In Cold Blood

Over the years I have read many books. Some were memorable, most were forgettable. When In Cold Blood was published in 1965 it sent shock waves through the nation. Truman Capote became America’s best-known author. Sometime toward the end of the 60s I read it. It’s a book that can change you in fundamental ways. Pieces of this book have been with me ever since and continue to shape my thinking.

We went to see Capote last night at the Tampa Theatre. What a movie! It chronicles the five year process Truman Capote went through to research and publish In Cold Blood. The process had such a tremendous impact on him that he was never able to finish another novel and he died of alcoholism related problems in 1984.

Truman had a very distinctive voice. If you’ve ever heard him speak you never forget that sound. Philip Seymour Hoffmann’s portrayal of Truman begins with the voice and mannerisms. He nails it. His appearance in this movie is vaguely similar to Truman’s but when he speaks you overlook that discrepancy and he becomes Truman.

This movie is definitely a must-see if you are a Truman Capote fan, or just a fan of good cinema. (5 stars)

A friend of mine recently remarked that I give a lot of movies 5 star ratings. I am usually very selective in what movies I am willing to pay to see. I research them before spending my hard-earned money. I try to see a variety of types of movies. The movies that don’t get good ratings are usually someone else’s pick, but I’m not perfect and occasionally pick a stinker.

At the recent film festival we had passes that allowed us to see any and all movies. For the most part we picked movies we thought we’d like, but the pass gave us the opportunity to experiment with possible/probable duds at no extra cost. Sometimes it paid off, sometimes it didn’t.