The Best

I want to take just a moment to say how excited I am that Reese Witherspoon won Best Actress this year at the Academy Awards. She is such a fabulous actress, and she's so very gracious and wonderful--so eloquent, so lovely. She truly is America's Sweetheart! Congratulations to you, Reese! (I must quickly say that, while it's probably shallow to some that I even spend the time and space writing about this subject, the fact of the matter is that I really don't care what you think... I'm excited about it, and this is my Blog, so I can write about it if I want!) The best part of this evening, for me, was watching Phillip Seymour Hoffman win Best Actor. He was in great company, I'll say, first of all. Everyone who was nominated really was worthy of their nomination, and in other years, I'd have chosen any of them. (And I'm embarrassed to add that I have not seen ANY of the big "Oscar-worthy" movies this year--yet.) But for Phillip to win... and for playing Truman Capote. It's absolutely perfect. I feel that Phillip has really honed his acting skills and he's worked towards this moment in time over so many years. PSH has had so many fabulous roles... I LOVED him in "Twister"; he was absolutely wonderful--he broke my heart--in "Boogie Nights"; I truly hated him in "Scent of a Woman" (which was the goal); he did a fantastic job in "Red Dragon", "The Big Lebowski", and "Magnolia". Honestly, he never ceases to amaze me. He's got such depth, such range. He really takes on the "character", without necessarily becoming as freakishly absorbed by it as some method actors do (not that I'm against method acting, I believe it's a great medium for certain actors). I guess what I like about him so much, ultimately, is that each time I see him, regardless of the role, I feel like I actually know him and can relate to the person he IS in each film. There are other actors out there whom I respect--William Hurt, John C. Reilly, Don Cheadl, even Tom Cruise (to an extent)--but I don't feel, watching them, as though I actually KNOW them and can relate to them and what they're saying or going through. But there's something about PSH that makes me feel as though he's someone I actually know and have met in my life--and each character he plays brings out that feeling. It's bizarre, but it's what makes me love him so much. (I feel that, to a lesser degree, but very similarly, about Reese Witherspoon.) There's such an empathy there. Congratulations, Phillp Seymour Hoffman! I'm so very excited that you won!!!