It’s a happy birthday to Sam Rockwell, who turns 39 today. While this summer’s Joshua was a stillborn misfire of stilted mood, it at least had the benefit of honest effort, and slightly different modes of expression than most mainstream product. It was a good bit of branching out for Rockwell, too. Long a master of the hair-based performance, Rockwell is sort of where Philip Seymour Hoffman was circa 1997-2000 — in demand with in-the-know directors, and reeling off memorable character work, but still awaiting his Capote. As anyone who’s seen Confessions of a Dangerous Mind will attest, he’s got the talent to break through as a part-time lead (albeit a very screwy one), just like Hoffman. Perhaps his turns in Ron Howard’s Frost/Nixon and the upcoming Choke will give Rockwell the extra little bump in mainstream profile that has thus far eluded him, despite having a fan in George Clooney.