Hackman blew everybody's doors off, but I think Hoffman was a serious miscast. I think he was trapped in what I call the "John Wayne Syndrome." You see John Wayne in a movie, and you never think of him in terms of being a character, you see him as John Wayne, first, last, and always. He even wore the same costume in most of his movies.
Harrison Ford is a lot like that. But Dustin Hoffman, to me, couldn't sell me the idea that he could be a principle-driven attorney (how's that for an oxymoron?). He was Dustin Hoffman reading a part. Hackman totally sold me that he was a sleazeball jury-manipulator, and that scene in the bathroom was his and his alone.
Hoffman, give credit, completely had me sold on Dorothy Michaels in Tootsie, one of the best performances of all time by any actor, but not here.
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jrhpax
8 years ago
Hoffman wanted the Hackman role, but Hackman was already cast.
Just about any villain role gives an actor a chance to shine, and Hackman's role was far juicier than Hoffman's. Naturally his performance outshone Hoffman's. Both are among the best actors America has ever had.
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