20 "Twin" Films That Were In Competition With Each Other
4. Capote Vs. Infamous
Rotten Tomatoes: 90%/73%
IMDb: 7.3/7.0
By the time Capote was released in 2006, Phillip Seymour Hoffman was long overdue for an Academy Award. A regular in director Paul Thomas Anderson films and an established character actor in his own right, it seemed as if it were just a matter of time.
And he rightfully won for his portrayal of Truman Capote in the synonymous biopic about the author's journey writing his landmark piece of literary journalism In Cold Blood. Anyone who has seen footage of Capote can see how well Hoffman encapsulates the writer. It's the kind of performance that transcends mere imitation, though he's got the voice down, as well.
Capote is entirely a character study about the writer, witnessing a death row inmate come to terms with his fate, empathizing with and, it's implied, loving him. For a more thorough examination of that relationship, audiences can turn to Infamous, Douglas McGrath's own biopic that was released that same year. Released in the shadow of Bennett Miller's film, Toby Jones is a dead ringer for Capote, and while its hard to top Hoffman, Jones at least makes the role his own. Some critics even argued they gave the Oscar to the wrong Capote.
We also see what we only glimpse in Hoffman's performance, with Jones' Capote regularly socializing with New Yorker elites. Still, sometimes less is more, and Hoffman offers the more interesting take on the character.