Capote (2005) vs Infamous (2006) August 29, 2010
Posted by pacejmiller in Movie Reviews.Tags: Capote, Capote 2005, Catherine Keener, film, Harper Lee, In Cold Blood, Infamous, Infamous 2006, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Sandra Bullock, Toby Jones, Truman Capote
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Toby Jones (left) and Philip Seymour Hoffman (right) as Truman Capote. Source: Guardian.co.uk
A recent revisiting of Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood sparked some interest in the two films about him that were released in quick succession in 2005 and 2006 — Bennett Miller’s Capote and Douglas McGrath’s Infamous.
Being the first released, Capote stole most of the limelight, especially as Philip Seymour Hoffman’s portrayal of Capote won him an Oscar for Best Actor (not to mention the Golden Globes, BAFTAs and SAGs). The film itself was also nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress (for Catherine Keener as Harper Lee), and was at the top of most critics’ lists for the year.
On the other hand, Toby Jones, who played Capote in Infamous, won high praise for his performance too, and physically he was closer to the real life counterpart. Sandra Bullock’s portrayal as Harper Lee was also praised, but did not receive the same recognition as Keener. Infamous also had an arguably better cast, featuring stars such as Jeff Daniels, Daniel Craig, Sigourney Weaver, Hope Davis, and a cameo from Gwyneth Paltrow. But despite all of this, and the fact that most critics thought the film was pretty good too, Infamous could not avoid being compared to the earlier film, which they almost unanimously agreed was superior.
The real Truman Capote
Having read the book and watched both films in quick succession, I thought I would throw in my two cents on the two film versions.
Capote was based on the biography by Gerald Clarke, whereas Infamous was based on the book by George Plimpton. Nevertheless, the story is essentially the same — Truman Capote is fascinated by a 300-word article about a family that was brutally gunned down in the small town of Holcomb, and decides to travel there to write an article. He brings his good friend Harper Lee with him, and after a lengthy investigation, decides to turn that article into the “first” non-fiction novel (ie a non-fiction book written with fictional techniques). In order to write the book, Capote gains access to the two killers in prison, Dick and Perry, who are facing the death penalty. Capote befriends both men, and is particularly drawn to the sensitive and artistic Perry. Despite becoming extremely close with the men over several years, Capote knows that the book’s ending can only be effective if they are ultimately executed for their crime.
Both films were good, but in different ways. Capote is a classy production with a classy performance by Philip Seymour Hoffman, who really brings out the genius and the narcissism in the titular character. It’s a slow burning film full of pain and contemplation, where the pauses are long but meaningful.
Comparatively, Infamous is lighter and flashier. Toby Jones is a more flamboyant, less subtle Capote who is portrayed as a shameless gossip with the high society women in New York. Jones also makes Capote seem like a prick, though Hoffman’s Capote is colder, more reserved but definitely more manipulative. As good as Jones was, the edge goes to Hoffman in my opinion.
Catherine Keener and Sandra Bullock both make fairly good Harper Lees — but again, Keener is more subtle whereas Bullock is more in-your-face. Not to say that makes her a weaker Harper, just a different one, though this was probably attributable more to the script than the actresses. I’d say they were equally good.
I found it interesting that both films focused almost entirely on Capote’s relationship with Perry, even though Dick also played a very large role in the book. Nevertheless, I thought Capote handled this crucial part of the story better than Infamous did. In Capote, you really get a sense of the struggle Capote is facing — he clearly feels something for Perry (though exactly what that feeling is is left rather ambiguous) but he also knows he must finish his masterpiece — and that obsession, vanity and selfishness eventually gets the better of him.
As for Infamous, I thought getting Daniel Craig to play Perry was a bizarre choice. He’s a very good actor, but having read the book, he does not exactly fit the bill (Perry’s supposed to be very short and half American-Indian). I didn’t fully buy into the relationship, which lacked the emotional power of the earlier film, even though it actually depicted a physical relationship between the two men.
