The Inferno of First Love/Nanami

The Inferno of First Love/Nanami

1968. Japan. Directed by Susumu Hani. Screenplay by Shuji Terayama, Hani. With Haruo Asano, Kuniko Ishii, Misako Miyato. One of the most powerful themes of this ATG retrospective is that of incest and childhood abuse. The Inferno of First Love is a particularly haunting example of this, made all the more disturbing for the erotic atmosphere that pervades it. The film, which centers on an adolescent boy whose love for a beautiful young model is corrupted by memories of sexual molestation, remains an unforgettable collaboration between two dramatically distinct voices of independent Japanese cinema and art, Hani and Terayama (the latter also represented in this exhibition with Emperor Tomato Ketchup, Cage, and Throw Away Your Books, Let’s Go into the Streets). Print lent by Harvard Film Archive/The Japan Foundation; courtesy the filmmaker. In Japanese; English subtitles. 104 min.