AMATEUR

Amateur is by far, one of my favorite films of all time. The story is timeless and classic and may well win your heart over as well.

Amateur was released in 1994 and is a Hal Hartley film. His other credits include Flirt, and more recently Henry Fool and the short film, The Book of Life. In most of Hal Hartley's films, one of the best actors we have, Martin Donovan, appears in most of them. Parker Posey has appeared in several as well. PJ Harvey stars in The Book of Life, released in 1998, and contributes to the ethereal soundtrack on Amateur. They all tie in together.

Hal Hartley has an amazing directoral style that simple must be viewed to be best understood. You really need to see first hand how he directs the actors and commands control over the littlest things to the biggest things-such as dialogue. You will not forget Amateur after you see how well the dialogue is presented.

Alongside Martin Donovan is Isabelle Hupbert, who later shows up in another good film also starring Martin Donovan, called Nadja-produced by David Lynch. But Amateur is really unique.

It is a comedy but a dark comedy at that. I don't think I've ever seen a comedy like this. You will be smiling and laughing at the characters and the quirks, but no one on screen ever laughs. It's the special precision deadpan style of humor that really contributes to the uniqueness of the film.

Amateur is about a nun, who after leaving the convent, decides to make a living by writing pornography. Interested yet? Her life takes a turn for the worse when she comes across a man in a suit lying in the street (Martin Donovan). He's been pushed from a window of a building and wakes up with amnesia and has no idea who he is or where he is. The two strike up a sort of kinship and slowly begin to run into some other interesting characters, namely (Isabelle Hupbert) among others, who all seem to have a less than desirable connection with this man. All of the characters refuse to tell him who he was, because he "was such a terrible man!" they say. That's really all I want to say about the plot and the movie. I feel compelled to save the rest for you!

When I first saw this movie, I was so floored by it. I bought it soon after and have watched it probably a hundred times now, constantly letting friends borrow it, bringing with me to movie night at people's houses, etc. It's a fantastic, funny film that will make you sad as well as make you laugh. It is one of the most overlooked gems of the past decade! Please don't miss it!

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: VHS
Video Occasion: Good Date Movie
Suitability For Children: Not suitable for Children of any age