Primarily based on Laurence Lemer’s 2021 novel Capote’s Ladies: A True Story of Love, Betrayal, and a Swan Track for an Period, this new installment of “Feud” (produced by Murphy however written by Jon Robin Baitz) focuses on one of many best and most controversial American writers of the twentieth century. Famously adored for his fiction and non-fiction work, Truman Capote was revered all through the ’60s and far of the ’70s. His work as a author shot him into stardom that writers of the trendy age seldom attain, permitting him to befriend a few of Hollywood’s most prestigious socialites. Capote’s knack for storytelling allowed him to place himself nearly like a court docket jester kind for the wealthy, attending dinner events, balls and charities, many with a choose few girls he referred to as his “swans.”
Within the first episode of “Feud,” we’re launched to Capote (Tom Hollander) when he goes to satisfy Babe Paley (Naomi Watts), the clear favourite of his swans, in her luxurious residence. Babe is distraught over catching her husband with a girl whom she thought he had put behind him and tells her buddy the story over shared tablets and liquor. Her story is intercut with the precise revelation going down, not solely making it a extra dynamic watch, however showcasing how Truman’s thoughts as a author actually labored. He paints an image not just for himself however for the viewer as properly, imagining the story as if it had been a scene from a cleaning soap opera. Right here, it’s obvious that whereas he could really feel some semblance of pity for Babe, what Truman is de facto getting from this go to is content material for a brand new ebook, one which drops so lots of his pals’ secrets and techniques that they work collectively to chop him out of their lives, and the social circles wherein he thrives.
It’s with this primary look of Tom Hollander as Truman Capote that it turns into clear that “Feud” is straight involved with the distinction between efficiency and actuality. Truman was a notoriously flamboyant determine whether or not it’s the way in which he dressed or the way in which he acted within the presence of sure figures. This air of camp is current each time Hollander is on-screen, and whereas we see Truman hit all-time low typically, this air isn’t stamped out. It’s used as a way to maintain him protected, performing as a boundary between himself and people round him. Regardless of their closeness, it feels as if Babe solely is aware of a singular model of Truman, although it’s certainly one which he doesn’t let simply anybody see. He’s kinder together with her than he’s with others, and it’s their relationship that he misses probably the most as soon as the swans flip their again on him.