Search - Films of Bela Tarr 3-pack Set (The Outsider / Prefab People / Family Nest) on DVD

Good, but nowhere near the stature of Tarr's later work...

Grigory's Girl | NYC | 04/24/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I love Bela Tarr's work. I think he's one of the greatest filmmakers working today. This set contains his first three features, and while they are certain interesting, they are nowhere near as good as his later work. His directorial style is very realistic here, a far cry from his amazing, latter day style. He uses hand held camera shots exclusively here, giving the film a gritty, cinema verite feel, very much like John Cassavettes (a director whose work Tarr admires). The films are about contemporary Hungary and the people's dealings with employment, relationships, despair, children, alcoholism, etc., etc.. While these films are interesting to watch (the best is The Outsider), they pale in comparison to Tarr's later work, which is truly astounding and amazing. Tarr uses long, beautifully choreographed takes in his later films (Almanac of Fall, Damnation, Satantango, and Werckmeister Harmonies), and that's really his "niche". These films don't have the scope and depth of the later films, either. Watch these if you're a Tarr admirer to see how he started out."