Ultimately, Capote is more serious and reserved, much like the performance of Philip Seymour Hoffman. Infamous, like Toby Jones’s performance, is more “out there” and talkative, especially as we get to see more of Capote living his high society life in New York, and there are occasional mock interviews with his friends that remove a layer of realism.
So yeah, same story but different approaches and different results.
Capote: 4.25 stars
Infamous: 3.5 stars
Predicting Oscars 09: who should win and who will February 21, 2009
Posted by pacejmiller in Entertainment.Tags: 81st Academy Awards, Academy Award Predictions, Academy Awards, Academy Awards Prediction, Amy Adams, Anne Hathaway, Benjamin Button, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director, Best Film, Best Picture, Brad Pitt, Danny Boyle, David Fincher, Doubt, Frost/Nixon, Gus Van Sant, Heath Ledger, Kate Winslet, Kung Fu Panda, makeup, Marisa Tomei, Meryl Streep, Michael Shannon, Mickey Rourke, Milk, Movie Reviews, Oscar, Oscar nominees, Oscar prediction, Oscar predictions, Oscar winner, Oscars, Oscars Ceremony, Penelope Cruz, Philip Seymour Hoffman, predict Academy Awards, predict Oscar winners, Predicting Oscar Winners, prediction, predictions, Rachel Getting Married, Revolutionary Road, Ron Howard, Sean Penn, Slumdog, Slumdog Millionaire, special effects, Stephen Daldry, Taraji P Henson, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight, The Duchess, The Reader, The Wrestler, visual effects, WALL-E, who should win, who will win
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I’m excited.
The ceremony for the 81st Academy Awards is finally about to take place. I’ve finally managed to see most of the nominated films for the major catgories that are available to me (see reviews here, here and here). While I initially predicted the winners and losers when the nominations first came out (here and here), the landscape has changed a little and I feel that now, since I’ve seen most of the films, I can also comment on who deserves to win.
So for tomorrow night, here’s who should win and who will (only categories with films I’ve seen). If there is an asterick (*) next to a nominee it means I have not seen that film (so my views do not include it).
Best Picture
Nominees: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Frost/Nixon, Milk, The Reader, Slumdog Millionaire
Who should win: All great movies. Based on my ratings and reviews of the films, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and The Reader scored the highest marks, but I would give the nod to Button. I just thought it was such an unusual and memorable film. Though not quite as good, it had a certain Forrest Gump-feel to it (probably because of the same writer).
Who will win: Slumdog Millionaire has been tipped all along and there won’t be anything standing in its way come Oscar night. There is a teeny little chance for an improbable upset by Button (which had the most nominations) but I can’t see any of the scandals derailing what should be a glorious night for Slumdog. Especially now that all the child actors are coming to the ceremony (albeit after the voting).
Best Director
Nominees: Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire), Stephen Daldry (The Reader), David Fincher (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), Ron Howard (Frost/Nixon) Gus Van Sant (Milk)
Who should win: A very difficult one to pick because I feel they all did terrific jobs in their respective films. If I had to pick one I’d have to go with Danny Boyle – Slumdog Millionaire was just that little bit more extraordinary than the others, and the way he pieced it all together was absolutely masterful.
Who will win: Danny Boyle. No doubt about it.
Best Actor
Nominees: Richard Jenkins (The Visitor)*, Frank Langella (Frost/Nixon), Sean Penn (Milk), Brad Pitt (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler)
Who should win: A coin-toss between Sean Penn and Mickey Rourke. I saw The Wrestler first and thought Rourke was a lock based on his emotional, nuanced performance, not to mention his amazing physical resemblance to a real-life wrestler. You felt his physical pain in the ring, you felt his emotional pain outside of it. It was the performance of a lifetime. But then I saw Milk and Sean Penn’s performance just blew me away. Yes, he was playing a real-life character, but man did he do it well. You honestly believed he was the inspirational Harvey Milk. Too hard for me to choose.
