emotion without feeling sappy and heavy handed.

The short runtime and lighthearted feel makes the film accessible to a much wider audience than just indie movie lovers, though there’s still a lot of meat here for the more rabid cinephiles to sink their teeth into. It’s also light on swearing and violence, which feels refreshing, considering most decent comedies hitting theaters these days are R-rated.

The History of Future Folk combines great music with great comedy.  It’s a well-crafted science fiction tale that will leave you with a smile on your face and a song about farming space worms stuck in your head for weeks.  Tapping into those buzz words again, it’s simply the most charming film I’ve seen this year.

~Be sure to check out our interview with Future Folk Here.