Rating: 
Summary: Visual Poem
Review: Schnabel's film Before Night Falls was my favorite film of 2001. Vastly underrated, and seemingly ignored by many people. The film is an astoundingly rich experience for both the eyes, ears and intellect. After viewing it it will not leave your mind quickly unlike so many of the Mc-Films that are being churned out by Holly-Wooden.
I wont delve as much on the plot line as most other reviewers here have done so for me. I want to comment about the Visuals/Cinematography. Schnabel's eye view in this film is nothing short of brilliant. Tarnished, imperfectly stunning images steep this film and inhabit the frame providing atmosphere so vivid that you are smelling the cigar smoke, hearing the waves crashing on the beaches, squishing the mud between your toes, feeling the humid tropical heat. The result is a tactile sensual experience that, for some, will linger in the mind for ages.
This film hit me on a very personal level and when I first saw it it was like drinking a cool glass of water after being thirsty for a very long time. The heavyness of the plot and the struggle that Arenas endures could make some people balk at taking this film on. Its not altogether pretty, the hardships he endures. But the saving grace is Javier Bardem's nuanced performance and large brown eyes that he invites us to use to view the world of his character. The poetry and depth that one experiences thru Arenas' words seem to spill from Bardem's every pore. The visuals along with his voice overs help with the effect. I highly recommend the film with one reservation. I found Jonny Depps performance as the nasty prison official as klutzy, overdone. It actually mocked the horror of the scene in my mind. A very bad decision by Schnabel in my view. It was the only blemish that I experienced.
Rating: 
Summary: He's gay! He's gay! He's very very gay! Then he's dead. feh
Review: The actual books by Reinaldo Arenas are probably really good. That's the main feeling I got watching this yawn fest. There are just enough hints of passion in the screenplay to suggest really good books hiding behind this version of video cliff notes. And since they are compressing 5 books into one 2 hour movie, it's pretty good bet that you are going to get more out of the interesting characters that show up for five minutes on the screen never to be seen again (even if some of the actors come back)Story: Reinaldo Arenas (or whatever his fictional alter ego is called) grows up in Cuba, celebrates the Revolution, has lots of sex. When Castro starts cracking down on dissidents including homosexuals, he spends a lot of time in jail - writing. A lot of his money is made writing for other prisoners. He tries to escape several times but his friends are idiots (including the one guy that dumped him and whom he never should have trusted in the first place) and he keeps getting caught. Eventually he leaves Cuba in one of those "take them if you want them" moves by Castro. Five minutes later he's dying of AIDS. Ten minutes later he's dead (and one gets the feeling that those ten minutes are an entire last book). The end. What works in this movie is Javier Bardem's acting (although the rest of the cast is great too). What doesn't work is Bardem's crotch in the camera every other scene. We got it. He's gay. He loves sex. But every other scene? Maybe if I was gay I'd be more into that, but I doubt it -- it's just too crass. What also doesn't work is the fact that all five books have to be compressed into this thing. I spent the entire movie promising to buy the books as soon as I had money (sadly 2001 came and that was it for my checkbook) but not enjoying the movie itself. So it's not a bad movie. Not a great movie either. It would have been better if the director had only decided to adapt parts of it instead of the whole thing (like The Mambo Kings where the movie is only half the book) but it's not the greatest movie ever either.
Rating:
Summary: A must see for anyone interested in politics and art
Review: This movie was passionate enough about issues like self discovery and individual expression to elevate itself into timelessness. It's a must see for anyone interested in politics and/or art.
Rating: 
Summary: Whats all the hoopla
Review: This movie was very disappointing to me. I read all the reviews but I must have missed somthing. Long, drawn out and never an up beat moment. Sean Penn appears for 3 minutes.
Rating: 
Summary: Captures the Atmosphere of the Book
Review: While debate rages over the film and the items in Arena's book that are given brief screen time, (while other items are expanded in portion)one cannot dismiss the rich work that is done here. Javier Bardem and Johnny Deep are awesome in their roles and deliver amazing perfomances, that unfornately didn't get the recognition they justifiabley deserve. Read the book, then see the movie and admire two same, but differnt works of art that come from the life of a powerful, brillant writer.
