poetvox

I first noticed PSH in his small but pivotal role in "Scent of a Woman." He was so brilliant that I couldn't take my eyes off him...and this is coming from a lifelong Al Pacino worshipper.

PSH is at the peak of his powers in "Capote." I grew up watching the real Capote appear on TV talk shows, and PSH simply nails him. I hope everyone remembers that Truman Capote was a small, waif-like man. PSH is anything but, and yet he manages to convince you that he is a delicate, gay man. I defy anyone to find a flaw in this performance.

I'm predicting an Oscar nomination, and, if there is any justice, the Oscar will go to...Philip Seymour Hoffman!

As a huge fan of the A. S. Byatt novel, I thought that making it into a film would be next to impossible - so much ground to cover, two distinct lead couples, etc. However, Neil LaBute has made a decent film from a superior novel. The novel is darker and richer, but the movie stands on its own. I saw it with a person who has not read the book, and he enjoyed it as well.

I found the Victorian sequences particularly sensual and evocative. Northam and Ehle portrayed the lovers perfectly, with intelligence and passion. In fact, I felt as if they materialized straight out of Byatt's imagination. As the modern couple, Paltrow and Eckhart are less compelling, but that may be because they have so many expository scenes. The Victorian lovers have the more emotional storyline.

If you are a fan of the book, you may be disappointed that Eckhart's character is now an American, not an Englishman, but I got over it early in the film. Enjoy!

The Thin Red Line is, in my opinion, the best war movie ever filmed. It brilliantly explores the private terrors of the front-line troops and the folly of dying for "dirt," as one of the soldiers remarks.

Sean Penn is rock-solid as the sergeant, Jim Caveziel is innocent and Christlike as the questioning narrator, and Nick Nolte is always on the brink of bursting an aneurism as the colonel who wants to defeat the enemy at any human cost. Elias Koteas, John Cusack, and Woody Harrelson also deliver intelligent, heartbreaking performances.

But the film is as much about the duality of nature as it is about war, and director Terrence Malick has no equal when it comes to filming images that stay with you long after the movie is over. He captures the beauty and cruelty of nature in breathtaking ways.

I strongly recommend this film to anyone who appreciates fine acting, glorious cinematography, and a pitch-perfect point of view.