Reflective Encounters

In Hector Bell’s South-West based film, youthfulness and the naivety that comes with it is explored with a good sense of charm and nuance. As three young protagonists set off to buy their first ever bag of weed, they wait with nervous anticipation for what is potentially a defining moment in their friendships and, ultimately, life. The three characters play off each other wonderfully; scattered throughout the film there are some moments of well-delivered comedy, which flows nicely in this brisk film.

What First Timers does offer is an interesting perspective on both rural life and class tensions and how these two things are intrinsically linked together. The importance of the rural setting is noted through the director’s choice to regularly cut to shots of landscape and surroundings. The film highlights how in a compacted and small rural setting, issues like class divides can become exaggerated. Three friends with differing backgrounds mingle whereas in a bigger setting they may not have crossed paths.

The film makes the argument that inclusion of differing backgrounds and ideas is a positive one. It is this exploration of rurality and class alongside the film’s embodiment of the anxiety of the transition from adolescence to adulthood that really makes First Timers stand out.

— Tom Collinson