“Sometimes,
acting is a really private thing that you do for the world.”
-
P. S. Hoffman
On
February 2, 2014, world lost a profound and prolific actor. Philip Seymour
Hoffman was an American actor and director, who appeared in nearly 50 films during
his career spanning more than two decades. He directed and acted in numerous
stage productions throughout his career. He received an Academy Award for Best
Actor for his performance in ‘Capote
(2005)’ and was nominated three times for Best Supporting Actor for ‘Charlie Wilson’s War (2007)’, ‘Doubt (2008)’ and ‘The Master (2012)’. He received three Tony Award nominations for
his Broadway performances, two for Best Leading Actor in ‘True West (2000)’ and ‘Death
of a Salesman (2012)’, and one for Best Featured Actor in ‘Long Day’s Journey into Night (2003)’. His
only film as a director has been ‘Jack
Goes Boating (2010)’ which was a romantic-comedy and starred him in the
title role.
He was
a highly versatile actor who brought profoundness and humanity to his roles. He
scarcely ever appeared in leading roles in his movies and mostly did supporting
work. Initially, he appeared in minor, but seminal roles and but gained
recognition through his invigorating and gaping performances. However, short
his role was, he would always leave an indelible print on the spectator’s mind.
He had a riveting screen presence that would make you jump and espy. The
characters that he portrayed were not customary. He would choose roles that were
flawed and would accomplish them with utter flawlessness. Be it an egotistical
student in Scent of a Woman (1992), a
pornographic film hustler in Boogie
Nights (1997), a smug assistant in The
Big Lebowski (1998), a phone-sex rogue in Punch-Drunk Love (2002), an immoral priest in Cold Mountain (2003), a disgusting friend in Along Came Polly (2004), a psychotic dealer in Mission: Impossible III (2006), a committed manager in Moneyball (2011) and The Ides of March (2011) or a nascent cult
leader in The Master (2012), he
portrayed all of them and more resplendently. He was highly engaged in theatre
work throughout his career. He would keep himself grounded as an actor by
appearing on stage almost annually as a break from the big screen. His last
film is yet to be released which is The
Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 and 2 where he portrays a judge of the
games Plutarch Heavensbee, is
produced posthumously and some of his scenes have been generated using
live-action computer animation. He has worked very closely with wunderkind
director Paul Thomas Anderson starring in five of his six features and all of
them are noteworthy, enticing and exquisite.
Among
a few movies of Hoffman which I have seen, I would like to share some funny and
memorable moments which are still embed in my mind as I am writing this
tribute:
In the
light hearted romance, Along Came Polly
(2004), in the art gallery, Hoffman walks up to Ben Stiller and says to him,
“I think I just sharted”. Stiller asks him, “What is sharted?” To which he
replies, “I tried to fart and shit came out”. I laughed so hard that I think I
did the same.
In
P.T. Anderson’s Punch Drunk Love (2002),
there is an amazingly aggressive phone conversation between Adam Sandler and Hoffman
which was outstanding. Also, in Anderson’s The
Master (2012), there is a similar vigorous scene in the jail cell between
Joaquin Phoenix and Hoffman.
The
following are some notable quotes from his various interviews:
“Ultimately,
my main goal is to do good work. If it doesn't pay well, so be it.”
"I
think deep down inside, people understand how flawed they are. I think the more
benign you make somebody, the less truthful it is."
"It's
hard. The job isn't difficult. Doing it well is difficult... just because you
like to do something doesn't mean you have fun doing it; and I think that's
true about acting"
Hoffman
rarely talked about his personal life in interviews, stating in 2012 that he
would "rather not because my family doesn't have any choice. If I talk
about them in the press, I'm giving them no choice. So I choose not to."
David
Fear of Rolling Stone remarkably said about Hoffman –
"No
modern actor was better at making you feel sympathy for fucking idiots,
failures, degenerates, sad sacks and hangdogs dealt a bum hand by life, even as
— no, especially when — he played them with all of their worst qualities front
and center. But Philip Seymour Hoffman had a range that seemed
all-encompassing, and he could breathe life into any role he took on: a famous
author, a globetrotting party-boy aristocrat, a German counterintelligence
agent, a charismatic cult leader, a genius who planned games of death in
dystopic futures. He added heft to low-budget art films, and nuance and
unpredictability to blockbuster franchises. He was a transformative performer
who worked from the inside out, blessed with an emotional transparency that
could be overwhelming, invigorating, compelling, devastating."
Lastly, I would urge all of you
to see the following epic video tribute by filmmaker Caleb Slain who says, “A
post-script journey through Philip Seymour Hoffman's lifetime in cinema. 200
hours of work went into breaking down 47 of Hoffman's films. Compiling his
legacy has been one of the most challenging experiences I've ever faced as an
editor, and yet indescribably rewarding. I can assure you that after 22 years
on screen and nearly fifty films, we now look at the work of an actor who never
had a single dishonest moment on camera. I know because I've seen them all.
Please take a breather and raise your glasses to one of our greatest."
P.S. Hoffman - A Tribute
P.S. Hoffman - A Tribute
P.S.
Hoffman was one of the most widely admired actor and his passing is a syncope
to the world of cinema for which there exist no panacea. His position can never
be filled and satiated. His work will always remain classic and eternal,
leaving indelible impressions throughout.
