Synopsis
“Hartley’s most experimental feature,
Flirt is a thrice-told tale about mis-directed love. It begins with his short film
Surviving Desire, about a lower Manhattan "flirt" (
Sage) who is torn between committing to his two-timing girlfriend (
Posey) or starting a new affair with a friend’s wife. Hartley then twice translates this modern romantic allegory – in a sort of postmodern
Rashomon endeavor – shifting locales and gender orientations while retaining identical dialogue and plot complications. In the first of these alternative narratives, a gay American expatriate in Berlin struggles with making a commitment. In the final instalment, the story shifts to Tokyo, where the flirt is now a lovely dance student (
Miho Nikaidoh) unable to commit to a lasting relationship with her American lover (Hartley himself).” – Harvard Film Archive
