A dead man crashes eight friends' lives before his own funeral—eternity's messy, y'all.
At the beginning of the epic feature Praying the Hours, the Traveling Man dies in an accident caused by someone he trusts and loves. During the time it takes for him to cross from this life to the next, he visits eight friends with whom he has surprising unresolved business. He sees their lives from the vantage point of eternity, giving him glimpses of beauty and struggle that mirror his own. His journey culminates in a wedding where he views his own life with tender grace—just as he is leaving it. His bittersweet tale, imagined from real events, allows us to see how hard times and even death can make way for transcendence.
Direction
Farrer's 188-minute gamble on audience patience actually pays off.
Writing
Eight 'hours' as character names—liturgical structure sneaks up on you.
Director
Lauralee Farrer
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The 'hours' structure mirrors Liturgy of the Hours, a Catholic monastic prayer cycle—Farrer adapts ancient spiritual discipline for secular grief processing.
The Traveling Man's death-by-betrayal from a trusted loved one deliberately echoes Judas/Christ dynamics without being explicit, letting the parallel deepen the grace theme.
US
