"More hearts are broken by answered prayers than unanswered prayers."

The Oscar nominations come out on Tuesday, which is a big day for movie lovers such as me. Very soon, I will be compiling my "Top Ten Movies of 2005" list, which I'm sure you are all eager to see. How do you even sleep with such anticipation at the forefront of your mind? There may be one or two movies I want to see before I compile my list, but this year I have seen many excellent films.

So here is a new review:

Yesterday, my cousin and I saw Capote, which I have wanted to see since I first heard about it. Philip Seymour Hoffman has long been a favorite actor of mine, from Boogie Nights to Magnolia to The Talented Mr. Ripley to many others. His presence in Mission Impossible 3 is sure to draw me in.
Hoffman recently won the Golden Globe for his performance in Capote, and he has racked up many other critics' awards as well. I went to the movie because I wanted to see his performance.


The movie is stunningly good, and Hoffman's performance moves way beyond an imitation of Truman Capote. He captures a tortured soul who sacrifices his own humanity and heart in order to write the perfect book, In Cold Blood. The book was the first real "non-fiction novel," what is now called "literary non-fiction." Capote's book indeed changed the way books were written and read. But in the process, he lost himself.
Hoffman gives the performance of the year, hands down, in a movie of electrifying brilliance. I was enthralled in attention (and tension) from the first shot.

I set out to see what I hoped would be the best performance of the year. I was rewarded with a film of pure genius.