Jim Jarmusch’s 2019 horror comedyThe Dead Don’t Dieis now streaming on Netflix, but what is going on with the Sturgill Simpson song in the movie?The Dead Don’t Diestars Adam Driveramong its incredibly star-studded cast, which also includes the likes of Selena Gomez, Bill Murray, Austin Butler, and Tilda Swinton, among others. AlthoughThe Dead Don’t Dieis technically a zombie movie and follows some familiar beats, it also breaks with that genre in myriad ways because,at its core,The Dead Don’t Dieis really a parody of zombie movies.
The Dead Don’t Diealso provides considerable social commentary—after all, in this movie, the zombies are created due to fracking—which is at times heavy-handed, although it is intentionally so. Overall, these elements ofThe Dead Don’t Diegive the movie a bit of a bizarre tone, which has likely contributed to its mixed reception. This absurdist approach is also seen in the movie’s song, “The Dead Don’t Die,” which is prominent throughout the movie and plays a unique role in the story.
Adam Driver’s In-Movie Reference To The Song Sets The Tone
The Dead Don’t Dieis full of dry humor and meta satire, and this song is no exception. In fact, Adam Driver’s character, Officer Ronnie Peterson, offers a meta commentary on this song very early on in the movie. As Officer Ronnie and Chief Cliff Robertson (Bill Murray) are patrolling in their police car, Ronnie turns the car radio on, and “The Dead Don’t Die” begins playing. After a beat, Cliff says,“Wow, that sounds so familiar. What is that song, Ronnie?“To which Ronnie replies,“It’s ‘The Dead Don’t Die,’ by Sturgill Simpson.”
Adam Driver’s character, Officer Ronnie Peterson, offers a meta commentary on this song very early on in the movie.
Cliff again says,“Sturgill Simpson… Why does it sound so familiar?“At this point,Ronnie becomes entirely self-referential, saying,“Well, ‘cause it’s the theme song.“The two then listen to the song in a bit of an awkward silence. This is far from the only inclusion of “The Dead Don’t Die” in the movie, however. The song plays so frequently throughout the movie, in fact, that towardsthe end ofThe Dead Don’t Die, Officer Mindy Morrison (Chloë Sevigny) hears the song come on once more and yells,“Oh, God! Not that again.”
Mindy was evidently not alone in this sentiment. Shortly after Mindy’s comments (and Ronnie’s dry rebuttal,“Sturgill Simpson. It’s a great song”), Cliff told Ronnie,“I can’t take anymore"and not only turned off the song but also pulled out the CD and threw it out the window of the moving car. Despite that move by Cliff, the song plays again one last time, during the credits.
This early reference to the movie’s theme song by Ronnie sets the tone for the meta nature ofThe Dead Don’t Diemore broadly. Driver’s character Ronnie especially provides meta commentary, including his consistent statement,“This is going to end badly.“This really comes to a head when Cliff angrily asks Ronnie how he manages to know everything before it happens, and Ronnie says,“I know because I’ve read the script.”
This odd song and the references to it are a way to signal to the audience that this is not going to be a typical zombie movie.
This conversation continues even beyond that, with Ronnie specifically referencing Jim (Jarmusch) giving him the whole script and Cliff saying he only had the scripts for their scenes. In that sense, this odd song and the references to it are a way to signal to the audience that this is not going to be a typical zombie movie. Rather,“The Dead Don’t Die” reinforces that the movie isn’t taking itself seriously and isn’t meant to be taken all that seriously by the audience, either.
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The Song Was Always Intended To Be A Long-Running Gag
Unsurprisingly,“The Dead Don’t Die” was written and recorded specifically for the movie, which makes sense not only because of their shared titles but also because of the prominence the song has inThe Dead Don’t Die. This also makes the name-dropping of Sturgill Simpson so much funnier. Just asDirector Jim Jarmuschwas being referenced directly in the movie as the creator, Sturgill Simpson was, in a sense, a part of this world himself.
Given the meta nature ofThe Dead Don’t Die, there was really no other choice but to have an original song created for the movie. This not only gave the creative minds behind the movie more agency in crafting a song that fit the story but also made the long-running gag with the song work. In a sense, the song and the movie were intertwined, and the song—and its lyrics—therefore had to be just right.
The Movie Has A Specific Message
In addition to “The Dead Don’t Die” being important in a narrative sense inThe Dead Don’t Die,the lyrics of “The Dead Don’t Die” are also significant. In fact,The Dead Don’t Diehas plenty to say about the nature of present day society and its many issues, best captured in the song’s lyrics:
“In a somewhat-familiar town
That you saw once when you looked up from your phone
Nobody bothers saying ‘Hi’
And you’re able to save all your goodbyes
Stop trying to pretend that we’re all not alone”
While bleak, this messaging underscores the entire movie.
The reference to someone rarely looking up from their phone is of course a direct reference to today’s culture around screens and the lack of person-to-person interaction. The idea that, in light of that, everyone is really isolated, is also pressing in both the movie and the song.The Dead Don’t Dieis certainly an unusual zombie movie, but this song, created just for the movie, reveals so much more about its message.
The Dead Don’t Die
Cast
The Dead Don’t Die is a horror comedy released in 2019, directed by Jim Jarmusch. The Dead Don’t Die focuses on a small town in Centerville that struggles to battle off hordes of zombies after the dead come back to life. The film has a star-studded cast, including Bill Murray, Adam Driver, Tilda Swinton, Steve Buscemi, and Danny Glover.
