Sherman's March: Charismatic or Just a Facade?

McElwee initially planned to make a film about the effects of General William Sherman’s march through Georgia and the Carolinas during the Civil War. The actual footage in the documentary was prompted by a traumatic breakup McElwee experienced prior to filming, which made it very difficult for him to separate personal and professional concerns. This shifted the focus of the film entirely creating a more singular and personal narrative about the women, love, romance, and religion in his life. McElwee is not a typically good-looking or Casanova-esque ideal male character, but his honest nature and underdog appeal carry his film throughout its simply organized framework. In regards to its structure, the film follows a repetitive narrative pattern. To explain, he becomes infatuated with various women, developing feelings for each of the subjects, only to have his own romantic hopes crushed in the process.

If these are grounds for a successful, well-crafted, and interesting documentary, then I believe anyone is capable of being a documentary filmmaker. I have an interesting life and a job and romance, in my opinion, so I would watch a film about my life. But what makes others want to watch? What made people want to watch a film on an obscure filmmaker and his exploits? McElwee is a man’s man; he is a normal guy with normal problems.

The audience can relate to him and this draws a connection between the film and the people watching. McElwee is successful with his film because he is a believable character, contrastingly so to that of Banksy, who is questioned for his own integrity. We get to know McElwee's hopes, concerns, and nightmares. The audience gets to take a seat behind the camera side-by-side with McElwee as he tries to forge new relationships and to revisit important relationships. McElwee's approach in the film is simultaneously revealing and somewhat mysterious. He is open and candid to the point where it is unnerving but the more the film develops, the more the audience becomes aware that there are many aspects of the relationships he is filming that they are not privy to. We cannot help but wonder about the narrator and question who he really is. That is what makes his film and style so charismatic and successful.