Henry M
The only part of this movie which makes it really worthwhile is the scene in which Isabelle Huppert and Michael Imperioli interact. It was unique enough to be somewhat entertaining, but not a true B movie classic. The acting felt so artificial. Martin Donovan's portrayal was especially boring.
Rated 2/5 Stars •
Rated 2 out of 5 stars
09/07/23
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Audience Member
In a departure from sensorily infatuated auteurs like Pedro Almodóvar and David Lynch, indie favorite Hal Hartley gets his thrills through stylized dialogue rather than through a stylized setting. Dealing with that reality is appealing, albeit briefly - especially since he coats his deadpan yet gritty exchanges in a kitchen sink fashion that prefers to be thoroughly no-frills - but within the scope of a feature length do Hartley's stylistic tendencies and shortcomings become tangled. 1994's "Amateur," riding off the critical successes of "The Unbelievable Truth" (1990) and "Trust" (1992), is a joining of the reasons why Hartley can be a brilliant filmmaker and why he can also be a frustrating one
In the film, Isabelle Huppert leads Hartley's idiosyncratic ensemble as Isabelle, a former nun and alleged nymphomaniac currently making a living by writing pornographic stories. An annoyance to everyone around her - she likes to write in public, reading the filthy words of her works aloud - she, mostly alone, suddenly finds purpose in her life when an amnesiac named Thomas (Martin Donovan) mistakenly insinuates himself into her life and involves her in his quest to discover who he was before he lost the ability to remember.
Turns out that he's hardly the gentle soul he appears to Isabelle as. In actuality, he was a nefarious pornographer whose recent head bumping was a result of his porn star wife (Elina Löwensohn) attempting to kill him in self-defense. And that isn't all: he's also being targeted by a European arms merchant bent on revenge after a bad deal, with hired guns chasing him and desperate for a hit.
But for all its potentially explosive plot points does "Amateur" remain to be quizzically aloof, not unlike the days when Jean-Luc Godard made a living out of turning genres on their backs and making them his own with meticulous satire. Godard's films, particularly "Pierrot le Fou" (1965) and "Made in USA" (1966), were so fun because they coated their pretensions in supple color and ample tongue-in-cheek ticklishness.
Hartley, by contrast, makes a feature that's distinctly un-fun, the type of intellectual piece made by an auteur who doesn't much care if you're in on the cerebral jabbings he's trying to make a cinematic absolute.
Initially does "Amateur's" comic dryness and apparent lampooning of the action thriller genre smell fresh. But as the clock ticks is it clear that it says nothing and goes nowhere. It doesn't zing enough to sing with the humor it's trying to conjure - being straight-faced with a hint of whimsicality - and it doesn't stimulate enough to convincingly convey that it's trying to coddle the mind and not the heart.
The performers are effective and impressively able to bring some sort of interest to a mostly uninteresting film. Huppert notably stands out as a fetchingly bizarre creation. But I find it hard to be among Hartley's devotees, who rest easy when confronted with his conversationally dependent style. He strikes me as too detached for a filmmaker trying to deconstruct the notion that an auteur must also be visually skilled to have their must sprayed on every frame of the movie strip. At least he can find the mundanity in melodrama.
Rated 2/5 Stars •
Rated 2 out of 5 stars
02/03/23
Full Review
Audience Member
cinegeek.de Hal Hartley beansprucht für seine Filme, dass sie in der Realität spielen mit "echten" Figuren, die so sprechen wie "in echt". Die Geschichten aber, die er erzählt, müsste man mit "fancy" beschreiben, denn Hartley liebt das Schicke, das Modische. Wer nun den Ton wegdreht in Amateur, müsste meinen, ein Stück Leben zu sehen. Urbane Kriminalität, Grossstadt Isolation. Aber: Falsch geraten! Ein Hartley Plot beinhaltet merkwürdige Begegnungen und seltsame Ereignisse. Oft haben seine Charaktere eine doppelte Identität. Etwa Gärtner und Serienmörder. In Amateur lernen wir eine Nonne kennen, die auch noch Fotografin ist. Selbstredend ist sie auch noch Nymphomanin und natürlich ausserdem jungfräulich. Sie heisst Isabelle (Isabelle Huppert) und wir treffen sie zuerst in einem Cafe. Sie ist gerade dabei, ihre Pornografie zu schreiben (mit einem Laptop, was 1994 noch ungewöhnlich war). Später wird sie gefragt; "How can you be a nymphomaniac and never have sex?" Isabelle ist eben wählerisch. Amateur beginnt damit, dass ein scheinbar toter Mann auf der Strasse liegt. Später spaziert auch er in den Coffee Shop und versucht, mit Gulden zu zahlen. Er spricht aber wie ein Amerikaner. Der Mann hat ausserdem noch sein Gedächtnis verloren, nach einem Sturz aus dem Fenster. Ob er raucht, kann er deshalb nicht beantworten. Er weiss es nicht mehr. Ein angenehmer Typ, so wie ihn Martin Donavan oft spielt in Hal Hartley Filmen. Doch natürlich hortet auch er ein paar hässliche Geheimnisse! Später wird ein Mädchen namens Sofia (Elina Lowensohn) behaupten, dass er sie mit 12 drogensüchtig auf den Strich schickte (und heiratete). Wer ist dieser Mann? Isabelle lädt ihn ein in ihr Apartment und versucht seine Vergangenheit zu rekapitulieren. Stecken die Charaktere in Hal Hartley Filmen wirklich voller Überraschungen? Ich würde denken, sie überraschen uns eher damit, dass sie ihren Charakter einfach ändern. Isabelle hat bereits ihren Konvent verlassen und schreibt stattdessen Pornos. Sie nahm sich die Freiheit, jemand anders zu sein. Und Hartley selbst? Will er sich von gängigen Plots befreien? Und der Film? Ich finde die Idee besser als das fertige Werk.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
01/31/23
Full Review
Audience Member
I saw there was comparison between Hal Hartley & Jean-Luc Godard.
Well, it makes sense, particularly in terms of quirkiness.
Rated 2/5 Stars •
Rated 2 out of 5 stars
02/04/23
Full Review
Audience Member
A film with a different approach. It's about a man and his memory loss and a girl that writes dirty novels for a living. His history are slowly revealed and there is a pretty complicated past. A porn actress is involved, so are some very nutty characters.
Great actors, but non of them does any special performances. It looks like they was told to never impress. Sloppy story, sloppy film making and an all right soundtrack. Weird, but never really interesting.
4.5 out of 10 floppy discs.
Rated 2/5 Stars •
Rated 2 out of 5 stars
01/17/23
Full Review
Audience Member
I love this movie. Quirky and captures a spirit long since dead in NYC. Martin Donovan's best work and Isabelle Huppert is brilliant, as always.
Rated 4.5/5 Stars •
Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars
01/29/23
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