Rate It
|
||||||||||||||||
Rating Averages
My Friends |
Not rated. () |
|
|
|---|---|---|---|
All Flixster |
(3396) |
2787 |
5605 |
Female |
(2248) |
1845 |
3710 |
Male |
(1148) |
942 |
1895 |
More Like This
If you liked this, then you'll also probably like...
Got another recommendation for someone who liked this movie? Add it to the list!
Got an opinion? Use the buttons to vote on all the suggestions people have added.
If lots of people vote, the best suggestions will rise to the top.
| In the Gloaming (0%) |
|
|
|---|---|---|
| La Cage Aux Folles (67%) |
|
|
| Barton Fink (50%) |
|
|
| Il Postino (100%) |
|
|
| Piñero (75%) |
|
|
Plot:
This is the story of Cuban poet and novelist Reinaldo Arenas. Raised in the Oriente Province of Cuba in the 1940s, Arenas began his life-long love of the sea and water. Leaving home as a young adolesc...( read more 
)
Meet Other Fans
ONLINE NOW
Recent Reviews
-
MCT:September 30, 2008
an interesting but fairly run-of-the-mill biopic. it seems to only scrape the surface of the life of reinaldo's life. the cameos from depp and penn are almost laughable.
-
MCT:September 22, 2008Beautiful Schnabel moments, like the balloon flight, but I never connected emotionally to Bardem's character, and at times the history of the story were hard to follow. Paints a vivid picture of the feeling of living inside an oppressive regime.
-
MCT:September 21, 2008
bardem makes this worth seeing. he really is a remarkable actor. the film itself did not really hold together well for me. some of the cameo's were really just laughable, namely sean penn's. and the dialogue simply did not do the subject matter justice. it was shot rather nicely but was ultimately a very unbalanced film and bardem's performance is it's saving grace.
-
MCT:September 19, 2008
Escritor cubano nacido cerca de Holguín (Aguas Claras), donde creció comiendo tierra junto a su abandonada madre y su abuela que orinaba de pie. Empezó a escribir a los 13 años, aunque la llegada de la Revolución, a la que se sumó como guerrillero, retrasó su vocación hasta 1963, cuando ingresó en la Biblioteca Nacional y redactó Celestino antes del alba. Conoció y entabló amistad con Piñera y Lezama Lima. Su libro El mundo alucinante fue prohibido por contrarrevolucionario, y a partir de ese momento y en adelante tuvo que esconder sus manuscritos. Otra vez el mar, que ocultó bajo tierra y en el tejado, fue hallado y destruido, pero lo rehizo tres veces. El ambiente en Cuba se enrarecía: la campaña de la Zafra de los Diez Millones, en la que el escritor fue obligado a contribuir cortando caña en una plantación, y las torturas al poeta disidente Heberto Padilla fueron para Arenas síntomas de su arriesgada situación, que trató de paliar al casarse con la actriz Ingrávida González. En 1973 lo detuvieron por contrarrevolucionario y traicionado en su huida por su amigo Coco Salá, fue conducido al cuartel de Miramar, desde donde trató de salir de la isla en un neumático. Fracasó, como cuando quiso huir por Guantánamo, donde estuvo a punto de ser ametrallado. Durante dos meses se refugió entre la vegetación del Parque Lenin, hasta que la policía lo encerró en el castillo del Morro: dos años entre palizas e intentos de suicidio. Tras perder dos dientes, trabajar como forzado y confesar por escrito para evitar torturas, obtuvo la libertad. En los cinco años siguientes asistió a las muertes de sus amigos Lezama Lima y Piñera, se enamoró del joven Lázaro Gómez y saqueó un convento para sobrevivir. Hasta que se unió a los marielitos y falsificó a mano su pasaporte para convertirse en Reinaldo Arinas y eludir la lista de los que no podían salir del país. En 1980 consiguió huir de Cuba y se trasladó a Miami. Muchos intelectuales le dieron la espalda, y aprendió que un exiliado sin dinero no era nadie. Arenas paseó 10 años su grito por Venezuela, Francia, Portugal, Suecia, Dinamarca y España. En Estados Unidos, donde colaboró en la revista Mariel desde su fundación en 1983 hasta su cierre en 1987, acabó el repaso a su vida que había iniciado 17 años antes en el Parque Lenin. Reynaldo Arenas se suicidó el 7 de diciembre de 1990.
-
MCT:August 1, 2008This was kind of...ahem, weird. Actually, the best word for this movie was BORING! If Johnny Depp wasn't in this, I would have given thiis half a star...
-
MCT:July 27, 2008
The strong point of this movie is the powerfull performance of Javier Bardem, also I enjoyed the small parts of Johnny Depp and Sean Penn. The film is a bit slow and I was annoyed by the fact that the actors, although most of them are spanish, have to talk english with a bad accent, this ruins the authenticity.
-
MCT:July 13, 2008
Maybe because it's about a life it's not too interesting, but I think that as a book it's good, but not as a movie.
