Double-crossed and forced to flee town to evade the authorities, a small time crook joins his younger brother on a quest to track down their father, a former sporting legend turned anarchist, in this deliberately paced drama from Hal Hartley of 'Trust' fame. The film features some great dialogue as the brothers banter about whether there is any difference between being "in love" and "thinking with your penis" and as they discuss whether certain music artists let themselves be exploited or take control of whether how they are being exploited. Quirky supporting characters include a sarcastic local policeman and a store clerk set on learning French to help make his upcoming date with an Italian woman run smoother (!). The most intriguing character though is the brothers' father, and it never quite makes sense how few scenes he has, all cobbled at the end. Getting his disciples to recite politically charged verses, their father has become a bit of a cult figure, professing answers for all of his followers and yet disconnected from his own flesh and blood. Spending more time on the crook being double-crossed may have also helped since his heartbreak over that is a chief motivation (then again, Mary McKenzie is so amateurish as the woman who crossed him that it is a welcome relief when she disappears from screen). Whatever the case, this is certainly nowhere near as engaging a movie as 'Trust'; similarly though, 'Simple Men' is a film that works best in the scenes where the characters simply interact with one another and share their views.
Review of Simple Men
