Film
What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases
Bookmark this pageAmateur (1994)
Director: Hal Hartley
Movie review
From Time Out Film Guide
Hal Hartley's movie - his most accessible and entertaining to date - starts with a man (Donovan) waking in a New York gutter, head bloodied, memory gone. Who is he? How did he get there? Was he a kindly soul, or a violent man linked to the Mob? Certainly for Isabelle (Huppert), an ex-nun and would-be pornographer, who lets him recuperate in her apartment, the latter seems to be true, particularly when a porn star (Löwensohn), a crazed accountant and two hitmen begin to intrude on their lives. A delightfully stylish and skewed picture of sex, violence and love in contemporary America, the film wears its more serious concerns (guilt, responsibility, exploitation, redemption) admirably lightly. Huppert is especially good, conjuring up a canny blend of hilarious melancholy and unexpected eroticism which, incidentally, provides the film-maker with his most poignant portrait yet of an ill-starred love affair. As ever, Hartley regulars do sterling service, while fine camerawork and plangent music add to the movie's more sensual pleasures. Enjoy.Author: GA
Cast & crew
Director: Hal Hartley
Producer: Hal Hartley, Ted Hope
Cast: Isabelle Huppert, Martin Donovan, Elina Löwensohn, Damian Young, Chuck Montgomery, David Simonds, Pamela Stewart, David Greenspan full cast
Duration: 105 mins
Most popular on this site
Top Stories
The 10 worst date movies
Just in time for Valentine's Day, we present ten of the least romantic films ever made
Where to watch this year's Oscar-nominated films
Find out where to watch 2012's Oscar-nominated films in London cinemas
10 unlikely badboy biopics
Featuring Phil Collins, Jeremy Clarkson, Nick Clegg, David Starkey and a host of other unlikely subjects
Interview: Sean Durkin on 'Martha Marcy May Marlene'
The first-time director of the brilliant new thriller discusses religious cults and robot boxing
Has David Cronenberg turned tame?
Has director David Cronenberg veered too far from his radical and bloody roots with new film 'A Dangerous Method'?
Pop-up cinema for Valentine's Day
Side-step romantic clichés with some alternative Valentine’s viewing
What do you think?
Post your review now