Much like Hartley's earlier works, "Trust" and "The Unbelievable Truth", "Amateur" is a quirky, offbeat film, that achieves success through its deadpan dialog and its quirky character portrayals. Martin Donovan (who also appears in Trust) plays Thomas, who, suffering from amnesia resulting from a fall at the start of the film, never discovers his own identity. His interactions with those who knew him (but won't necessarily admit it) provide the basis for the rest of the story.
Although I liked Trust somewhat more, Amateur is still a good film, and does provide a "gentle" introduction to Hartley's work.
Although I liked Trust somewhat more, Amateur is still a good film, and does provide a "gentle" introduction to Hartley's work.