Much like at the beginning of 2013, this year has already started out terribly with the death of one of my favorite people and the best actor of his generation, Philip Seymour Hoffman. Around this time last year it was one of my favorite musicians, Jason Molina. And like Jason Molina, Philip Seymour Hoffman suffered from a similar problem (drug addiction and alcoholism, respectively), they both died young, and both had sought treatment multiple times. It's a heartbreaking way to start off the year, in so many ways. More than enough has been said about this great man's addiction, so I'd rather focus on his illustrious acting career. I won't speculate on his personal life (of which most people know nothing anyway) and it bears repeating that he was someone's father and someone's son, so anything personal is best left alone.
While social media was flooded with tributes to and articles about Mr. Hoffman, one particular person summed it up perfectly for me: "Imagine being as good at anything as Philip Seymour Hoffman was at his job." It was his job to act, but he was one of those people who was so amazing at it, that every time he appeared on screen in anything, you forgot he was acting. He WAS whoever he was playing, he fully embodied every character. There was, and never will be, anyone remotely like him. The most important place in my heart that he holds is how excited he got me about movies and great acting in my young adult years. I can't say he was the first actor to do this, because that honor belongs to Kevin Spacey. But unlike Kevin Spacey, whose work tapered off in quality and frequency (though he's had a resurgence as of late), Philip Seymour Hoffman's performances only improved and sharpened with time, and never waned. Mr. Hoffman also defined an "intellectual crush" for me; one of those actors who was so smart and so talented that his looks didn't matter, and if anything, sometimes they helped his cause. Even if he was in some movies that weren't that great ("Pirate Radio" and "Along Came Polly" come to mind), his performances were always fantastic and so magnetic that you couldn't NOT watch him in anything. Anytime I saw a movie trailer he was in or heard about a movie he was in, my immediate thought was, "Yeah, I'll definitely see that. If Hoffman's in it, I'll see it." His untimely death is even more sad for me now, because that's one less actor whose work I always seek out, whose movies I always watch, regardless of their quality or subject. Now that the world has been robbed of any of his future performances, the only other American actor whose work I always make sure I see is Paul Giammati. That's it. Those were the only two American actors who I thought were at the top of their game and always a joy to watch perform.
But I think the best way to honor such an incredible talent is to simply enjoy his work. And there is much to enjoy, in spite of his life being cut so short. In addition to his already prolific filmography, we will be seeing at least two more of his movies yet to be released, hopefully this year (Sundance favorite "A Most Wanted Man" and "God's Pocket"). As is usually the way, it is often only after someone has died that we realize the full scope of their work and how much there is to appreciate, and Philip Seymour Hoffman is certainly no exception. For me personally, my favorite performances of his are likely the same as most other people's favorites: "Flawless", "Magnolia", "Almost Famous", "Love Liza", "25th Hour", "Before The Devil Knows You're Dead", "Synecdoche, New York", "Capote", "Doubt", "Jack Goes Boating", and of course, "The Master." Not surprisingly, most of those are also my favorite films in general. I saw "Capote" twice in theaters and cried the first time I saw it. I had some minor issues with "The Master", but his epic performance was the best thing about it. Even in small roles, like in "Punch Drunk Love" and "Boogie Nights", he made an impact and his absence would have made it a lesser movie. And in spite of the fact that he was often considered "indie film royalty", he did lend his talent to a few Hollywood films, like "Mission Impossible III" and "The Hunger Games."
Just two weeks removed from his death, writing about him in the past tense makes me uncomfortable and so sad. Despite his death, however, Philip Seymour Hoffman has an impressive resume of performances to re-watch and continually enjoy, and as such, he left us with a lot. But as with anyone who was the best at what they did, it's just not enough. It will never be.
