CAPOTE

Wow. All I can say is "wow." Where do I begin?

Okay, I can't say it was flawless, but it was pretty dog-gone good. Certainly worthy of an Oscar nomination for best picture. Hoffman will win, mark my words, the Oscar hands down. Why? Because he had both the chops and the role.

IOW, whatever comes out between now and Dec. 31, there may be the most outstanding lead actor performance on record, but Hoffman had the role. The Academy just loves people who play ill, developmentally disabled, or do great impersonations. And this was a great impersonation. There was never a moment when I was not watching Truman Capote on the screen. Never.

The story was psychologically grueling, and they did a masterful job -- he did a masterful job of portraying an internal torment and the changes he goes through.

The cast was outstanding, Chris Cooper, Catherine Keener, and a ton of people whom you will "recognize" from a gazillion past films -- all who did fantastic jobs.

If there were one complaint, it would be that it took a while to get to where they were going. It seemed like half the movie went by and we felt, "okay, when are they going to get to the meat of the story, or are they ever?" But they did, and once they did, there was nary another thought of the time passing by.

The costuming and set direction certainly should be considered Oscar-worthy, and the cinematography, with the exception of some questionable "soft" areas in spots, was outstanding.

Deeply moving. Deeply psychological. Deeply affecting. I highly recommend that you see this film now, before Jarhead; Good Night, Good Luck; Syriana and Paradise Now come out, because before long, there will be too many other films to go to and this one will fall by the wayside.

Caat