In 1959, Truman Capote learns of the murder of a Kansas family and decides to write a book about the case. While researching for his novel In Cold Blood, Capote forms a relationship with one... Read allIn 1959, Truman Capote learns of the murder of a Kansas family and decides to write a book about the case. While researching for his novel In Cold Blood, Capote forms a relationship with one of the killers, Perry Smith, who is on death row.In 1959, Truman Capote learns of the murder of a Kansas family and decides to write a book about the case. While researching for his novel In Cold Blood, Capote forms a relationship with one of the killers, Perry Smith, who is on death row.
- Won 1 Oscar
- 59 wins & 89 nominations total
- Williams
- (as Michael J. Berg)
- Harold Nye
- (as Robert McLaughlin)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaWhen In Cold Blood was published, Capote didn't give Nelle Harper Lee any credit. He merely dedicated the book to her and to his longtime partner, Jack Dunphy. Lee was hurt by this slight, given the time, effort, and work she put into the book.
- GoofsAlthough depicted several times typing furiously on a typewriter, Truman Capote was famous for writing everything in longhand. He never typed any of his novels or short stories.
- Quotes
Truman Capote: It's as if Perry and I grew up in the same house. And one day he stood up and went out the back door, while I went out the front.
- Alternate versionsThere are two versions of the film. The runtimes are: "1h 54m (114 min) and 1h 50m (110 min). The shorter version premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival, while the longer one is the theatrical release.
- SoundtracksHot Cha Cha
Written by Bebo Valdés (as Ramon E. Valdes)
Performed by Bebo Valdés (as Bebo Valdes)
Courtesy of Absolute Spain
I understand that many feel his portrayal of Truman Capote was spot on and true to every nuance of Truman himself, but there is something about the movie which I feel doesn't do justice to the themes and the man who is being portrayed. The movie hinges on whether you can tolerate Truman Capote as a personality and it is my opinion that this is where the movie fails. Philip Sermour Hoffman portrays Capote as cold and career driven but has the emotional sensitivity to cry at his subjects execution. This alone is not enough to convince me that Capote is as complex and intelligent and perhaps scheming as the movie makes out.
Here is the main conflict of interest in the movie, at no point in the movie did the director sympathise with the murderers, neither did we feel Capote truly sympathise with the two men on death row, yet we are made to believe that Capote was battling with his conscience and by the end of the movie was eventually destroyed as a writer by his inability to come to terms with his actions towards these culprits. I have assumed this was the intended message of the movie but at no point is this battle of wills, or guilt ever portrayed on the screen. What we have is a very physical transformation of an actor into a Capote character that acts in a way that we assume reminds us of the great writer. There is no exploration of the theme of capital punishment, no reflection on the content of his novel 'In cold blood', no volley of ideas between subject and writer, but only a by numbers recount of events and perhaps a feeling of irritation towards Capote as a cowardly, egotistical, lime light hugging snob of the New York elite.
This is not award winning material, this is an average account of an interesting figure during an integral time in his career. Perhaps reading In Cold Blood would add some clarity to the subject but for a movie which seemed to promise so much in premise, it is disheartening that we have to go back to the source to make up our minds.
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Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official site
- Language
- Also known as
- Truman Capote
- Filming locations
- Stony Mountain Penitentiary, Rockwood, Manitoba, Canada(prison exteriors)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $7,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $28,750,530
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $324,857
- Oct 2, 2005
- Gross worldwide
- $49,327,405
- Runtime1 hour 54 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1