Thursday, December 18, 2008

The Seashell & The Clergyman -First Surrealist Film

The Seashell and the Clergyman (French: La Coquille et le clergyman) is considered by many to be the first surrealist film. It was directed by Germaine Dulac, from an original scenario by Antonin Artaud, and premiered in Paris on 9 February 1928. The film follows the erotic hallucinations of a priest lusting after the wife of a general.

Although accounts differ, it seems that Artaud disapproved of Dulac's treatment of his scenario. The film was overshadowed by An Andalusian Dog (1929), written and directed by Luis Buñuel and Salvador Dalí. To this day, An Andalusian Dog is considered the first surrealist film, and its foundations in The Seashell and Clergyman have been all but overlooked. However, the iconic techniques associated with surrealist cinema are all borrowed from this early film. The film is only 28 minutes long. Part 1 is below and the other 2 parts can be found on YouTube for anyone who wants to watch it.

Part 1

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