I haven't done much film journalism lately, but this seems
like a good time.
Phillip Seymour Hoffman was so versatile that he could
disappear seamlessly into any role. The best thing I've heard said about him
was by the guys at the fantastic Slashfilmcast.
(http://www.slashfilm.com/category/features/slashfilmcast/slashfilmcastshow/)
They said he was the guy you always forgot was in a movie.
Someone would say, "Remember in [INSERT MOVIE HERE] when Phillip Seymour
Hoffman..." and you'd say, "Jesus, you're right! That was him. I totally forgot he was in
that!"
That may sound like an insult, but it's actually a testament
to how such a physically distinctive human being could transform himself into
any character he chose using the sheer subtle force of his talent. You didn't
forget the character, you just often forgot he had played them. He didn't
usually do much to alter his appearance (except maybe change his hair a
little), but he somehow captured each personality so fully that he became a different person.
Freddie Miles in The
Talented Mr. Ripley, a spoiled rich kid so accustomed to a life of
privilege that he can smell poverty on even the most convincing con-man. He and
his buddies live a completely empty life without morals or responsibility.
Miles is so capriciously cruel that even standing next to Tom Ripley (who
actually kills people), he ends up looking like the sociopath.
-----
Brandt in The Big
Lebowski, a prim and put-upon toady who worships the achievements of his
self-aggrandizing employer. He's the type of anal-retentive servant who most
likely uses a tiny feather duster to keep Lebowski's many plaques and awards in
perfect condition. He's also easily flustered by any untoward behavior.
"They're the Little Lebowski Urban Achievers:
inner-city children of promise but
without the necessary means, the necessary means, for a higher education."
-----
Freddy Lounds in Red
Dragon, an ambitious and amoral reporter who shows disdain for every other
human being and gets in way over his head in the pursuit of a story.
Interestingly, the fantastic new series Hannibal recasts his character as a woman. There's no
significance to that except that, once again, I forgot Hoffman was in the
original until I was looking through his filmography.
"Yeah, yeah. Ah, pleasure doing business with you…
Uh. Chumps."
-----
Dean Trumbell in Punch-Drunk
Love, a controlling and abusive mattress store owner who runs an illicit
phone-sex service on the side. He extorts money from his customers and displays
a monumental temper when confronted.
"No, no, no, SHUT
UP! SHUT THE FUCK UP! SHUT up, will you shut up! Shut up! Shut! Shut! Shut! Shut! Shut up!... SHUT UP! Now.
Are you threatening me, dick?"
-----
Father Brendan Flynn in Doubt, a sweet-natured and caring priest accused of being a
pedophile. He's either a good man horribly maligned or so deeply in denial that
he really believes he's doing good despite committing awful crimes. The movie
leaves his guilt ambiguous, and Hoffman plays it so that you could believe
either truth.
"See? Look at my nails. They're long. I like 'em a
little long. But look at how clean they are. That makes it okay."
-----
Owen Davian in Mission:
Impossible III, a frighteningly sadistic supervillain who implants
micro-explosives in people's heads. Even tied to a chair, he's incredibly
creepy and threatening.
"That is where you have taken this group. That is where we have let you take
this group. I have
let you do that. A disservice."
-----
Caden Cotard in Synecdoche,
New York, a lonely and sad artist lost in his own mind. He's dedicated to
the conviction that he can give his life meaning if only he can get the play
he's working on exactly right. His art becomes his life, and his life becomes
his art. He lets his important relationships slip away as he obsessively
creates a world so detailed that it frustrates and undermines him as
effectively as the real one did.
"I know what to do with this play now. I have an
idea. I think…"
-----
George Willis, Jr. in Scent of a Woman, a slimy coward and a false friend. He lords it
over his less well-off classmates, sweet-talks the teachers with smarmy
deceptiveness, and collapses into a sniveling mess when put under pressure.
Despite the intense discomfort he exhibits in the interrogation scene, he
quickly sells out his friends to save his own ass.
"All right, don't hold me to this. No contacts. It's
dark… and everything. I mean…"
-----
I probably leaned a little hard on Hoffman's unlikeable
characters because I like unlikeable characters, and he was so good at playing
them. He was also amazing in The
Master (although that movie was kind of a mess) and Boogie Nights (although it's been
so long I can't remember it). Basically, you could rely on him to be
captivating in any role, and he was often the highlight or the saving grace of
a film.
