Simple Men (1992)

Bitter about being double-crossed by the women he loved, (and with the police after him to boot), Bill vows to seduce the next woman he sees, then throw her away. His brother Dennis, ... See full summary »

Director:

Hal Hartley

Writer:

Hal Hartley

Stars:

Robert John Burke, Bill Sage, Martin Donovan

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robert John Burke	...	Bill McCabe (as Robert Burke)
Bill Sage	...	Dennis McCabe
Karen Sillas	...	Kate
Elina Löwensohn	...	Elina
Martin Donovan	...	Martin
Mark Chandler Bailey	...	Mike (as Mark Bailey)
Chris Cooke	...	Vic
Jeffrey Howard	...	Ned Rifle
Holly Marie Combs	...	Kim
Joe Stevens	...	Jack
Damian Young	...	Sheriff
Marietta Marich	...	Mom (Meg)
John MacKay	...	Dad
Bethany Wright	...	Mary
Richard Reyes	...	Security Guard

Storyline

Bitter about being double-crossed by the women he loved, (and with the police after him to boot), Bill vows to seduce the next woman he sees, then throw her away. His brother Dennis, meanwhile, is equally determined to track down their long lost father, a revolutionary who has been in hiding for 20 years. For different reasons, both leave New York and head for Long Island, out of money, and short on ideas. D:"Long Island is a a terminal moraine." B:"What's that?" D:"It's the material left behind when a glacier recedes." D:"Gee, then what the hell are we waiting for?"

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Plot Keywords:

the madison dance | tree planting | held at gunpoint | nun smoking | telephone booth | 

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Taglines:

There's no such thing as adventure and romance, only trouble and desire.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language

Did You Know?

Trivia

"There's no such thing as adventure. There's no such thing as romance. There's only trouble and desire." It's probably the best-known phrase of this movie, but actually it's a quote from Fritz Lang's movie Dr. Mabuse the Gambler (1922).

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Quotes

Ned: What is that thing?
Bill: That's the Blessed Virgin, Ned.
Ned: She's pretty, huh?
Bill: Not only is she pretty, but she's got a nice personality, and she's the mother of God.

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Connections

Featured in Simple Women (2019)

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Soundtracks

Sleeping Pill
Performed by Yo La Tengo
Written by Georgia Hubley, Ira Kaplan & James McNew
Published by Roshashauna Music, BMI
Yo La Tengo appears courtesy of Alias Records, Inc.

User Reviews

That person is sooo wrong

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.

Details

Country:

Italy UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 November 1992 (UK)

Also Known As:

Simple Men

Filming Locations:

Seabrook, Texas, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$141,554

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$143,010

Company Credits

Production Co:

American Playhouse, Channel Four Films, Fine Line Features

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1