I was completely devastated when I heard about Philip Seymour Hoffman's death on Sunday, and I'm having a little trouble writing this article, because part of me still doesn't want to believe he is no longer with us. Like many of you, I've been a huge fan of the actor for a long time, and he starred in some of my favorite movies ever, including HAPPINESS, MAGNOLIA, PUNCH-DRUNK LOVE, and ALMOST FAMOUS.
Cameron Crowe worked with Philip Seymour Hoffman on ALMOST FAMOUS, and yesterday the director shared this lovely anecdote about the actor on his blog. In it, Crowe describes filming the scene from the film featuring Hoffman's Lester Bangs and his "uncool" telephone conversation with Patrick Fugit's William Miller. You can check out what Cameron Crowe had to say about the scene with Philip Seymour Hoffman, and the clip from the movie below.
"My original take on this scene was a loud, late night pronouncement from Lester Bangs. A call to arms. In Phil’s hands it became something different. A scene about quiet truths shared between two guys, both at the crossroads, both hurting, and both up too late. It became the soul of the movie. In between takes, Hoffman spoke to no one. He listened only to his headset, only to the words of Lester himself. (His Walkman was filled with rare Lester interviews.) When the scene was over, I realized that Hoffman had pulled off a magic trick. He’d leapt over the words and the script, and gone hunting for the soul and compassion of the private Lester, the one only a few of us had ever met. Suddenly the portrait was complete. The crew and I will always be grateful for that front row seat to his genius."
RIP, Mr. Hoffman. You will be missed.