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Bright Leaves

  • 20032003
  • Not RatedNot Rated
  • 1h 47m
IMDb RATING
7.1/10
643
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
170,560
37,821
Bright Leaves (2003)
Home Video Trailer from First Run
Play trailer2:43
1 Video
2 Photos
DocumentaryBiographyComedy
McElwee family legend has it that the Hollywood melodrama "Bright Leaf" starring Gary Cooper as a 19th century tobacco grower, is based on filmmaker Ross McElwee's great-grandfather, who cre... Read allMcElwee family legend has it that the Hollywood melodrama "Bright Leaf" starring Gary Cooper as a 19th century tobacco grower, is based on filmmaker Ross McElwee's great-grandfather, who created the Bull Durham brand.McElwee family legend has it that the Hollywood melodrama "Bright Leaf" starring Gary Cooper as a 19th century tobacco grower, is based on filmmaker Ross McElwee's great-grandfather, who created the Bull Durham brand.
IMDb RATING
7.1/10
643
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
170,560
37,821
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Director
      • Ross McElwee
    • Writer
      • Ross McElwee
    • Stars
      • Allan Gurganus
      • Paula Larke
      • Marilyn Levine
    Top credits
    • Director
      • Ross McElwee
    • Writer
      • Ross McElwee
    • Stars
      • Allan Gurganus
      • Paula Larke
      • Marilyn Levine
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 17User reviews
    • 37Critic reviews
    • 79Metascore
    • Awards
      • 9 nominations

    Videos1

    Bright Leaves
    Trailer 2:43
    Bright Leaves

    Photos

    Bright Leaves (2003)
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    Top cast

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    Allan Gurganus
    • Self
    Paula Larke
    • Self
    Marilyn Levine
    • Self
    Emily Madison
    • Self
    Adrian McElwee
    Adrian McElwee
    • Self
    Ross McElwee
    Ross McElwee
    • Self
    Tom McElwee
    • Self
    Patricia Neal
    Patricia Neal
    • Self
    Vlada Petric
    • Self
    Charleen Swansea
    • Self
    • Director
      • Ross McElwee
    • Writer
      • Ross McElwee
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Scenes in the film show the harvesting of tobacco. The farmer refers to it as "cropping ". There are two terms in North Carolina for harvesting, cropping and priming. The use of one term versus the other is determined by an invisible line that runs roughly through the geographical middle of the state from east to west. To the north the term priming is used while cropping is used in the southern half.
    • Goofs
      The filmmakers states that the Duke tobacco trust was dissolved in the 1920's. The Supreme Court decision against American Tobacco was handed down on May 29, 1911.
    • Quotes

      Ross McElwee: As time goes by, my father is beginning to seem less and less real to me in these images. Almost a fictional character. I want so much to reverse this shift, the way in which the reality of him is slipping away. Having this footage doesn't help very much - or, at least, not as much as I thought it would.

    • Crazy credits
      Too many beauty queens to be named here
    • Connections
      Featured in At the Movies: Christmas with the Kranks/A Very Long Engagement/The Life and Death of Peter Sellers/Alexander/Bright Leaves (2004)

    User reviews17

    Review
    Top review
    10/10
    Tobacco poetry
    While it is still a personal documentary from McElwee, the master of the form, "Bright Leaves" is a film that speaks far beyond the personal. As McElwee films across the south, it seems everyone-- smoker or nonsmoker-- has a relationship with tobacco. The most amazing thing about the film is the filmmaker's even handedness and understanding for the pull that cigarette smoking has on his subjects, even though the filmmaker himself has never had a tobacco habit to peak of. Given Michael Moore's work and other popular documentaries of the day, the expectation is that "Bright Leaves" would have a stern and condemning view of the tobacco industry. On the contrary, he gives humorous insight on the age-old habit. McElwee's writing, as found in his narration, is incredibly poetic as it rolls along the blue hills of North Carolina. Even weeks later, I think of that last sequence of shots, the tanker of tobacco heading off to far lands, the shots of his son, and understand why I myself, like so many, have this attraction to smoking, or what McElwee calls the urge to give pause to time, and likens to his own filmmaking and photography.

    The most how genius moment features Vlada Petric, and McElwee's long standing side character, Charlene, is still a gift. The film really does stick with you for a long, long time, and deserves lots of exposure and great distribution.
    helpful•5
    2
    • holly500
    • Nov 2, 2003

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • October 8, 2004 (United Kingdom)
    • Countries of origin
      • United States
      • United Kingdom
    • Official sites
      • Official Site (United States)
      • PBS (United States)
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Яркие листья
    • Filming locations
      • Durham, North Carolina, USA
    • Production companies
      • Channel 4 Television Corporation
      • Homemade Movies
      • WGBH
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $77,888
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $4,485
      • Aug 29, 2004
    • Gross worldwide
      • $77,888
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • Runtime
      1 hour 47 minutes
    • Color
      • Color

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