Theory of Achievement
Cast
Bob Gosse Jessica Sager Jeffrey Howard 
Elina Löwensohn 
Bill Sage Naledi Tshazibane
Credits
Written by: 
Hal Hartley
Produced by: Ted Hope
Plot
This short film was packaged on video with Hartley's featurette "Surviving Desire." It affectionately examines the lives of a group of "young, middle-class, white, college-educated, unskilled, broke, drunk" Brooklynites who would love to make something of their lives -- assuming they can pay the rent first.
Sinekatalog’s take
A group of broke Brooklynites long to make something of themselves once the rent is paid. Hartley's wry, stylized short is both affectionate and mocking. A neat sampler of his early voice.Sinekatalog’s own editorial review – not a user or critic quote.
Ratings
IMDb: 6.8 / 10 (552 votes)
IMDb rating and vote count from the IMDb ratings dataset (October 2026). Scores change over time.
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