And the Oscar goes to...

Rating: 8/10 (22 February 2006)

The Great Phillip Seymour Hoffman is, in my personal opinion, one of the best actors the industry has ever seen. I admire him so much that I recall little moments of some of his movies sometimes, and I start to laugh. I've got his image stuck on me, but not because of the actor in person, but because of the characters he creates and the impression they leave in me.
Daddy's boy in "Scent of a woman", the unpleasant doctor in "Patch Adams" (the first time he actually impressed me), the singular Freddie in "The Talented Mr. Ripley", the crazy music man in "Almost Famous", the drifted widower in "Love Liza", the noisy journalist in "Red Dragon", the good friend in "25th Hour", the incredibly funny Sandy in "Along Came Polly", the angry boss in "Punch-Drunk Love"; not to forget Dan Mahowny in "Owning Mahowny"Now Truman Capote.
He is going to win the Academy Award on March 5th, and it will be well earned. A performance is more recognized when it portrays something out of the ordinary than something common; therefore a character like the controversial Capote attracts attention. The change the actor goes through is remarkable, but sometimes there's more than a physical change. I'm not in the mood of giving examples, but Hoffman's is a complete transformation; and that's what actually counts.
You see it in the way he puts the cigarette in his mouth, the way he grabs the phone, or he walks and places his body parts; not to mention his voice and way of speaking: it's disturbing. You find more about the character as the years pass by. He has only one trusted friend who's been with him all along: Nelle Harper Lee (a flawless delivery by the always good Catherine Keener); they understand themselves perfectly.. "I don't lie", he tells her. But he does; he is a journalist. By the time the movie enters his life, he was a celebrity, and it is funny to see him the way he is, around his fellow journalists, telling jokes, being the attraction. There's a tremendous respect for him.
"In Cold Blood" was the name of his unfinished book that told the story of a family murdered by Perry Smith (Clifton Collins Jr., don't forget about him) and Dick Hickock (Mark Pellegrino). "It's the non-fiction book of the decade", Capote declared. What did "non-fiction" mean? The writer was creating a genre in the world of novels. "This will change the way of writing", William Shawn (Bob Balaban) told him. The film goes through the five years it took Capote to write the book. The facts are detailed; the screenplay by Dan Futterman is accurate and true to the main characterI mean, it's five years within an hour and a half.
Capote became close with Perry Smith while working, the movie tells; his couple Jack (underused Bruce Greenwood) spent time alone in Spain by himself while the writer traveled to Kansas almost unconsciously, to the point of waking up in trains in a way you could tell he didn't know where he was. Even though there were emotions running through, the man knew his priority. He got into the private files of Detective Alvin Dewey (genius Chris Cooper) because of the trust the detective's wife had on him. This could have brought him consequences, in fact, everything could.
One way or the other, every story finishes "Capote" goes for the black screen in every situation. It is too confident on its material, because it should be. Its director, Bennet Miller, presents his baby (alongside him, Hoffman and Futterman made it come true). Here is a man who understands and, even better, appreciates silences. He witnesses the landscapes with the camera, he focuses his characters with still shots, no music; he lets them talk. Sometimes he observes what's around; but then, when there's something we better not listen to, the music playsAnd now it talks.
It's a relief when once in a while you see a film and you know the people involved in it wanted to do it. Phillip Seymour Hoffman got the role of his career, or he said so at the SAG Awards; but that doesn't me it is the best role he's ever playedHe knows that, but in "Capote", there's not one frame without his presence; it's a showcase of the man's talent: he's grateful for itI am personally grateful for it.
With the last lines, the movie leaves written an epigraph. Think about it, and try to be in Capote's place. He wanted it to happen; he couldn't cope with it.