De Niro had the ability during the shooting to "listen" to him as an actor, and in turn, make Hoffman respond similarly because of his unique style of acting. Hoffman felt that his exposure to that level of acting profoundly improved his own abilities as an actor. Reception Review-aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes reports a 41% approval rating based on 56 reviews, with an average rating of 5.3/10, and a consensus reading: "Robert De Niro and Philip Seymour Hoffman's Flawless performances live up to this dramedy's title; unfortunately, they're outweighed by the misguided picture surrounding them." Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade of "C" on scale of A+ to F. Hoffman was praised by critics for his ability to avoid clichés in playing such a delicate role. Emily VanDerWerff, a transgender film critic, praised the warmth of his portrayal of Rusty, commenting that "Hoffman’s work is quiet, moving, and humanistic, and it provides the film with a core Schumacher doesn’t remotely earn. No matter; this is another movie worth seeing almost entirely for the titanic work Hoffman does near its center." Roger Ebert highlighted Hoffman as "one of the best new character actors", remarking that he was "able to take a flamboyant role and find the quiet details in it". Hoffman received a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for Best Lead Actor. References External links 1999 films 1990s buddy comedy-drama films 1990s crime comedy-drama films 1999 LGBT-related films American buddy comedy-drama films American crime comedy-drama films American LGBT-related films 1990s English-language films Films directed by Joel Schumacher Films with screenplays by Joel Schumacher Films set in New York City LGBT-related comedy-drama films Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films Films about trans women Transgender-related films Drag (clothing)-related films 1990s American films Films about anti-LGBT sentiment Films about disability