Capote review

 Number 891 on the top 1000 films of all time is the 2005 biographical-drama Capote.

Truman Capote (Philip Seymour Hoffman) was an American novelist who gained fame after the release of his 1961 book 'Breakfast at Tiffany's.' After the Clutter family are murdered in their Kansas home, Capote becomes fascinated with the case, so much so, he decides to make it the subject of his next book. Together, with his friend and confidante Harper Lee (Catherine Keener,) he begins interviewing the killers Perry Smith (Clifton Collins Jr) and Dick Hicock (Mark Pellegrino.)

As many of you will know by now, I don't care for biopics. I find them overly-long, vague, lacking in tension and bloated e.g The Aviator or Catch me if you Can. But Capote succeeded because instead of telling his life from start to finish, it narrowed in on a very specific part, and, arguably, the most interesting part.

From the off, we are thrust into murky territory as we see our hero Capote coming to form strong relationships with Perry Smith and Dick Hicock, the longer he gets to know them. He begins empathising with them. Although he claims that he just wants to document the facts, the more he investigates, the more there is the chance that he will discover something that could exonerate the pair. Or worse, he may deliberately sabotage the case, so the pair will go free. This conflict kept things moving on nicely. It stopped things from becoming too slow.

Philip Seymour Hoffman won the 2005 Best Actor Oscar for his performance as Truman Capote. It was well-deserved, as unlike his other roles it was wonderfully balanced. We saw many different sides of Capote: the flamboyant party animal, the duplicitous liar keeping the truth from Smith and Hicock, and the quiet, vulnerable man looking for support from his friend Harper Lee.

I have yet to see Hoffman in a role that I haven't liked. Many of the characters he has played have been very sleazy. There is nothing wrong with this; he plays the sleaze well, but I was wondering if he was becoming a one-trick pony. Capote proved this was far from the case.

Catherine Keener was also good as Harper Lee, often acting as Capote's conscience, telling him what he needs to hear, rather than what he wants to hear. Clifton Collins Jr was also good, but I think Mark Pellegrino was thoroughly under-used.

Nonetheless, this film pleasantly surprised me. Who knows? I might become a die-hard biopic fan?

Up in the Air review

 Number 827 on the top 1000 films of all time is the 2009 comedy-drama 'Up in the Air.'

Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) is the man you call when you want to fire somebody but you aren't brave enough to do it yourself. He flies around the US letting people go. However, his own job is threatened when his company hires young upstart Natalie (Anna Kendrick) who proposes the company moves to firing people via video-conferencing rendering Ryan obsolete.

Losing your job is a horribly relatable experience for many people, myself included. Thankfully, it didn't result in me losing much more than my job, but for some people it is much worse. Up in the Air succeeded in conveying a truly authentic experience. Part of that was down to the very good decision to invite real-life firees to play the characters that Ryan and Natalie terminate. They were told to react either how they did on the day or to say what they wish they had said at the time. And this helped to keep things very realistic. 

Ryan Bingham is a very superficial character. He lives a transitory experience with little concern about the people he lets go, as long as he gets his frequent flier miles. But he goes through a nice redemption arc partially thanks to Natalie, but also due to his casual lover Alex (Vera Farmiga) who convinces him that he wants something more than his superficial experience. Vera Farmigia is a much better actress than films like Running Scared gives her credit for. It's nice she is getting the recognition she deserves. In fact, she earned an Oscar nod as did Clooney and Kendrick.

Up in the Air was a surprisingly grounded portrayal of the human condition. It was sensitive toward those being fired, but it also made Ryan Bingham - a character that by all accounts we should hate, very likeable. Of course it helps when you have him played by an actor as charming as George Clooney. Natalie also had the potential to be annoying, but you can see she's just a misguided kid trying to make a difference.

Up in the Air was a very enjoyable film. It blended drama and comedy into an entertaining watch.