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Before Night Falls (2000)
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Reviews Counted:94
Fresh:70
Rotten:24
Average Rating:6.8/10
Consensus: An impressionistic, fragmented look at Reinaldo Arenas, Before Night Falls' imagery manages to evoke a sense of the writer's artistry, and Bardem's strong performance holds the film together. Finally, a biopic done well.
Runtime: 2 hrs 13 mins
Genre: Dramas
Synopsis: The life of Reinaldo Arenas, an exiled Cuban homosexual writer, is chronicled in an adaptation of his memoir BEFORE NIGHT FALLS, directed by Julian Schnabel (BASQUIAT). Javier Bardem (in an... The life of Reinaldo Arenas, an exiled Cuban homosexual writer, is chronicled in an adaptation of his memoir BEFORE NIGHT FALLS, directed by Julian Schnabel (BASQUIAT). Javier Bardem (in an Oscar-nominated performance) portrays Arenas as he journeys from poverty to university to the sexual revolution and homosexual subculture in Havana to persecution and imprisonment under the policies of Fidel Castro for being both gay and a writer. Despite the harsh conditions of prison, the courageous Arenas continued not only to write but also to publish his works abroad. Ultimately, he was allowed to leave Cuba for America, but there he faced new struggles as a man without a country battling AIDS. Schnabel's beautifully filmed sophomore directorial effort captures the essence of Cuba during the revolution. Johnny Depp is featured in the dual supporting roles of the cross-dressing prison inmate, Bon Bon, and the brutal officer, Lieutenant Victor. A well-disguised Sean Penn appears as Cuco Sanchez. Olivier Martinez as Lázaro Gómez Carillo and Andrea Di Stefano as Pepe Malas deliver standout performances. The film received accolades at the 2000 Venice and Toronto Film Festivals. [More]
Starring: Javier Bardem, Olivier Martinez, Johnny Depp, Sean Penn
Starring: Javier Bardem, Olivier Martinez, Johnny Depp, Sean Penn, Vito Schnabel, Najwa Nimri, Michael Wincott, Olatz Lapez Garmendia, Sebastian Silva, Hector Babenco
Director: Julian Schnabel
Director: Julian Schnabel
Screenwriter: Lazaro Gomez Carriles, Cunningham O'Keefe, Julian Schnabel
Studio: Fine Line Features
Reviews for Before Night Falls
despite a real commitment to Arenas and his work, the film just falls short.
Saddled with a wandering opening and an equally listless conclusion, a more fitting name for this two hour-plus biopic might well be Before Night Falters.
The cinematography is beautiful and clearly shows the director’s artistic bent, but the storytelling is often disjointed. . . . Ultimately, Before Night Falls is more successful as a Javier Bardem showcase than a movie.
[Bardem] simply does what the script calls for him to do, which is basically sustain a look of pain for two-hours plus.
Latest News for Before Night Falls
February 17, 2006:
Newell & Bardem Come Down with "Cholera"
International acting stud Javier Bardem and well-rounded movie director Mike Newell are about to bring the Pulitzer Prize-winning "Love in the Time of Cholera" to the... More...
April 20, 2005:
Bardem & Portman to Discover "Goya's Ghosts"
Javier Bardem ("Before Night Falls") and Natalie Portman ("Closer") are in final talks to star in the bio-pic "Goya's Ghosts," says Variety. The... More...
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