# In which my mad obersvational skillz are vindicated. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 6, 2008, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-my-mad-obersvational-skillz-are-vindicated/452040 "2008-06-06T18:28:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2008, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-my-mad-obersvational-skillz-are-vindicated/452040/1 "2008-06-06T18:28:18Z")
A while back, I mentioned how I had mixed up the actor who played Truman Capote in _[Infamous](http://www.allmovie.com/cg/avg.dll?p=avg&sql=1:316567~T2)_, Toby Jones, with Philip Seymour Hoffman. I thought it was PSH in _Infamous_, and was amazed at how the actor was able to pull off Capote’s mannerisms and affect. Moreover, I was amazed at how little he seemed physically. PSH seems to a fairly big man; in _Along Came Polly_ he seemed a bit of a big, overweight lummox. I even wondered if they were using giant furniture and props to make him seem small. Well it turns out I wasn’t as addle-brained as I thought. Hoffman did play Capote in the other recent biopic, _[Capote](http://www.allmovie.com/cg/avg.dll)_. I came across the DVD for $5 in the grocery store the other day (In a grocery store! $5! Too freaking much! The ground over in Westwood must be quaking, as TC whirls in his grave). We watched it last night. And I have to say it is pretty amazing how PSH pulled it off. Maybe not so much the physical smallness, but he certainly did manage the character pretty well. Maybe by this point the expected behavior and appearance of TC has become an exaggeration or caricature of the real person, but it was still pretty amazing. ---
**Author:** ![Terminus\_Est](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terminus_est/32/3087_2.png) [@Terminus\_Est](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terminus_Est)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2008, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-my-mad-obersvational-skillz-are-vindicated/452040/2 "2008-06-06T19:06:19Z")
Dude, not being aware that there were _two_ films about Truman Capote released in relatively close succession, both about the period when he was researching and writing _In Cold Blood_, doesn’t speak well about your mad obersvational skillz. ETA: I agree that Philip Seymour Hoffman pulled off the Capote impersonation very well. You are aware that we won the Oscar for that portrayal, right? ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2008, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-my-mad-obersvational-skillz-are-vindicated/452040/3 "2008-06-06T21:17:09Z")
[QUOTE=Terminus Est] Dude, not being aware that there were _two_ films about Truman Capote released in relatively close succession, both about the period when he was researching and writing _In Cold Blood_, doesn’t speak well about your mad obersvational skillz. [/quote] It never occurred to me they would do that. Of course now that I think about it, they did it with Tombstone/Wyatt Earp, too. ETA: I agree that Philip Seymour Hoffman pulled off the Capote impersonation very well. You are aware that we won the Oscar for that portrayal, right? [/QUOTE] Actually I don’t follow the awards too closely, so I didn’t know. But it’s always a pleasure to learn that someone’s a good actor, since it gives you something to look for when picking a movie. From _Along Came Polly_ I thought he was just a sort of clown/best friend/sidekick supporting character type of actor, but he’s much better than that. ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2008, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-my-mad-obersvational-skillz-are-vindicated/452040/4 "2008-06-06T21:21:37Z")
Yes. Philip Seymour Hoffman can act. Quite well. ---
**Author:** ![Terminus\_Est](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terminus_est/32/3087_2.png) [@Terminus\_Est](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terminus_Est)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2008, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-my-mad-obersvational-skillz-are-vindicated/452040/5 "2008-06-06T21:39:52Z")
[QUOTE=Spectre of Pithecanthropus] It never occurred to me they would do that. Of course now that I think about it, they did it with Tombstone/Wyatt Earp, too. [/QUOTE] They do it for a lot of stories. There’s even a separate thread currently about [duplication of movies](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=470621). ---
**Author:** ![Indyellen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/indyellen/32/4176_2.png) [@Indyellen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indyellen)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2008, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-my-mad-obersvational-skillz-are-vindicated/452040/6 "2008-06-06T22:21:26Z")
[obligatory 6 degrees] A friend of mine in New York dated PSH for a while before he got famous. However, she discovered he was likely to dump her when he wouldn’t take her to any openings, etc. He did. (She’s happily married now to someone else…) [/obligatory 6 degrees] ---