Rating:
Summary: Joy in Ruin.
Review: This movie was powerful in its visual & emotional moments. The spoken English moments were muddled and difficult to follow. The movie was better served in Spanish with subtitles. It was a beautiful movie which began in the early 40's at the dawn of Castro's Revolution. It was very sad to watch a joyful & colorful people become ruined and terrified of their government. They turned each other in at any point to save their own skins. The soundtrack was perfectly selected and paced througout the movie. Art and beauty were suspect and hunted out for destruction as enemies of the Revolution. The excerpts from his books will have me going to the library to check out a few titles - BEFORE NIGHT FALLS and SINGING FROM THE WELL both sound like good reads. Johnny Depp's dual stints as two very different characters was surprising and effective. Javier Bardem was charming - and full of pain. His final escape from Cuba to the US is briefly satisfying as the movie moves right into his demise as AIDS claims his life. Give this one a whirl - it is well worth it.
Rating:
Summary: Better To Die Free Than Live Dead
Review: Before Night Falls is the second film from painter Julian Schnabel. Much like his first film, Basquiat, Schnabel uses this film to explore the life of another late artist -- the Cuban poet Reinaldo Arenas. The film follows Arenas for his birth to Cuban peasants, his concurrent discoveries of both homosexuality and poetry during his youth, and his eventual, Hellish imprisonment under Fidel Castro's communist regime. Arenas was eventually sent to America as a part of the Mariel boatlift which later became infamous for being made up of several psychotics and habitual criminals. That Castro also included a large number of gay Cubans amongst this bunch shows the beyond low regard in which gays were held in what many still foolishly consider to be Castro's "enlightened" government. Settling in New York and living in great poverty (but finally with the freedom to be, regardless of his sexuality, acknowledged as a human being), Arenas eventually developed AIDS and killed himself in the early '90s. It doesn't sound like a happy story yet strangely, one cannot help but be inspired by this film. Certainly, the scenes in Cuba are the strongest. Though this is not an explicitly political film and Schnabel is hardly a right-winger, he is still unflinching in portraying how Castro's regime established its power by punishing anyone who dared to display any form of individuality and how homosexuals -- who were hardly on society's A list before Castro came to power -- became a convenient scapegoat. Through prodigous excerpts from Arenas's writings, Schnabel also shows how, under a system where freedom is forbidden, both art and any display of defiant individuality (in this case, Arenas' sexuality) become all the more important. They become a lifeblood and finally, the only way to keep oneself from becoming a member of the living dead. Once Arenas reaches America, the film is a little less sure of itself and, until Arenas finds himself facing death -- at times, it seemed that Arenas made it to America and the next day, discovered he was dying. The parts of the film dealing with Schnabel's illness might leave some viewers uncomfortable as Schnabel doesn't attempt to sentimentalize or preach. Yes, it is clear that Arenas, at least according to this film, contracted the disease through having unsafe sex and some might say that, for all his talk of freedom, Arenas' freedom to pursue his lifestyle has now killed him. But I think to say that would be to seriously misread this film. AIDS is presented as a risk but, at the same time, its clear that to have the freedom to live life the way you want is more important than that risk. As well, in New York, at least Arenas has the right to end his own life as opposed to Cuba where he would have been tossed, more or less, into a concentration camp. In the end, this is a film celebrating freedom -- artistic and personal -- and embracing the potential risks involved in that freedom. As a painter, Schnabel is infamous for his huge canvasses and at times, this film does feel like its striving too hard to be epic and, as a result, about to crash and burn. However, Schnabel always manages to retain control and, only towards the end, does it seem occasionally a little overlong. Visually, the film is hauntingly beautiful (especially in the Cuba segments) and Schnabel shows a good feel for getting good performances from his actors. Javier Bardem is amazing in the lead role -- providing a valuable anchor for the film and never allowing himself to play a 1-D saint. Amongst the other actors, the best known are probably Sean Penn and Johnny Depp in two brief cameos. Penn shows up as Areas' father and is actually a bit of a distraction but he's only on screen for a few minutes. Depp plays two roles during the Cuban prison scenes -- a cross-dressing inmate and a sadistic prison warden. Though at first it might seem like stunt casting, Depp's two roles make a valuable point about the totalitarian existence -- the only real difference between the outcasts and the establishment is the uniform worn.
