I love this movie so much

Simply A Masterpiece

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

The biggest problem of the movie is that the movie has no effect at all which I recently learned that they call it deadpan. The reactions of the characters are extremely soulless. The movie is not humorous because of those except the famous dance scene and the guy who helps Kate. This short part is the only interesting part and the guy is the only acceptable character of the movie, as said, all the other characters are too emotionless. This cannot be explained by nihilism or Godard's 'anti-cinema' style. Simple Men is not a road movie, despite the main story is that two brothers leave the city to find their father. I had expected an interesting and colorful road movie, at least a movie. There is an emptiness feeling throughout the movie, so if you expect any kind of dramatic or stunning material, you disappoint seriously. Again because of this deadpan style of the director, no art, no entertainment. Cinematography is just OK, but owing to the problems mentioned above, finally the film is lack of an impressive cinema experience. The director puts up a solid wall between the movie and audiences, I don't mean catharsis or I don't mean empathy, these are not must, but this wall makes the movie distasteful and soulless. Some people complain about acting in the movie, but acting was not weak, there is no problem with acting, it was plausible. The thing makes them think like that is probably deadpan that the director likes. By the way, Simple Men is not predictable, but does not include any twist or surprise.

What would Hal Hartley's movies be without the eccentric characters? Here is the ex-baseball player hiding in a boat quoting Proudhon to a religiously following Romanian epilectic girl less than half his age that definitely has her own way of dancing to Sonic Youth. Referencing here and there, many lost on me I guess, but the way everything is downplayed makes it so funny at times.Hal Hartly is so good in casting. I think I liked every actor and actress he has chosen. Here, Elina Lövensohn shines, Karen Sillas is so natural and Robert John Burke is highly dramatic, like he was as the monster in 'No Such Thing'. The rest is seriously deadpan, which is a good thing.

This is a beautifully made film that has dialogue that literally sparkles and puts 90% of Hollywood scripts to shame though that is admittedly not too difficult. I adore Hartley's use of language and the way he lets the actors perform in front of his camera. The post-drinking scene where they dance to Sonic Youth's Kool Thing is inspired cinema, also the scene where Donovan lists his decent bands 'the old Who'. The best scene is at the end though. I find it incredibly moving each time that this man who has constantly denied his feelings and fought his past is drawn to rest his head gently on the breast of the woman he has grown to love. Though surrounded by police the camera focuses only on his face as we hear the words 'Don't move' off-camera. Why would he move when he has finally found where he belongs? Immaculate framing, marvellous pace and a genuinely affecting story all combine to make this my second favourite Hartley film after 'Amateur' which is untouchable as far as I am concerned.

This movie is amazing. In a lot of ways it is an extremely painful movie to watch, watching people create their own destruction, watching the action play out a certain inevitability. But it's different also from a lot of stories, in that this kind of arc does not just continue on to its logical conclusion. The characters do not simply hurtle forth, but are always capable of thinking, changing. Really, really good.