The film world is still mourning the tragic loss of Academy Award-winner Philip Seymour Hoffman, who passed away on Sunday at the age of 46. Hoffman was an actor of such rare quality that it was almost certain his performances would be fantastic. We looked back at 10 of ReelGood’s favourite Philip Seymour Hoffman performances.
Capote (2005)
Dir. Bennett Miller
The performance which would earn Hoffman his well-deserved Academy Award for Best Actor, Capote was the true story of famed author Truman Capote as he researched his most notorious novel, In Cold Blood. He beat out Heath Ledger’s also phenomenal performance in Brokeback Mountain to take home the Hollywood community’s most sought after award.
Almost Famous (2000)
Dir. Cameron Crowe
Hoffman’s role as rock and roll icon Lester Bangs in Cameron Crowe’s Almost Famous was more of an extended cameo than main role, but he had more than enough screen time to make an impact regardless. As editor of Creem Magazine, Bangs acts mentor and friend to the central character William Miller. Check out Crowe’s thoughts on Hoffman’s performance here.
Doubt (2008)
Dir. John Patrick Shanley
Hoffman played Father Brendan Flynn, a parish priest in a feud with a principle of a Bronx Catholic College who’s accused him of having inappropriate relations with a young altar boy. It would earn him his third Academy Award nomination, after Capote and Doubt.
Happiness (1998)
Dir. Todd Solondz
Hoffman never shied away from unflattering roles, including Scotty in Boogie Nights and Sandy in Along Came Polly. In Todd Solondz black comedy Happiness, Hoffman plays Allen, a timid man with a penchant for phone sex and dirty fantasies.
Boogie Nights (1997)
Dir. Paul Thomas Anderson
Boogie Nights was Hoffman’s second film in a long collaboration with famed director Paul Thomas Anderson. He plays Scotty J, a member of the porn industry community during the 1970s and 1980s who falls for the well-endowed protagonist Dirk Diggler.
The Master (2012)
Dir. Paul Thomas Anderson
One of ReelGood’s personal favourite performances by Hoffman, his enigmatic cult leader Lancaster Dodd is equal parts charismatic and weak. The Master may not have been a perfect film, but Hoffman’s performance as Dodd was a perfect part of it.
The Big Lebowski (1998)
Dir. The Coen Bros.
Hoffman’s Brandt didn’t have much of an impact on the plot of The Big Lebowski, but then it’s hard to say whether any of the characters did. Throughout his career Hoffman took on a number of comedic roles, but none were quite so memorably odd as Brandt.
Moneyball (2011)
Dir. Bennett Miller
Hoffman’s performance in Moneyball wasn’t a flashy one, nor was it the central one. Rather it’s just more proof that Hoffman can still deliver memorable performances even when the focus isn’t on him. He plays Art Howe, the manager of the Oakland Athletics, who doesn’t believe in Billy Beane’s ultimately victorious strategy.
Magnolia (1999)
Dir. Paul Thomas Anderson
In a film full of wonderful performances, Hoffman is one of the stand outs. He plays Phil Parma, a young nurse charged with the care of the a dying Earl Partridge (Jason Robards). He decides to invest in his elderly patient’s life and reach out to Partridge’s long-lost son Frank T.J. Mackay (Tom Cruise.)
Mission: Impossible 3 (2006)
Dir. J.J. Abrams
Mission: Impossible 3 wasn’t a particularly remarkable film itself, but Hoffman’s Owen Davian made for one of the series’ better villains. During an era when over-the-top blockbuster villains were in trend, Davian was calm and calculating – and all the more threatening because of it.