I was a huge fan of his films in the 1990s and haven't heard much from him recently. I'm also having a hard time finding those old flicks of his on DVD or Netflix:
• Trust
• The Unbelievable Truth
• Simple Men
• Amateur
• Henry Fool



I just love the pure ridiculousness of them all. The self-consciously artsy-fartsyness.
And Martin Donovan was always had an amazing deadpan way about him in these that made him one of my favorite actors of the time, too.
Any fans here?
Heard anything about him recently? Hopefully a new feature in the works?

I'm pretty sure my introduction to the Red House Painters occurred because I picked up the Amateur Sndtrk from a BMG or Columbia House deal. Picked it up because it listed a Jesus Lizard song. Watched the movie because i liked the soundtrack but doubt i cared for it much (other than the music) ......... i was 17. Haven't seen it since.

If you are at all curious to dip back in to his filmography, I would recommend starting back up with the one that I posted the trailer for: Simple Men.
If I remember right, it was the most instantly likable of what I've seen of his films, but still totally representative. Basically, if you don't like it, you just flat-out won't like Hal Hartley.

I saw a lot of them on late '90s IFC. I'd agree almost 100% with your descriptions of Harley's style (and Donovan's deadpan).

I tried so hard to like his movies, I'm not sure that I ever came around. I remember that girl with the accent was sexy and stuff.