Sony Pictures Home Entertainment presents

Capote (2005)

"Sometimes when I think how good my book could be, I can hardly breathe."- Truman Capote (Philip Seymour Hoffman), on In Cold Blood

Stars: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener, Clifton Collins Jr., Bruce Greenwood, Bob Balaban, Mark Pellegrino, Chris Cooper
Director: Bennett Miller

MPAA Rating: R for some violent scenes and brief strong language
Run Time: 01h:54m:32s
Release Date: 2006-03-21
Genre: drama

Style Grade	Substance Grade	Image Transfer Grade	Audio Transfer Grade	Extras Grade
A-	A	C	B+	B-

 

DVD Review

Anybody who has ever been a reporter, or ever been reported upon, knows that journalism can be a confidence game—if the source and the journalist are on equal levels, it can be a bit of I'll-show-you-mine-if-you-show-me-yours, but more often, there's a seduction of sorts going on. That is, the reporter sweet talks or bullies or cajoles a source into giving up his or her most innermost secrets, and in exchange there's only the vague promise that the reporter will be fair, without any consequence if the journalist is not. Among the many things that is so remarkable about Capote, then, is that it's an unflinching look at a reporter and his sources. Truman Capote's In Cold Blood was a revolutionary book in all sorts of ways, particularly in the manner in which it ushered in a new era of journalism. Capote left behind the just-the-facts-ma'am pyramid structure that informed just about all of newspaper and magazine reporting up until that point, and forged a new genre, a nonfiction novel, a book that tells a true story while using the techniques more endemic to fiction. But the movie is a whole lot more than just a J-school exercise in ethics—it's a bracing and unflinching look at the darkness of the human heart, and not just at those behind bars for heinous crimes, but at those who write about them.

In November 1959 a horrific crime took place in Holcomb, Kansas—four members of the Clutter family were brutally murdered in their home, and the murderers made off with a grand stash of less than $50. The front-page story captures the imagination of Capote, then a celebrated New York author and bon vivant—this was the Capote who had published Other Voices, Other Rooms and Breakfast at Tiffany's, one of the brightest lights of American letters. As you certainly know by now, Capote is played here by Philip Seymour Hoffman, in a performance that deserves all the accolades it's received—it really is an astonishing piece of work, especially for those of us who know the Capote persona only from his last years, when he was a frequent and obsequious talk show guest, a writer perhaps better known by reputation than his work, whose tiny little frame and weirdly reedy, lispy voice seemed more like a goldmine for impersonators than the public persona of a great American author. Capote's commitment to unferreting the facts is relentless, and he doesn't care what his own psychological body count is. He's happy to seduce his sources in a way, to get them to spill their secrets, and then to kick them to the curb when they've outlived their usefulness. The fact that he could do this is kind of amazing—how do you get someone to let you read their diaries? Why, if asked, would you say yes?—and the fact that among those he draws in are a couple of unrepentant murderers makes his achievement that much more staggering.

There are frequent contrasts drawn between Capote's New York and the Clutters' Kansas, and Capote is masterful at winning over the locals—and Hoffman is so good in the part, wheedling, bullying, bribing in pursuit of the story that he makes you believe in Capote's hypnotic power, even if you haven't read his tightly controlled prose. The conscience of the piece is Capote's childhood friend and professional rival of sorts, Harper Lee, who, during the course of the story, finds a publisher for her novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. Catherine Keener is awfully good as Lee, a writer with a moral compass that Capote has long since lost, but she's not given all that much to do, alas. She's forgiving even at the opening of the film based on her book, when Truman's self-absorption and tolerance for alcohol make him an uncharitable companion, a faithless friend. Also doing very fine work is Chris Cooper, as the investigating officer in Kansas, who doesn't want this odd New York writer messing up his case; and Clifton Collins Jr., as Perry Smith, one of the murderers, who may be playing Truman as much as the writer is playing him.

