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Strictly speaking, this was the first surrealist film, even though it was booed by surrealists at its premiere at the famous Studio des Ursulines cinema. As a result, it became one of the greatest artistic scandals of the 1920s. The little narration that does exist is essentially unimportant, as Antoine Artaud, the film's scriptwriter, was searching for the visual substance of film and cinéma pur. (Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival)
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This 30-minute excursion into the twisted soul and thoughts of a lecherous priest who lusts after a general's wife is a very graphic example of a film from the French film impressionism era. The abundance of visual effects and the emphasis on capturing the moment in the form of impressions make The Seashell and the Clergyman an exemplary work of its time that deserves attention, even if it didn't capture my full interest as a viewer. In short, a film that is historically and artistically worthy while being bound to a fairly limited audience.
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