As Capote, Jones has tough act to follow

LOS ANGELES—There is an old question in show business that a star gets asked after an opening act cranks out a boffo performance: "How can you top that?"
British actor Toby Jones faces that question, and that challenge, on Friday when his movie "Infamous," in which he portrays author Truman Capote, opens in major U.S. cities.
Last year, American actor Philip Seymour Hoffman played the conflicted writer in "Capote," and he won numerous awards, including the Oscar for best actor. Critics warned it could be a hard act to top.
"I got so much sympathy from people 'round about awards time that I thought maybe I really should be in tears," Jones told Reuters.
"(But) our film has something very special and different to do with its tone and with the way it manages to balance humor and tragedy."
"Capote" covered the period in the early 1960s when the author was working on his seminal crime book "In Cold Blood," and "Infamous" takes place during the same time.
Both movies paint a portrait of the writer as a conflicted man whose dubious reporting tactics give him a bestseller but leave him questioning his own ethics.
Hoffman's performance was dark and brooding, and it focused on Capote's internal conflict as he manipulates killer Perry Smith to tell him the story behind the murders of a Kansas farmer and his family.
Jones' portrayal gives audiences a broader and more colorful look at Capote. It deals with the author's relationship with Smith and his moral conflict, and his celebrity status among New York's cafe society.
So far, "Infamous" has earned mixed reviews. Some critics like the first film, others like the second.
Show business newspaper The Hollywood Reporter writes, "against all odds (it) is as good as 'Capote,"' while New York's The Village Voice said, "It's good, especially during its first half, just not good enough."
Regardless of the reviews, Jones is satisfied.
"I've always believed in our film," he said.
Jones, 40, is a veteran of the British stage and Broadway. He has a flair for comedy and wrote the play "Missing Reel," which tells how he was edited out of the film "Notting Hill," starring Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant.
His big break came in Kenneth Branagh's stage comedy "The Play What I Wrote," which earned him Britain's Olivier Award for best supporting actor as a hapless impersonator.
He has appeared in numerous TV episodes in Britain and in supporting roles in films like "Mrs. Henderson Presents."
"I've always tried to do a wide variety (of roles) because that is what keeps me interested in the job," Jones said.
Jones said he was "terrified" of playing Capote, who became a well-known celebrity on TV talk shows. Jones trained with a coach for three months to mimic Capote's high-pitched voice and mannerisms.
"Stature-wise and the shape of my eyes and such, I can make myself look like him, but that's different than being able to play him," Jones said. "The actor has to get inside him."
His approach has earned him many fans and well-wishers who have approached him after screenings, in restaurants and at public gatherings to congratulate him, Jones said.
That person who was terrified 2 1/2 years ago must have done something right for the kind of warmth I've had from people," he said. "I feel very proud of that." —Agencies