Director Bennett Miller and screenwriter Dan Futterman have such tight control over their material that this is absolutely galvanizing, even if you've read Capote's book, or seen the movie made from it—they wisely eschewed the idea of doing a traditional film biography, concentrating instead only on this one pivotal project in Capote's professional life. Watching it, you can't help but think that Capote is a monster; but you're also left thinking that he's right, that if it wasn't for him and his book, the Clutter case would be a yellowed, forgotten police file, a distant horrible memory for one family and one community, a brutal but garden-variety crime. Watching Capote turn on his sources is both vicious and heartbreaking—he needs it for his book, but it's morally sickening that he's pulling against stays of execution, for a couple of executed convicts will make for a better ending. It's a study sure to give pause to anybody who writes about anything, actually, even DVDs. It's a terrific and smart and handsomely made movie.

Rating for Style: A-
Rating for Substance: A

 

Image Transfer

	One
Aspect Ratio	2.35:1 - Widescreen
Original Aspect Ratio	yes
Anamorphic	yes

Image Transfer Review: Well, it can't all be sunshine and lollipops, and here's the bad news about this DVD: the transfer looks like a careless one. There are all sorts of blemishes on the print, and frequent scratches and discolorations. I can't imagine it's possible that the camera negative looks like this; seems like someone was asleep at the wheel.

Image Transfer Grade: C
 

Audio Transfer

	Language	Remote Access
DS 2.0	French	yes
Dolby Digital 5.1	English	yes

Audio Transfer Review: Nothing nearly as egregious here—the 5.1 track is well balanced, and makes good use of atmospherics and a somber musical score.

Audio Transfer Grade: B+ 

Disc Extras

Full Motion menu with music
Scene Access with 28 cues and remote access
Subtitles/Captions in English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Bahasa, Cantonese, Mandarin, Korean, Thai with remote access
12 Other Trailer(s) featuring Friends With Money, The White Countess, The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, Thumbsucker, Junebug, Saraband, The Passenger, Breakfast on Pluto, CachŽ, Where The Truth Lies, The Patriot (Extended Cut), The Dying Gaul
2 Documentaries
1 Featurette(s)
2 Feature/Episode commentaries by Bennett Miller and Philip Seymour Hoffman (track one), Bennett Miller and Adam Kimmel (track two)
Packaging: Amaray
Picture Disc
1 Disc
1-Sided disc(s)
Layers: dual

Extras Review: Three accompanying documentaries are all well worth watching. The first, Truman Capote: Answered Prayers (06m:42s), looks at the facts of the man, and among those interviewed is Capote biographer Gerald Clarke, whose book is the basis for the film. He provides a chilling but seemingly accurate assessment: "Something he did in In Cold Blood wrecked his life forever." Also interviewed are Hoffman, Miller, Futterman, and cinematographer Adam Kimmel. All of the above are prominent in Making Capote: Concept to Script (17m:13s), and also included are producers Caroline Baron and William Vince, and cast members Keener, Cooper and Collins. There's much talk of the physical challenges presented to Hoffman in impersonating Capote, and the ways in which he went about the task. The companion piece to this one is Making Capote: Defining a Style (18m:24s), where the emphasis is on those behind the camera, including Miller, Kimmel, production designer Jess Goucher, editor Christopher Tellefsen, and costume designer Kasia Walicka-Maimone, and on turning 21st-century Winnipeg into 1950s Kansas.

Surprisingly, not as crammed with insight are the two commentary tracks, both featuring Miller. On the first he's paired with his leading man, and it's a fairly sedate account of the details of the shoot. He's partnered with his cinematographer on the second track, and as you might expect much of the discussion is given over to the technical elements of filmmaking, and on how to stretch a modest budget to its limits. A raft of trailers and subtitle options round out the extras package.

Extras Grade: B-
 

Final Comments

You may be expecting a virtuoso performance in the title role from Philip Seymour Hoffman, and you won't be disappointed—what's even more astonishing is that this may be the best onscreen meditation about journalistic ethics since All the President's Men. It's a great, smart, fascinating movie, and one that will get you looking around corners and asking skeptical questions the next time a reporter insists that his or her story is absolutely the truth, no more and no less.

Jon Danziger 2006-03-19