Back before Philip Seymour Hoffman did
Capote and won an Oscar, I would have a debate with people. Didn’t matter who you were—good friends, random hobos on the street, whatever.
Who is the better character actor, Philip Seymour Hoffman or John C. Reilly?
First off, you need atleast two spaces between your first and last name to be a great charater actor (e.g. please also take a look at William H. Macy. Sorry Kevin Spacey. Perhaps you should go by your real name, Kevin Spacey Fowler for me to include you in this post). Ok so let’s get down to business.
PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN FAVORITESBoogie Nights – Not only did I name my blog after a quote of his in this movie, but also his character of Scotty J. introduced me to this great man. Plus he rocks the hell out of a weinie bikini.
The Talented Mr. Ripley – When Tom cracks that oar over Dickie’s head, the look on Dickie’s face is priceless. Plus, I think if I were in a boat with Jude Law while he was bleeding from the head, I would spoon with him too. But I digress…Hoff’s character Alvin was the first to figure out that something was off with Tom. Bonus points.
Nobody’s Fool – Not a very well known movie, but Melanie Griffith speaks one of my favorite quote in all movies—“You’re a man among men”. Anything Paul Newman does rules. Period. The Hoff’s part in this movie is small, but a classic when he plays the cop harassing Sully.
25th Hour – What’s cooler than a teacher who fantasizes about a student? This movie poses the question, what would you do with your last night of freedom?
The Big Lebowski – His part is somewhat un-noteworthy in this film. Fuck, anyone next to Walter looks un-noteworthy. But, this is one of my top 5 favorite movies of all time, so it needs to be mentioned.
Almost Famous – The Tiny Dancer scene is my favorite scene in any movie in recent years. The Hoff plays Lester Bangs, the famous rock critic.
**so excited for
Charlie Wilson's War to come out.
PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN LEAST FAVORITESWhen a Man Loves a Woman – Dude. Kick your fucking alcoholic wife in the ass. She is seriously pissing me off.
Patch Adams – yeah. Ok.
Red Dragon – The original version of this movie,
Manhunter scared the living daylights out of me as a child. It’s the movie that made me afraid of the dark. (Well, that and
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom—I still get freaked at the sacrifice scene where the guy gets his heart taken out). The Hoff plays the reporter who gets lit on fire and then sent down the parking ramp. Cool scene, bad movie.
Along Came Polly – This movie just plain sucked. What? Ben Stiller is playing a quirky guy who falls in love with a woman out of his league? No fucking way! The Hoff has the only noteworthy performance in this whole pile of crap, but the movie sucks.
Cold Mountain – For the love of God, when this movie came out, all people could say was “come back to me” in a whispering voice. I read the book, which is no better than the movie. Booooorrrrr-ing
Twister – A category 5 tornado is trying to suck you up into the vortex and you are saved by an L.L. Bean belt and a flimsy pipe sticking from the ground? Did you see that truck being tossed around? Yeah, I thought so.
JOHN C. REILLY FAVORITE MOVIESBoogie Nights – Johnny has a bigger part in this movie than the Hoff playing Reed Rothchild, Dirk’s sidekick. While Philip had the more memorable role, Reed gets points for singing “You Got the Touch”.
The Good Girl – Oh poor Phil. That Jennifer Aniston is one shady bitch. The Good Girl is an awesome movie, but completely and utterly depressing. Plus, who knew Jake Gyllenhaal could look that ugly?
Never Been Kissed – “I’m 17!”. This is might what you call a “chick flick”, but it’s so fucking funny. Johnny plays Augustus, Drew Berrymore’s boss at the Chicago Sun-Times. While Phil’s role is pretty unmemorable, this is where we first get introduced to Jessica Alba and also the delicious Michael Vartan.
Gangs of New York – I don’t get how New Yorkers don’t like this movie. Scratch that, I don’t understand how anyone doesn’t like this movie. I know it wasn’t well received for not being “historically accurate”, but it’s an amazing movie about the perseverance of New York – a point missed by many of those who watch it. Bonus points cause Daniel Day-Lewis (3 names—see my theory?) is one of my favorite actors.
Talladega Nights – Shake and bake, baby! Anytime a character in film has homoerotic tendencies along with being a Nascar driver automatically makes it a winner in my book. On a side note, when the fuck is that damn
Borat coming out? And how funny was that cougar puppet in the car? How would you like to be the dude with the cougar puppet on his hand following Will Ferrell around? Why don't I ask another question??
What’s Eating Gilbert Grape – He has a smaller roll, but this is the movie that introduced me to my beloved Johnny Depp. “I killed him, Gilbert! I killed him!”
JOHN C. REILLY LEAST FAVORITE MOVIESChicago – Am I the only one who hated this movie? I hated Johnny’s character too. Get some fucking balls man. Renee Zellweger is on my list for being the most annoying actress in the history of man-kind. The only bright spot was Catherine Zeta-Jones.
For the Love of the Game – Kevin Costner should have cut off making the baseball movies after Field of Dreams and Bull Durham. The first and third greatest baseball movies ever made (The second being the Natural). I don’t even remember John C. Reilly in this movie. Why? CAUSE IT FUCKING SUCKED.
The Perfect Storm – While it sucks these dudes actually died, this movie gave me seasickness just watching it. How many times do we have to see George Clooney get knocked around by the giant wave? Not like I mind seeing George Clooney wet, but COME ON.
The Hours – YAWN.
Days of Thunder – Yeah I know, it’s cool to like this movie. But given the current state of Tom Cruise’s career, I think I can rightfully add this to the “bad” column and not have eggs thrown at me. John plays Buck, a member of Cole Trickle’s pit crew. I’d much rather see him shaken and bakin though.
So who wins it? Oscars aside, I still think Philip Seymour Hoffman wins it, but I will always have a special place in my heart for John C. Reilly.
Last night while watching the lastest episode of Project Runway, I began dicking around on ITunes, one of my favorite pastimes at night. I ended up by accident clicking on the "Top 25 Most Played" option and this is what I found:
