Stream Selected Films of Dustin Hoffman

The Graduate 1967 Based on a novel by Charles Webb. Directed by Mike Nichols. Iconic. Having just graduated college, Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman) returns to his upper middle class family home with not a clue what to do with his life. He’s seduced by a friend of his parents, Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft), and embarks on an awkward affair. Then he meets and is smitten with her daughter, Elaine (Katherine Ross). They date. To keep him from Elaine, Mrs. Robinson threatens to tell her, so Ben does so himself. He and Elaine break up. Her father pushes the girl into marriage with the family’s choice, but Benjamin’s not giving up.

Funding (Nichols was unknown in Hollywood) and casting were both issues. A dozen actresses wanted to play Mrs. Robinson while several prominent ones turned down the role because of nudity. Equally as many tested for Elaine. Producer Joseph E. Levine admitted that he at first believed Dustin Hoffman “was one of the messenger boys.” Also with William Daniels, Elizabeth Wilson, Alice Ghostly, Buck Henry, Norman Fell. Rent on Amazon Prime.

Midnight Cowboy 1969 Based on the novel by James Leo Herilhy. Directed by John Schlesinger. Joe Buck (Jon Voight) has come to New York City to be a well paid prostitute. Flashbacks reveal abandonment and rape. To say things don’t work out for the naïve young man is putting it mildly. He meets con man Enrico Salvatore “Ratso” Rizzo (Dustin Hoffman), who agrees to share a squat apartment. His dream is to move to Miami, pimp Joe to middle-aged women, and live like a king. Ratso is ill.

The two are invited to a Warholesque party (the cast includes some of Warhol’s gang). Ratso looks and smells terrible. Joe has his first drugs and goes home with a woman who promises to recommend him to others. Ratso grows worse by the day, but refuses medical help. He’s determined to get to Florida.

Jon Voight was paid “scale” for his portrayal of Joe Buck, a concession he willingly made to secure the part. Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay Academy Awards. Rent on Amazon Prime.

Kramer v. Kramer 1979  Based on the novel by Avery Corman. Directed by Robert Benton. When Joanna Kramer (Meryl Streep) unexpectedly leaves her workaholic advertising executive husband Ted (Dustin Hoffman) and young son Billy (Justin Henry), Ted implodes. He has no idea how to run a house, connect with the boy or juggle responsibilities. Slowly, painfully he learns. Fifteen months later, Joanna comes back and wants custody. A court battle ensues. Conscience wins. Also with Jane Alexander. Realistic, poignant. Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress Academy Awards. Rent on Amazon Prime.

Tootsie 1982 Directed by Sydney Pollack. Actor Michael Dorsey (Dustin Hoffman) is good at his craft, but impossible to work with. As a result, he’s not only unemployed but, his agent George (Sydney Pollack) tells him, unemployable. When he hears about an opening on Southwest General, a major soap opera for which good friend Sandy Lester (Terri Garr) is auditioning, the desperate actor appeals to a friend to apply theater makeup and outfit him as a woman.

Masquerading as Dorothy Michaels, Michael gets the part. In this context, strong opinions work for both Michael and the character. He’s a roaring success. Only roommate/ playwright Jeff Slater (Bill Murray) and his agent know the truth. Michael as Dorothy is sympathetic to and supportive of ingénue and single mother Julie Nichols (Jessica Lange), who’s having an affair with misogynist director Ron Carlisle (Dabney Coleman). Michael falls for Julie while both her widowed father (Charles Durning) and fellow actor John Van Horn (George Gaynes) pursue him as Dorothy. (Shades of Some Like It Hot) How to untangle things?!

The film has its heart and mind in the right place. Jessica Lange won the Best Supporting Actress Academy Award. To prepare for his role, Hoffman repeatedly watched the film La Cage aux Folles and visited the set of the soap opera General Hospital. Rent on Amazon Prime.

Rain Man 1988 Directed by Barry Levinson. Hotshot foreign car salesman Charlie Babbitt (Tom Cruise) doesn’t have the money to get vehicles he imported out of hock. When he learns his estranged father has died, he and girlfriend Susanna (Valeria Golina) travel to Cincinnati in hopes an inheritance will rectify the situation. Charlie learns the bulk of the $3 million estate is going to a mental institution to support Raymond (Dustin Hoffman), an older brother of whom he was completely unaware.

Charlie and Susanna visit Raymond who’s autistic, obsessive/compulsive, and a numbers savant. The salesman decides the only way he’ll get his hands on the trust is to gain custody of  Raymond. Susanna leaves in disgust. As Raymond refuses to fly, the two men make a cross country road trip. Miscommunication is frequent, patience tested. The savant unwittingly solves his brother’s money problems. Over time Charlie begins to feel affection for his sibling. When they reach Los Angeles, decisions must be made. Best Picture, Director, Screenplay, and Actor Academy Awards. Free with Amazon Prime.

Wag the Dog 1997 Loosely adapted from Larry Beinhart’s novel American Hero. Directed by Barry Levinson. The blackest of comedies and prescient.  To  distract voters from a White House sex scandal, presidential aide Winifred Ames (Anne Heche) brings in spin doctor Conrad Brean (Robert De Niro). Brean, in turn solicits the help of infamous Hollywood producer Stanley Motss (Dustin Hoffman, having a grand time). They decide to concoct a fake war in Albania, which is executed in the media with all credible trimmings. (It could happen.)

Eventually, the CIA in collusion with the president’s rival discover the hoax, turning news interest back to the underage girl at hand. To combat this, Brean and Motss come up with a rescued hero left behind the lines in Albania. This goes horribly wrong, but is spun again to their advantage. The producer is so proud, he wants to take credit. NOT a good idea. The title of the film comes from the English-language expression “the tail wagging the dog.” Hoffman’s character, Stanley Motss, is said to have been based on famed producer Robert Evans who commented, “I’m magnificent in this film.” Rent on Amazon Prime.

All the President’s Men 1976 can be found  in Stream Films About Newspapers and Journalists.

Last Chance Harvey 2008 can be found in Streaming Grown-Up Love Stories I

Agatha (Christie) can be found in Stream Films About Notable Authors VIII                  

Top photo: Shutterstock

About Alix Cohen (1706 Articles)
Alix Cohen is the recipient of ten New York Press Club Awards for work published on this venue. Her writing history began with poetry, segued into lyrics and took a commercial detour while holding executive positions in product development, merchandising, and design. A cultural sponge, she now turns her diverse personal and professional background to authoring pieces about culture/the arts with particular interest in artists/performers and entrepreneurs. Theater, music, art/design are lifelong areas of study and passion. She is a voting member of Drama Desk and Drama League. Alix’s professional experience in women’s fashion fuels writing in that area. Besides Woman Around Town, the journalist writes for Cabaret Scenes, Broadway World, TheaterLife, and Theater Pizzazz. Additional pieces have been published by The New York Post, The National Observer’s Playground Magazine, Pasadena Magazine, Times Square Chronicles, and ifashionnetwork. She lives in Manhattan. Of course.