Who will win: Mickey Rourke. He’s the sentimental favourite and Penn has already got one (for Mystic River). The only way Rourke can lose is if he really pissed off as many people in the industry as he claims (and judging from his BAFTA acceptance speech I can kind of see how it might be possible).
Best Actress
Nominees: Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married), Angelina Jolie (Changeling), Melissa Leo (Frozen River)*, Meryl Streep (Doubt), Kate Winslet (The Reader)
Who should win: Really tough choice. I think as far as the performance is concerned, Kate Winslet, Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway are all very deserving (Jolie was very good but not quite there). But based on the difficulty of the roles they had to play I would give Kate Winslet the edge. Her character was so important to what The Reader was trying to tell and she played each phase of Hanna Schmitz’s life wonderfully.
Who will win: Kate Winslet. It’s her time. Streep is consistently this good so she won’t stand out as much, whereas Hathaway is young and she’ll have plenty of chances (plus her role is less sensational).
Best Supporting Actor
Nominees: Josh Brolin (Milk), Robert Downey Jr (Tropic Thunder), Philip Seymour Hoffman (Doubt), Heath Ledger (The Dark Knight), Michael Shannon (Revolutionary Road)
Who should win: Heath Ledger. As terrific as Hoffman was in Doubt and Shannon was in Revolutionary Road, Ledger’s performance in The Dark Knight will forever be remembered as one of the great ones. I still remember when he was first cast as the Joker and plenty of people scoffed at the idea that he could pull it off (even after Brokeback Mountain). No one is denying that he was the right man for the role now.
Who will win: Heath Ledger. All the major awards leading up to the Oscars indicate he will win. I honestly believe he deserves it, even if he were still alive today – the performance was that mesmerizing. The fact that he’s not around anymore just about locks it in.
Best Supporting Actress
Nominees: Amy Adams (Doubt), Penelope Cruz (Vicky Cristina Barcelona), Viola Davis (Doubt), Taraji P Henson (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), Marisa Tomei (The Wrestler)
Who should win: The ones that stood out for me were Amy Adams and Taraji P Henson. Marisa Tomei was wonderful in The Wrestler but I liked the other two more. Viola Davis was barely in Doubt, though she made great use of her limited screen time. Penelope Cruz was good but I didn’t think the performance was Oscar-worthy – or maybe I just didn’t like the character.
Who will win: Penelope Cruz. In this case, I think the least deserving will win. She’s the most well-known of the group and her role was different and explosive. Plus all the focus has been on her leading up to the Oscars. I hope she doesn’t win but I think she will.
Best Original Screenplay
Nominees: Frozen River*, Happy-Go-Lucky*, In Bruges, Milk, WALL-E
Who should win: Having only seen 3 of the 5 nominees, I don’t feel sufficiently equipped to judge this one. Out of the 3 films I did see, they were all very good, but probably In Bruges stood out as just being somewhat special.
Who will win: In Bruges has taken a lot of the lead-up awards, but WALL-E is also a favourite because it manages to do so much with so little dialogue. I’m going with In Bruges but won’t be surprised in WALL-E took it out. Note I originally picked Milk, but that was before I saw most of the films.
Best Adapted Screenplay
Nominees: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Doubt, Frost/Nixon, The Reader, Slumdog Millionaire
Who should win: “Adapted” screenplay is thrown around a little loosely because some of the scripts I’m sure barely resemble the original source. Nevertheless, I thought the adaptation of The Reader was sensational, dealing with the majority of the themes and events perfectly in Bernhard Schlink’s novel.
Who will win: Originally picked Doubt but after seeing the film I felt the adaptation could have been better. I have a feeling this award will be lumped with the bunch of awards that Slumdog Millionaire will win on the night.
