POSTPONED: Sunday Screening – Sean Langan recommends Sherman’s March

"Whether he really set off in search of General Sherman, or a Southern girlfriend, we’ll never know. But one thing is for sure: this film would never have got commissioned if he’d pitched it. And it would never have been so wonderful if he’d followed a deadline, rather than his intuition. A rare delight, a true slice of life, an inspiration to many, and funny as f***. It’s not why I got into films, but reminds me of why it’s worth persevering."

– Sean Langan

Originally intended, and funded, as a documentary about General Tecumseh Sherman’s devastating march through Georgia and the Carolinas in the last year of the American Civil War, Sherman’s March the film’s focus shifts as a result of the filmmaker’s break up with his girlfriend.

Unable to forget his personal concerns, McElwee decides to continue to follow the course of the Sherman’s march but is frequently sidetracked by women and hopes of love and romance, which are frequently disappointed.

Combining portraits of local characters and old girlfriends, the film shows McElwee’s painful, hilarious, and epic journey while examining the legacy and complexity of General Sherman’s own life, the film also gives fascinating insight into corporate greed, religious zeal, and impending nuclear doom in America in the ’80s.

1986
Directed by Ross McElwee
157 mins

Recommends is a new screening strand in which friends of Frontline select one of their favourite documentaries.