DocBlog Playlist: Sherman’s March & Titicut Follies

07.14.08 | by Jay C | 91 Comments

Sherman's March

Sherman’s March (1986)
Directed by Ross McElwee

The great thing about Sherman’s March is the overall simplicity of the idea. The success of such a personal film depends completely on the personality of the director (Ross McElwee), who’s decided to put himself in front of the camera in a project that began as one thing; a historical look at General Sherman’s Civil War march, and became another; an autobiographical search for true love.

It’s important to put McElwee into context here. This is a man who can be summed up by his consistent nightmares about nuclear holocaust. (One trait I seem to share with him) His initial interest in Sherman’s March is thwarted by an unexpected break up with his girlfriend, thus setting forth a film that seems to take on a life of its own as friends and family attempt to hook Ross up with just about any single female they know. Some are attractive and polite, while others are outspoken and strange. You can imagine which ones Ross actually manages to secure dates with. I’d have to say Pat is the most unusual of the bunch. She’s quick to show Ross her cellulite exercises, squatting and thrusting to his shocked delight. She’s also an aspiring actress, on a mission to star in a Burt Reynolds film. Once she’s out of the picture, Ross takes on the burden of hunting down Burt Reynolds for a one on one interview, but ends up settling for a look-a-like.

At one point in the film, Ross meets up with Charleen, a friend and former teacher of his. The chemistry between these two is comic gold. Charleen completely takes advantage of Ross’ quite and passive tendencies, insisting that she help him find a lady. “I am bored with your singleness. You have been insufficient in this quest, so I have to take over…because I’m going to be so bored with your loneliness, that I’m going to have to dump you myself.” Charlene finds Ross the “perfect woman”, a singer/songwriter named Dede. She plays him a cassette tape of her music, enthusiastically selling her like a used car salesman. Upon their first meeting, Charleen boisterously confronts Ross about his insistent need to film everything; “This is not art! This is life!”. Her enthusiasm to make a love connection ends up creating a gloriously awkward meeting that borders on cringe-worthy. Ross responds by simply hiding behind his camera.

McElwee brilliantly weaves the story of General Sherman throughout his journey, creating his own historical path of destruction. Clocking in at just over two and a half hours, this film is an epic look at relationships and love, rivaling the best of Hollywood’s neurotic, self-deprecating, anti-heroes. Ross McElwee is a real life Woody Allen.

Titicut Follies

Titicut Follies (1967)
Directed by Frederick Wiseman

A few months ago I assembled a list of my personal top 25 documentaries of all time. The response was overwhelming, and although there were many readers that were satisfied by my choices, a great number pointed out a glaring omission, Frederick Wiseman’s ‘Titicut Follies’. At the time, I had yet to see the film. In fact, I hadn’t seen ANY Wiseman films, mainly due to a lack of access. Thankfully, Wiseman’s decision to release his films on DVD has given me the chance to check out this non-fiction classic. You were all right, it should’ve been on the list. HIGH on the list.

The opening of the film is appropriately surreal, setting the tone for the next hour and a half. A group of inmates dressed in white shirts and bow ties perform a song and dance number at the Massachusetts prison for the criminally insane. The talent show, MC’d by one of the head guards, is called ‘Titicut Follies’. It’s almost something you could imagine seeing in a Harmony Korine film. In fact, this entire movie is full of photography so surreal and mind blowing; it’s crazy to think it’s actually real. Wiseman’s direct cinema approach ends up naturally producing gorgeously disturbing images that are pure works of art.

Wiseman pulls no punches in his portrayal of the inhuman relationship between guards and inmates at this particular prison. In one scene, as some guards shave an older patients face, they continually ask him how clean his room is to the point of driving him mad. The result is a screaming, naked man shuffling down the hallway, bleeding from the mouth. Another inmate is force-fed through a tube in his nose, a scene in which Wiseman outright attacks the prisons methods by intercutting the preparation of the same man’s dead body. His statement on the inhumanity of the system is clear throughout the film, but is it really possible to come to any other conclusion?

The most frightening moment in the film comes from a prisoner who insists he isn’t crazy. He passionately pleads his case in front of a board of directors, claiming his time in the prison has actually hurt his progress, and the medication he’s forced to take is harming his mind. He sounds nervous and frantic, but seems completely mentally stable. The board ignores his concerns, responding by attacking his sense of logic, using condescending medical explanations for his current imprisonment. Their solution is to increase the amount of tranquilizers to tone down his behaviour. The man has been institutionalized for over a year. It’s like a horrible, real life nightmare.

Naturally, the film was initially met with some controversy and heavy resistance from the state of Massachusetts. Wiseman was accused of exploiting prisoners as claims were made that he didn’t get them to sign release forms. This resulted in Titicut Follies only being distributed and viewed for educational purposes. Luckily, the film eventually worked its way through its legal issues and has gone on to be considered one of the greatest works of direct cinema in film history.

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