Cinematography
Nominees: Changeling, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight, The Reader, Slumdog Millionaire
Who should win: Another tough one. I’m don’t have any technical specialty so this is based purely on what I thought looked best. And using that criterion, I thought Changeling was particularly memorable, though Slumdog Millionaire’s eye-opening portrayal of Mumbai was also impressive.
Who will win: Slumdog to bag another one.
Editing
Nominees: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight, Frost/Nixon, Milk, Slumdog Millionaire
Who should win: Another technical one, but I liked the work in Button, where editing was particularly important.
Who will win: This might be one of those sympathy awards given to Button, which, despite all its nominations, continues to be beaten by Slumdog. I hope so because I think in this case it deserves the award.
Art Direction
Nominees: Changeling, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight, The Duchess*, Revoluntionary Road
Who should win: I thought the Art Direction in Changeling was the best, though The Dark Knight was pretty cool too.
Who will win: A category where Slumdog was not nominated? Chalk this one up to Button because when the two films go head to head, it’s going to lose out most times.
Makeup
Nominees: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight, Hellboy II: The Golden Army
Who should win: No contest – the make-up in Button was just ridiculous. Sure, Hellboy II was good, but we had seen it all in the first film.
Who will win: Button. The make-up had to be seen to be believed – especially the old Cate Blanchett.
Visual Effects
Nominees: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight, Iron Man
Who should win: Another no contest in favour of Button. As goods as the effects were in the two superhero films, the effects in Button were the best I’ve ever seen. Freakishly amazing.
Who will win: See above. Button all the way. It cannot not win.
Costume Design
Nominees: Australia*, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Duchess*, Milk, Revoluntionary Road
Who should win: Only seen 3 of the 5 films, so not qualified. Though from what I’ve seen of the other 2, The Duchess looked great.
Who will win: The Duchess had won the earlier awards so I look for the trend to continue.
Music (Original Score)
Nominees: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Defiance*, Milk, Slumdog Millionaire, WALL-E
Who should win: To be honest I can’t really remember much of the music in any of the films – except the Bollywood music in Slumdog.
Who will win: Slumdog, just because it’s the favourite to win.
Music (Original Song)
Nominees: Slumdog Millionaire (twice), WALL-E
Who should win: Slumdog – one of the songs was pretty good.
Who will win: Slumdog – it has a 2 in 3 chance anyway.
Sound
Nominees: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight, Slumdog Millionaire, WALL-E
Who should win: The sound in The Dark Knight stood out for me amongst the nominees. It was probably the Batcycle.
Who will win: Slumdog.
Sound Editing
Nominees: The Dark Knight, Iron Man, Slumdog Millionaire, WALL-E, Wanted
Who should win: Now this I remember pretty well, and The Dark Knight was phenomenal.
Who will win: The Dark Knight. I hope it gets this one – and Slumdog can’t just win them all.
Animated Film
Nominees: Bolt*, Kung Fu Panda, WALL-E
Who should win: Not a big fan of animated films but WALL-E wasn’t too bad. Kung Fu Panda was pretty ordinary and Bolt (which I haven’t seen) didn’t look too crash hot either.
Who will win: WALL-E – pretty much a lock.
Oscars/Golden Globes Film Reviews Part III February 21, 2009
Posted by pacejmiller in Movie Reviews.Tags: Academy Awards, Amy Adams, Anne Hathaway, Benjamin Button, Best Picture, Brad Pitt, Burn After Reading, Changeling, Doubt, film, film review, Frost/Nixon, Golden Globes, Gran Torino, In Bruges, Kate Winslet, Kung Fu Panda, Leonardo DiCaprio, Mamma Mia, Meryl Streep, Milk, movie review, movies, Oscars, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Pineapple Express, Rachel Getting Married, reviews, Revolutionary Road, Sean Penn, Slumdog Millionaire, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight, The Reader, The Wrestler, Tropic Thunder, Vicki Cristina Barcelona, WALL-E
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I’ve done it. I finally managed to watch all the Oscar/Golden Globe nominated films I could possibly get to before the Oscar ceremony on Sunday!
