Look at Me by Dustin Hoffman review – an era-defining actor says his piece

At 89, the star of the Graduate and Ran Man demonstrates both brilliance and a startling lack of self-awareness

The choice of title for an actor’s autobiography can be revealing. Sylvester Stallone went with The Steps, conflating life’s challenging progress with the grand staircase of the Philadelphia Museum of Art that Rocky euphorically ran up. Michael Douglas cheerfully and unreflectively called his One Helluva Ride.

Dustin Hoffman’s is one of those that harks back to the poignantly vulnerable youthful world in which the acting bug first took effect. Al Pacino called his Sonny Boy; Anthony Hopkins gave us We Did OK, Kid. Hoffman’s Look at Me is about the yearning to be seen and heard. Or is it about a childish impulse to show off?