Ross McElwee screens Bright Leaves at Greensboro film festival

Ross McElwee Film Bright Leaves reviewed by Allan Maurer

Allan reviews Bright Leaves...again.

Ross McElwee answered questions following a showing of his latest work, "Bright Leaves," at the Carolina Film & Video Festival at the University of N.C. at Greensboro last night. He's as wryly witty behind the podium as he is in his autobiographical films, icons of personal cinema, a genre he pioneered with "Sherman's March."

"Bright Leaves," a continuation of his ongoing autobiographic journal on film, shows McElwee's growth as an artist, filmmaker, and person. It's less-self-centered than his earlier work, although that isn't necessarily a flaw in those earlier films, but rather, it adds depths and layers of meaning to "Bright Leaves." He's married and has a son, and his wife and son have roles in this film, as do his cousins, late father, a Hollywood movie, tobacco fields, and a rabid film theorist.

The spontaneity so much a part of McElwee's films comes in part from his generally spontaneous method of working, or so we gathered from his answers to several questions last night. We've mentioned here before that numerous other filmmakers who have followed in Ross' footsteps to do personal cinema cite his influence.

McElwee, replying to a journalist who mentioned that his work reminded her of Michael Moore's "Roger & Me," said, "Michael called me up and told me he was inspired to do that film after seeing "Sherman's March."

We'll be adding an extended interview with Ross, assuming all goes well during our visit to the winner's night presentations at the Carolina Film & Video Festival this evening, to our www.ncflix.com site, and an extended look at his body of work as well.