Rating:
Summary: One of 2000's finest
Review: Although "Before Night Falls" is a biographical picture, it does not feel like one. It does not have a pressing sense of accuracy, nor is there a chronologically coherent narrative. It's a film that explores the life of an artist, but filters everything through a perspective which leaves the viewer to ponder and establish his or her own conclusions. "Before Night Falls" is not something one would watch for entertainment, a characteristic that automatically divides people. To me, this was one of the most intellectually provocative and emotionally stirring films I'd seen in quite some time, and it's only elevated by the altogether remarkable performance of Javier Bardem. Unlike most movies based on real people's lives, this ones floats seamlessly through memories, dreams and reality. It unfolds with both the engrossing ambiguity of a poem, and the stark realism of a documentary. "Before Night Falls" essentially examines the journey of Reinaldo Arenas, and illustrates his growth as an artist, but also more poignantly, as a human being trying to find solace amidst the callous world around him. The film's glimpse into Cuba's revolution and the crippling effect it had on the "outsiders" only deepens the power of Reinaldo Arena's tumultuous quest to fulfill his dreams. The fragmented quality of the film never really lets the narrative or it's charaters become entirely focused, but the vibrant immediacy of the images, sounds and dialogue gradually builds an emotional resonance, leading to a quietly devastating conclusion.(My only complaint is the occasionally awkward and rambling structural fashion of the story.) If there is one aspect that holds everything together, though, it's the central performer himself, Javier Bardem. Rarely have I seen an actor embody a role with such sensitivity and compassion, Bardem renders the shadowy figure of Reinaldo Arenas and infuses him with life in every scene. It's just a shame that the Academy couldn't recognize the superiority of his performance. On the whole, though, "Before Night Falls" is a haunting evocation of one man's struggle to eternalize the flame which society tried to extinguish. It's also a motion picture that reminds us of how film-making can be shaped into a form of artistry.
Rating:
Summary: This could have been special..........
Review: An important film this. Just thinking of how much better it could and should have been does make me angry though. The main plus point of the film will hopefully be to act as a stimulant for the viewer to go away and read Arena's books. That is where all the truth, beauty and tragedy can be found.
Why do film makers have to take such liberties? There is enough material in Arenas's memoirs to make half a dozen movies, yet Julian Schnabel can't make just one without including scenes of fiction and fabrication, or totally underplaying some of the most important events, like Arena's stay in El Morro. Read the book and you will see what I mean.
The acting of Javier Bardem is a big plus point. He looks uncannily like Arenas, and shows what a versatile actor he is ( as those who are familiar with him from some of Bigas Luna's movies will attest).
The inclusion of the interview in Improper Conduct is very welcome. What I would like to see now is the major documentary that the BBC made back in 1990 called 'Havana', which included maybe the last interview with Arena's before his death. Having read the synopsis of the programme, I think it will give a far better picture of the Cuba of Arenas than this movie ever will.
Rating:
Summary: Haunting, beautiful, and candid.
Review: Before Night Falls was one of the few bright spots in an otherwise dismal year for movies in 2000. Javier Bardem gives a heartbreaking performance as Reinaldo Arenas, an aspiring poet who grows up in Cuba--only to be tortured and condemned for his homosexuality by the very dictatorship he was raised to embrace. When he gets caught for smuggling his printed work overseas, he is arrested, tried, and jailed. He ultimately escapes, flees to New York City with his lover. Revealing more would be unkind, but do have your tissues ready for the ending: it's one of the most powerful scenes I've witnessed. In addition to the film, the DVD also has a short interview with the real life Reinaldo Arenas. If you haven't seen the movie, rent it. If you've already seen it, then by all means buy this DVD. You can thank me later.
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