Editor’s
note: Editor's Note: Previous lists by moi, by Rod Bishop
and by Bruce Hodsdon if you click here here and here .
Entries
invited to filmalert101@gmail.com
Michael writes: First features that have wowed me over the years and sticking to
Geoff's proposition that they should be first feature length films seen before
other films by each director and not as later catchups. So, for example,
I didn't see PATHER PANCHALI till some time after THE WORLD OF APU so that it's
not included. Similarly, with 400 BLOWS and of course we were denied the banned
BREATHLESS till after other Godard films had been seen in Australia.
David Hare has mentioned the
remarkable first film of Nuri Bilge Ceylan but I don't remember the order in
which I saw it.
Additionally I would have
included half of Geoff's list (the Italian, Chinese and Japanese titles) but decided to
highlight some others instead.
 |
| Lola |
LOLA (Jacques Demy, 1961)
swept many of us away when it appeared in Melbourne three or four years later
and it remains to dazzle over the years despite some controversial restoration
work.
MUNDANE HISTORY, Anocha
Suwichakornpong, 2009, seen at the Hong Kong IFF, seemed an astonishing, quiet
but intensely touching look at a young man's bitter frustration on finding
himself paralysed. The director's subsequently widely screened and lauded second
feature BY THE TIME IT GETS DARK (2016) extends significantly the promise of
the first feature. We are not including short works but her lovely GRACELAND
(2006) signifies a bright future.
THE DELTA (Ira Sachs, 1996)
came out of nowhere when I first saw it probably on a preview tape for a
festival. Sachs has continued to
surprise and delight with subsequent projects,
THE DAYS (Wang Xiaoshuai,
1993) was one of the most assured of the sixth generation works from China.
Happily the director has continued to stimulate us with many films including SO
CLOSE TO PARADISE, BEIJING BICYCLE, 11 FLOWERS, RED AMNESIA and more.
 |
| Betelnut |
BETELNUT (Yang Heng, 2006)
revealed a new director who knew precisely how to use landscapes and long shots
most creatively, aspects that have continued in his later SUN SPOTS, LAKE
AUGUST and GHOST IN THE MOUNTAINS.
FROM AFAR (DESDE ALLE, Lorenzo
Vigas, 2015) is another enormously assured debut and one that continues to
satisfy after repeated viewings.
MOUNTAIN (Yaelle Kayam, 2015)
is an unexpected and totally assured Israeli drama directed by a young woman
who studied at the VCA Film School in Melbourne. One anticipates wonderful
films in the future.
REBELS OF THE NEON GOD (Tsai
Ming-Liang, 1992). Fresh from the lab and shown privately to a few guests at a
film festival in 1992, the film announced a major new talent who really
explored the frustrations and agonies of young people in Taipei. The rest is
history.
 |
| The Life of Jesus |
THE LIFE OF JESUS (Bruno
Dumont, 1997) A new filmmaker of huge potential could be seen at work when this
first feature appeared at film festivals.
GHOSTS OF THE CIVIL DEAD (John
Hillcoat, 1988) signalled a special new talent in Australian filmmaking.
CHRONICLE OF A DISAPPEARANCE
(Elia Suleiman, 1996) impressed with a unique and droll treatment of life under
very difficult circumstances.
GREEN FISH (Lee Chang-Dong,
1997) The first feature by Lee, a significant writer previously, dazzled with
its visual assurance. The director's subsequent films have continued to
astonish.
BADLANDS (Terrence Malick,
1973)
KNIFE IN THE WATER (Roman
Polanski, 1962)
 |
| Hard Eight |
HARD EIGHT (Paul Thomas
Anderson, 1996). Even on first viewing a laserdisc on a CRT, something riveting
leapt from the screen as several of us were swept away by this debut feature.
It was twenty years later that Melbourne Cinematheque screened a matchless 35mm
print of the film for proper appreciation.
Apologies to the directors of
some important omissions to this rather hastily prepared list.
_________________________________________________
Geoff, think I've exceeded
your quota. Apologies.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.