-
MCT:July 13, 2008
I saw this before Bardem was all the rage and was totally thrown by the fact that Johnny Depp was in it
-
MCT:July 3, 2008one of my fave movies ever. beautiful. heartbreaking. and the rare movie that is as good as the book.
-
MCT:June 13, 2008
This movie was a little weird to me, and was so surprised to see Johnny Depp in this dressed like a woman...but Johnny always looks good no matter what and he is another great actor who makes you belive every role he plays
-
MCT:May 30, 2008
The kind of film you watch to remember why Bardem is a great actor. Also, probably the last good film that Johnny Depp made.
-
MCT:May 16, 2008
Bardem is a dream...the man is miracle...yes he is the sexiest, most handsome men working in film today but that talent it TAKES my breath away...the film about Reinaldo Arias life is a beautiful film...watch for the J Depp cameo it is hilarious
-
MCT:April 15, 2008Oh God, I can't believe I came to see this movie. >_<
Although I can't deny I was captured by the storyline. :P
I was only looking forward to seeing Johnny Depp but I found myself switching the TV off even before his scene.
Nice concept though. But not really into these kinds of movies. :) -
MCT:April 14, 2008
Javier Bardem captures my attention from beginning to end in this movie about him being a writer and struggling with love and his own sexuality. A must see for anyone.
-
MCT:March 29, 2008bardem is really amazing here: every movement of the hand means something, every shade in the voice (in the version in spanish he speaks with a delicious cuban after-taste) constructs a complicated and deep personage: from the extreme terror up to the desperate and cruel petition of atention, from the vitality chipped up to the amazement.
schnabel makes a great job here: the script is so interesting, mixing dreamed escaping scenes with terrible happenings; the light is terribly beautiful, the rooms, decadent, the cuban system, perfectly reflected and the supporting roles, simply fascinating (omg: the extremly handsome olivier martinez, like coming form another world, and an unrecognizable johnny deep playing the brilliant bom-bom). -
MCT:March 22, 2008me encanta javier bardem es mi actor favorito y la participacion de johnny depp le dio el toque a la peli
-
MCT:March 15, 2008
Reinaldo Arenas nunca lo lei, pero puedo decir q vale la pena , la pelicula lo crea de un modo q es de lo mas interesante.
me gusta la escena donde el debe escribir cartas para los presos.
y los delirantes papeles de j. deep -
MCT:March 4, 2008
One night bored I decided to check out what was on the World Movies channel on Foxtel and it said that it had a cameo by Johnny Depp, so I assumed it would be worth watching.. and it was! Really quite interesting. I'm growing fond of subtitled movies. The story line was great. Sometimes I was furious, sometimes I laughed, sometimes I cried. Definitely watch this. Also I learned a bit of history watching this.
-
MCT:February 8, 2008
Interesting drama, need to be in a serious mood to really watch. Worth it for the little bit of Johnny in it. When you see him, you'll understand why.
-
MCT:January 27, 2008idk if i wanna c it...i mean i luv jd but...he's playing bon bon!!!! i mean come on but...ill give it a try
-
MCT:January 16, 2008
The book is great, the director has talent, and the cast is top of the line. The material just doesn't translate to cinema that well.
-
MCT:January 11, 2008
Although, during the first 45 minutes, Julian Schnabel's BEFORE NIGHT FALLS looks just like a movie about being gay and boning every guy that comes your way, it develops into a heartbreaking drama about the troubled life of REINALDO ARENAS, a Cuban writer in the times of the Revolution and Fidel Castro. Beautifully shot and directed. It was filmed in Mexico and there are cameos by some of its most famous actors: Diego Luna, Ofelia Medina, Patricia Reyes Spíndola and Francisco Gattorno (he's not mexican though). There are also special appearances by two of the best actors in the world: Sean Penn and Johnny Depp (their performances are not as good as they always are, but they're nice anyway). Subtle performance by Olivier Martinez. But this is Javier Bardem's movie, and he gives an extraordinary portrayal of the cuban writer, virtually appearing in the whole movie, he even scored an Oscar nomination!
-
MCT:January 11, 2008
1 word, wow, when this film 1st started i wasn't so sure, but as it got on i was glued! although at sum parts it can b a bit confusing as it doen't explain itself at certain points. i loved johnny depp role! i prefer bon bon 2 the other 1 as u can't beat him as a women! :D not 1 2 show my friends though or show in my media class as a bit 2 much, well u now if u've seen it
-
MCT:December 8, 2007
An excellent biopic I should have seen years ago. It's the true story of Reinaldo Arenas, a homosexual poet and novelist active in Cuba from the mid 1960s until his death in NYC in 1990.
Javier Bardem is an obviously gifted actor, and is Spain's asnwer to Hollywood's best. Although BNF IS Bardem, the rest of the cast seems expertly chosen for authenticity. And it was nice to catch a pre-Unfaithful Olivier Martinez.
So much more than an autobiography brought to film, the deeper message is not one you have to search for. It's eternally relatable, and something everyone should see.
Just a bit slow in the beginning.
My Friends Said...
Before Night Falls Recent Reviews
Register or sign-in to see your friends' reviews !
