A soul-search into the heart of darkness.

Rating: 10/10 (21 March 2006)

I have very mixed thoughts about this wonderful movie; mixed thoughts about what I am supposed to focus on after watching the soul of two people. Am I to focus on the writer Capote or the murderer Smith because after leaving the theatre I was drawn between a character analysis of both people. I suppose Capote would have thought similarly because the most memorable line of the film was when Capote compared his upbringing to Smith's when he said, roughly, we were raised in the same house and when we left, he went out the back door while I went out the front. This in a sentence is why I admire the film so much; it is rare to watch a film that can so thoroughly study the characters of two leading players in a film. Many films seem to exaggerate plot to the extent that the characters are only talking vehicles to add colour to the car chases and violence. Capote was that extremely rare American film that went deeper than the superficiality of the obvious.
I read the boards with viewer comments about this film and found them to be fascinating reading. I remember seeing Capote on TV and from those memories I thought Hoffman's portrayal of Capote was perfect. The Oscars should have given a double award because Hoffman was perfect as was Joachim for Cash-they could have been recognised equally.
The Set Decoration by Decter and Russel was outstanding as was the overall Set Decoration by Gonclier. Recreating so accurately a time and place far away geographically as well as chronologically was a tough call and they accomplished it extremely well.
Capote is truly a memorable film and richly deserves its many accolades.