Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Religious Music and Entertainment
Hoffman’s Capote Deserved the Oscar

Hoffman’s Capote Deserved the Oscar

Last updated on: September 13, 2024 at 2:17 pm by Chase Padusniak

0 Comments

Hoffman’s Capote Deserved the Oscar 2024-09-13T14:17:59-04:00 Chase Padusniak

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Truman Capote
Source: Flicker user Peggy O’Connor
License

My dive into Rochester’s own Laurence Olivier continues, this time with Bennett Miller’s Capote (2005). I’d put it off for some time for the obvious reason: it received five Oscar nods and won Hoffman an Academy Award for Best Actor. It’s a biopic. I remembered the trailer where he spoke in a half-helium caricature of a dead twentieth-century gossip. Being frank, I feared seeing PSH reduced to a single role, a once-in-a-lifetime bit of Oscar bait to the detriment of his robust and wonderful catalogue.

Plus, I hated Synecdoche, New York (2008). I’ve learned that the more vaunted his performance, the more suspicious I should grow.

How wrong I was. Capote is a God’s honest character study. It has none of the stink of the modern biopic, in which the family steps in, keeps everything clean—you know, tidies the place up so that Elvis never died on the toilet (or at least was moved there after expiring from being too good at rock n’ roll). Not sure Capote had any remaining family then, but that is beside the point. Hoffman’s Truman Capote is built of flesh and blood, a catty, egotistical writer, who, in his way, finds room for love and self-doubt.

The movie begins and ends with Capote’s reporting and writing In Cold Blood (1966), his “non-fiction novel” about a quadruple murder in Kansas and how close he grew to the killers. He mines them for material, acquires a highfalutin lawyer for them, and then abandons them to broken necks and historical amnesia (absent his control over their memory anyway). By the end (and paraphrasing here), he laments to his friend Harper Lee (Catherine Keener) “I did everything I could” only for her to answer, “Maybe. But you didn’t want to do more.” Who is killing in cold blood now?

As a closing title card tells us, Capote went on to even greater fame because of In Cold Blood’s success. He never wrote another novel and drank himself to death. Was it worth it? That is the question any artist desirous of success must ask themselves, though in the present tense. How many relationships is it worth destroying? How many lives can I vampirize? How long will people put up with me? The nigh shelved Prince documentary puts these questions in the spotlight (and, of course, faces oblivion because of his estate). Here, we experience such searching through Capote.

Did I mention Bob Balaban plays Wallace Shawn’s real life dead and New Yorker editor William Shawn?

It all comes back to Hoffman. His portrayal is certainly more asexual than we might expect were this film made today. His partner is in the movie, though mostly by way of Capote’s shirking him to work on the book. Otherwise, it surpasses what one might look forward to now. He captures the essence of Truman Capote in mannerism, voice, and style without actually imitating or copying him. The character feels strange (and speaks of this otherness!) without ever veering into caricature.

Should that have surprised me? Not really. It’s Philip Seymour Hoffman. I still hate Synecdoche, New York though.

Style and Religion

Philip Seymour Hoffman

Truman Capote

Previous Post

September 9, 2024

AfrAId of What?

Next Post

September 24, 2024 Empire Records: At the Heart of Gen X

Recent Comments

0 | Leave a Comment

"Do The Right Thing was a terrible movie, with a terrible message, a man owns ..."

Frank Holzhauser

Do the Right Thing: What Can ..."

"NOT the experience of those who actually lived through those years. Let's not forget that.Too ..."

captcrisis

54: Let the Good Times Roll

"Your accurate assessment of where the Blockbuster and the studios have ended up reminded me ..."

Dave G.

Jaws: Ad Fontes

"Another Dementia experience: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLkbxNibXiLx_ak8IuhZiutd2Fxe7_KAon&si=VhOYNUIBV3CTlyDf"

Ame

Dementia: Silent Nightmare

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Academia Culture Politics Reviews Theology Uncategorized

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 July 2021 December 2020 November 2020 July 2020 May 2020 April 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 August 2019 July 2019 April 2019 March 2019 December 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Which Psalm is an ancient call to worship: "Make a joyful noise to the Lord"?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Psalm 100 Psalm 90 Psalm 117 Psalm 23