Dustin Hoffman

Rain Man (Special Edition)
$14.98
"Rainman" is the story of two brothers who have never known about each other. After con artist Charlie Babbitt's (Tom Cruise) father dies he finds out his dad has left 3 million dollars to a son in a mental home. This son, Raymond (Dustin Hoffman), is autitstic, and Charlie decides in order to get his hands on the inheritence he will pull Raymond from the home and take of him himself. What follows is a touching story of the acceptance and understanding of people who are challenged, yet special, as well as a story of changing one's outlook on life as Charlie is forced to examine his own personna and to drop his conniving ways to care for his brother. This piece of work is some of the best Cruise has ever done and it's the best film Hoffman has ever acted in. It was no surprise the film became a huge boxoffice hit and garnered four Oscars, including Best Actor for Hoffman, Best Screenplay, Best Director for Barry Levinson (who has a cameo in the film), and Best Picture of 1988. The DVD is not really a "special edition" version, although we do have a few extras like the trailer and a minor featurette with an interview with the stars. There are three commentaries, one with Levinson who offers his thoughts on the making of the film. I just wished there had been a more insightful featurette on how the movie was made. Still, "Rainman" is an excellent piece of film work and one that holds up 21 years later.

Tootsie - 25th Anniversary Edition
$14.94
A movie that Is so refreshing to watch.A real classic. This Is a movie I could watch over and over. Dustin Hoffman, does such a wonderful job playing Tootsie.. I cannot Imagine anyone else doing It... You really come to enjoy the part of Tootsie and can understand why everyone really enjoys her.... The story Is so well done and yet there Is added humor throughout the movie that Is so delightful to see. I cannot say enough about this movie. I absolutely loved It....A great romantic comedy.....

Hero
$9.95
This is sadly a very underrated comedy. It's a unique "Cinderella" tale that satirizes the media and the true characteristics of a true hero. It's a darn good film with heartwarming moments and some good hilarity mixed as one. The real standouts here are the performances from our principal actors: Dustin Hoffman, Geena Davis, and Andy Garcia. All three give wonderful performances as distinctive people who are connected to the troubles of the media and society's view of what makes a hero a real hero. Make no mistake, this is a really good movie that should shouldn't be very underrated.

Kramer vs. Kramer
$14.94
* This movie captures its time. I am in my forties and I know several people in my generation whose family dynamic parallelled that of the Kramers-- a workaholic father, and an under-appreciated mother whose dysfunctional relationship scars their child (as poignantly symbolized by the prominently pictured scar on the character Billy's eye).
* The acting by each of the Kramers is believable. I rate the boy Billy as the most surprisingly well acted and touching, with Meryl Streep's character not far behind. Dustin Hoffman's performance was fine, though he has always struck me as being full of himself, and desperately in need of being the center of attention, as he seemed to be in this film.
* The court scenes: I would agree with several reviewers who thought they were caricatures, most glaringly so when Dustin Hoffman's character's lawyer yells at Meryl Streep like he was her father and she was a child who had broken an expensive vase. Nevertheless, I still felt the pain of each side, as well as the shame of needing to be in a trial before they could truly listen to one another. Again, I know several people whose parents were involved in divorce proceedings that must have had much in common with the Kramers'.
* I loved the father-son scenes where they are bonding. Bedtime reading, Dad listening to corny kid jokes, Dad letting his son cry and not giving in to the urge to make him stop, Dad holding his son and encouraging him to be brave while getting stitches. I think this is one of the films that made it culturally OK for fathers to do these things, and nowadays people forget how pervasive it was for fathers to be breadwinners and nothing more.
* (SPOILER) I would agree with other reviewers' assertion that motherhood was ultimately given the shaft in this film. Meryl Streep decides in the end to give up her son, in what I can only assume was a 'happy ending' meant to boost ticket sales. After all, the film encourages us to sympathise with the father and does a comparatively half-hearted job of invoking our emotions for the mother, so what else besides the father keeping his son could be considered a happy ending? This definitely felt like a sell-out moment by Meryl Streep. I would cite this as the single, though painfully glaring, blemish of the story.
* Despite this smearing of an unappreciated mother, I still think the film holds a lot of truth about its generation, and that its contribution to the cultural shift that saw fathers being encouraged to spend more time in more ways with their children and their wives is ultimately unappreciated by those who say the film has not aged well.