**Author:** ![threnodyangelfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecc23a/32.png) [@threnodyangelfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/threnodyangelfire)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2008, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-my-mad-obersvational-skillz-are-vindicated/452040/7 "2008-06-06T22:29:25Z")
He was around a long time before _Along Came Polly_… ---
**Author:** ![postcards](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8e8cbc/32.png) [@postcards](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/postcards)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2008, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-my-mad-obersvational-skillz-are-vindicated/452040/8 "2008-06-07T00:54:32Z")
[QUOTE=Terminus Est] ETA: I agree that Philip Seymour Hoffman pulled off the Capote impersonation very well. You are aware that we won the Oscar for that portrayal, right? [/QUOTE] In which case, congratulations to the both of you. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Terminus\_Est](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terminus_est/32/3087_2.png) [@Terminus\_Est](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terminus_Est)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2008, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-my-mad-obersvational-skillz-are-vindicated/452040/9 "2008-06-07T03:31:48Z")
[QUOTE=postcards] In which case, congratulations to the both of you. 😃 [/QUOTE] We’d like to thank the Academy… ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2008, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-my-mad-obersvational-skillz-are-vindicated/452040/10 "2008-06-07T04:52:01Z")
[QUOTE=Spectre of Pithecanthropus] But it’s always a pleasure to learn that someone’s a good actor, since it gives you something to look for when picking a movie. From _Along Came Polly_ I thought he was just a sort of clown/best friend/sidekick supporting character type of actor, but he’s much better than that. [/QUOTE] Oh god, hie thee to a video store and rent or buy (they’re worth it) his 1-2-3 knockout punch movies of 2007. **Charlie Wilson’s War The Savages Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead** Then, hunt up these fine films: **Boogie Nights Punch-Drunk Love Almost Famous Magnolia The Talented Mr. Ripley State and Main** There are more (many I haven’t seen myself yet), but yeah, he’s been around for a LONG time, and is one of our finest actors, and does well in both big and small roles. He’s got a couple of good ones coming up later this year. The dramedy **Synecdoche, New York** is the first movie written AND directed by Charlie Kaufman, and in the drama **Doubt** , he stars as an abusive priest, opposite Meryl Streep and Amy Adams. Right now he’s filming **The Boat That Rocked** which seems to be a fictional version of the story of the UK’s _Radio Caroline_ (an illegal radio station that operated from a ship in the North Sea during the '60’s & '70’s). ---
**Author:** ![neutron\_star](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/51bf81/32.png) [@neutron\_star](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neutron_star)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2008, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-my-mad-obersvational-skillz-are-vindicated/452040/11 "2008-06-07T05:49:49Z")
[QUOTE=Equipoise] Oh god, hie thee to a video store and rent or buy (they’re worth it) his 1-2-3 knockout punch movies of 2007. **Charlie Wilson’s War The Savages Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead** Then, hunt up these fine films: **Boogie Nights Punch-Drunk Love Almost Famous Magnolia The Talented Mr. Ripley State and Main** [/quote] You missed two of his (all too infrequent) leading roles: **Owning Mahowny** and **Love Liza** Both are excellent, though downbeat, movies. **Love Liza** is particularly miserable. ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2008, 7:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-my-mad-obersvational-skillz-are-vindicated/452040/12 "2008-06-07T07:57:56Z")
don’t forget **flawless** with deNiro, and a smallish role in **next stop wonderland**. I think he’s one of the best actors working today ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2008, 9:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-my-mad-obersvational-skillz-are-vindicated/452040/13 "2008-06-07T09:13:52Z")
…and of course, _Mission:Impossible III_… …what? ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2008, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-which-my-mad-obersvational-skillz-are-vindicated/452040/14 "2008-06-07T15:52:15Z")
Ah, wouldn’t you know, Owning Mahowny, Love Liza, Flawless and Next Stop Wonderland are movies of his that I haven’t seen. I also haven’t seen Along Came Polly, or, come to think of it, MI III.