Bright Leaves

Aroview: One of dir. McElwee's best features, in which he traces his own family history in the tobacco business in typically divergent, distracted and delightful fashion.

After a chance viewing of an obscure Hollywood film 'Bright Leaf' (1950), about a war between North Carolina tobacco growers, McElwee recognises it is based on his own great-grandfather's life. Investigating the complex cultural and economic legacy of the tobacco industry in the American South through the distinctly personal style that is his trademark, he crafts a wise vision of the paradoxes of life.

NZ International Film Festival 2004

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