Here’s the third instalment of my short Flixter film reviews and possibly the best of the lot! The first instalment can be found here (Slumdog Millionaire, Frost/Nixon, The Wrestler, The Reader, Vicki Cristina Barcelona, In Bruges, Pineapple Express, Burn After Reading, Tropic Thunder, Changeling, Mamma Mia, The Dark Knight and Kung Fu Panda) and the second here (WALL-E and Gran Torino).
Again, ratings are out of 5 stars.
Rachel Getting Married (3.5 stars)
Years of suppressed family emotions explode around a family wedding. Well-written script with some clever dialogue and witty interactions, even though this type of drama would not be everyone’s cup of tea. A remarkable performance by Anne Hathway (I didn’t know she could act this well) and a solid supporting cast. Not all of it worked but enough of it did.
Doubt (3.5 stars)
Extraordinary performances all round (Meryl Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman as always, but Amy Adams really stole the show as the doubting nun), but it was an obvious play adaptation with lots and lots of talking. The characters were extremely well defined, though I couldn’t help but feel there was a certain clunkiness in the way things panned out. Not to take away too much from this film because it tackles many of the themes very cleverly through subtle actions and explosive dialogue. Doubt is indeed an apt title for this film.
Milk (4 stars)
True story about the first openly gay public official in America. Pretty incredible movie and a ridiculously superb performance by Sean Penn. It was entertaining, informative, frightening and enlightening all at the same time. Hard to believe it was only 30 years ago that this happened in our world. I particularly liked the ending where they showed the real life counterparts of the actors.
Revolutionary Road (4 stars)
It’s hard to know where to begin with a movie that explores the essence of life, love, marriage, children, work, dreams, hopes and reality. It is so rare to see such a brutal, honest, emotional portrayal of suburban and married life, no matter what era. Granted, some people won’t get it for one reason or another, but those that do will find a story that will resonate with them for a long time. All performances are outstanding – I know Kate Winslet has gotten all the attention for this role and The Reader, but Leonardo DiCaprio is really her equal in this film, and it’s a shame he didn’t get the same recognition. Michael Shannon was also brilliant and stole every scene he was in.
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (4.5 stars)
A strange premise but an ultimately rewarding film. The make up and special effects are the best I’ve ever seen, both the ageing and the de-ageing stuff is just phenomenal. The film works not really as a running narrative but rather as a series of moments, like its tagline. I found it very captivating to go through the journey of life with this bizarre character, through his ups and downs, flaws and all. There are some minor problems and it is a tad too long, plus Brad Pitt wasn’t truly able to capture the nuances of the ageing process (he acted like the way he looked rather than the age he was) – however, I think when it’s all said and done this is one of the more memorable movies in recent years.
* * *
NB: Just a few words about my rating and review system. First and foremost, they are taken directly from Flixter, so are always short. I don’t like to discuss too much plot in my reviews because I think it ruins a movie. Which is why (even though I can’t help but watch them) I generally dislike previews because they tend to give away too much by revealing the best bits and almost always contain spoilers. I also hate long reviews that reveal too much plot (this happens a lot these days in reviews I read) – what’s the point of telling everyone what the entire film is about? With my ratings, they are out of 5 and are entirely subjective, always decided on the spot based on gut instinct after viewing. I never re-adjust a rating afterward and I don’t compare them to previous ratings – hence two films can have the same rating but I may think one is better than the other. Also, I tend to find there is a significant difference between 2.5 stars (below average) and 3 stars (good) and 3.5 stars (pretty good) and 4 stars (excellent), more so than other half-star differences.
Lastly, the only 5 star film reviewed in these 3 posts is The Wrestler, which I think is the best film I’ve seen so far this year. For the Best Picture Oscar nominees, The Reader and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button are tied with 4.5 stars, but I think the latter is the film I prefer. Though it is a moot point anyway since Slumdog Millionaire is going to win!
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