[rohrpost] [montagsPraxis]
b_books
x@bbooksz.de
Sat, 23 Mar 2002 21:32:11 +0100
--=====================_33111501==_.ALT
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"; format=flowed
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
Montagspraxis
beamed um
21:OO
b_books
l=FCbbnerstr.14
10997 - berlin
"BEFORE NIGHT FALLS"
133 minutes
Directed by Julien Schnabel
Starring Javier Bardem, Olivier Martinez, Andrea Di Stefano, Johnny Depp,=20
Sean Penn, Michael Wincott, Najwa Nimri, Hector Babenco, Olatz Lopez=20
Garmendia & Vito Maria Schnabel
montagsPraxis 25/03/02 21 00
BArenas was a gifted Cuban novelist and poet whose life of poverty,=20
hardship, revolution, censorship, imprisonment and exile never stemmed his=
=20
formulation of passionate prose.
In "Before Night Falls," artist/filmmaker Julien Schnabel pays devotional=20
homage to the writer with a soul-probing and beautifully cinematic=20
adaptation of his memoirs, begun in a Cuban prison in 1973 and published=20
posthumously after he succumbed to AIDS in New York in 1990.
The film, which tracks Arenas's entire life beginning with his childhood in=
=20
a dirt-floored farmhouse, features dulcet, moving voice-overs from his=20
poetry. It boasts powerful symbolism and political statements about freedom=
=20
and persecution, not to mention cinematography that brings vividly to life=
=20
the ironic contrast of Cuba's impoverished living conditions with its=20
breathtaking beauty.
But what drives this engrossing biography is the potent but subtle,=20
complex, intimate and magnetic portrayal of the author by Javier Bardem=20
("Boca a Boca"). With a natural, unaffected charisma and a generous smile=20
full of both veritable joy and sonorous melancholy, Bardem is reminiscent=20
of a Latin (and sober) Robert Downey, Jr. His brilliant performance gives=20
such spirit and depth to Arenas's every nuance that it feels like he's=20
sitting next to you in the theater, whispering his life story in your ear.
That story follows Arenas from his failing childhood farm to his idealistic=
=20
teen years as a soldier in Castro's rebel army, then to the writing contest=
=20
that led to a job at the national library where his creativity was nurtured=
=20
by a mentor who lent him a comprehensive reading list including everything=
=20
from the Bible to Melville to Kafka. Schnabel -- whose only previous film=20
was his controversial homage to fellow painter "Basquiat" -- treats=20
Arenas's homosexuality quite matter-of-factly, although it is integral to=20
many parts of the story. Sometimes this has the desired effect, making his=
=20
sexual preference a non-issue from the audience's point of view. However,=20
this biography is so thorough that at other times it feels incomplete=20
because no mention is made of when he realized he was gay or of any=20
internal struggles Arenas may have had with his sexuality, especially=20
considering the culture in which he was raised.
The film is more focused on the political. As Castro cracks down on the=20
intellectual community in the early 1970s, Arenas is forced to publish his=
=20
work overseas after being censored at home. He watches a close friend=20
confess falsely on television to crimes against the state, and before long=
=20
he's a fugitive himself -- until his capture and imprisonment as a "rapist,=
=20
murderer and CIA agent."
(One of the film's most wrenching episodes is when Arenas himself breaks=20
under interrogation. Given the chance to go free, he betrays himself,=20
writing "All the work I have done before now is garbage. I deny my=20
homosexual condition. I am converted into a man by this revolution.")
Every moment up to this point is utterly absorbing, and the 133-minute film=
=20
only begins to drag after Arenas's escape to the United States in the=20
Mariel Harbor boatlift, during which Castro allowed undesirables (gays,=20
ex-cons, the mentally ill) to leave Cuba en masse. Once he becomes stricken=
=20
with AIDS, "Before Night Falls" takes 15 minutes too long to wind down and=
=20
it becomes a get-on-with-it deathwatch.
But even with its shortcomings, this is one of the most passionately told=20
screen biographies ever made.
EFORE NIGHT FALLS . ein film von julian schnabel
mit javier bardem . olivier martinez . andrea di stefano . johnny depp .=20
sean penn . michael wincott
Before Night Falls spans the whole of Arenas' life, from his rural=20
childhood and his early embrace of the Revolution to the persecution he=20
would later experience as a writer and homosexual in Castro's Cuba; from=20
his departure from Cuba in the Mariel Harbor exodus of 1980 to his exile=20
and death in the United States. It is a portrait of a man whose search for=
=20
freedom - artistic, political, sexual - defied poverty, censorship,=20
persecution, exile and death. Like Arenas' work, Before Night Falls=20
combines passages of transporting imagination with urgent realism; in so=20
doing, it embodies the creative ethos to which Arenas dedicated himself:=20
transforming experience into unfettered expression.
Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the 2000 Venice Film Festival, Before=20
Night Falls is a richly imagined journey into the life and writings of the=
=20
brilliant Cuban author and exile Reinaldo Arenas. Directed and co-written=20
by Julian Schnabel (Basquiat), the film stars Spanish actor Javier Bardem=20
(Live Flesh, J=E1mon j=E1mon), whose eloquent, complex performance as Arenas=
=20
earned him the 2000 Venice Film Festival's Volpi Cup for Best Actor.
montagsPraxis 25/03/02 21 00
BEFORE NIGHT FALLS . ein film von julian schnabel
mit javier bardem . olivier martinez . andrea di stefano . johnny depp .=20
sean penn . michael wincott
Before Night Falls spans the whole of Arenas' life, from his rural=20
childhood and his early embrace of the Revolution to the persecution he=20
would later experience as a writer and homosexual in Castro's Cuba; from=20
his departure from Cuba in the Mariel Harbor exodus of 1980 to his exile=20
and death in the United States. It is a portrait of a man whose search for=
=20
freedom - artistic, political, sexual - defied poverty, censorship,=20
persecution, exile and death. Like Arenas' work, Before Night Falls=20
combines passages of transporting imagination with urgent realism; in so=20
doing, it embodies the creative ethos to which Arenas dedicated himself:=20
transforming experience into unfettered expression.
Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the 2000 Venice Film Festival, Before=20
Night Falls is a richly imagined journey into the life and writings of the=
=20
brilliant Cuban author and exile Reinaldo Arenas. Directed and co-written=20
by Julian Schnabel (Basquiat), the film stars Spanish actor Javier Bardem=20
(Live Flesh, J=E1mon j=E1mon), whose eloquent, complex performance as Arenas=
=20
earned him the 2000 Venice Film Festival's Volpi Cup for Best Actor.
--=====================_33111501==_.ALT
Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
<html>
<font face=3D"arial" size=3D6><b>Montagspraxis<br>
beamed um<br>
21:OO <br>
b_books<br>
l=FCbbnerstr.14<br>
10997 - berlin<br><br>
"BEFORE NIGHT FALLS"<br>
</b></font><font face=3D"arial" size=3D4>133 minutes <br>
Directed by Julien Schnabel <br>
Starring Javier Bardem, Olivier Martinez, Andrea Di Stefano, Johnny Depp,
Sean Penn, Michael Wincott, Najwa Nimri, Hector Babenco, Olatz Lopez
Garmendia & Vito Maria Schnabel<br><br>
<br>
</font><font face=3D"MS Sans Serif, Geneva" color=3D"#FFFFFF">montagsPraxis
25/03/02 21 00<br>
<b>B</b></font><font face=3D"MS Sans Serif, Geneva">Arenas was a gifted
Cuban novelist and poet whose life of poverty, hardship, revolution,
censorship, imprisonment and exile never stemmed his formulation of
passionate prose. <br>
In "Before Night Falls," artist/filmmaker Julien Schnabel pays
devotional homage to the writer with a soul-probing and beautifully
cinematic adaptation of his memoirs, begun in a Cuban prison in 1973 and
published posthumously after he succumbed to AIDS in New York in 1990.
<br>
The film, which tracks Arenas's entire life beginning with his childhood
in a dirt-floored farmhouse, features dulcet, moving voice-overs from his
poetry. It boasts powerful symbolism and political statements about
freedom and persecution, not to mention cinematography that brings
vividly to life the ironic contrast of Cuba's impoverished living
conditions with its breathtaking beauty. <br>
But what drives this engrossing biography is the potent but subtle,
complex, intimate and magnetic portrayal of the author by Javier Bardem
("Boca a Boca"). With a natural, unaffected charisma and a
generous smile full of both veritable joy and sonorous melancholy, Bardem
is reminiscent of a Latin (and sober) Robert Downey, Jr. His brilliant
performance gives such spirit and depth to Arenas's every nuance that it
feels like he's sitting next to you in the theater, whispering his life
story in your ear. <br>
That story follows Arenas from his failing childhood farm to his
idealistic teen years as a soldier in Castro's rebel army, then to the
writing contest that led to a job at the national library where his
creativity was nurtured by a mentor who lent him a comprehensive reading
list including everything from the Bible to Melville to Kafka. Schnabel
-- whose only previous film was his controversial homage to fellow
painter
</font><font face=3D"MS Sans Serif, Geneva"=
color=3D"#0000FF"><u>"Basquiat"</u></font><font face=3D"MS Sans=
Serif, Geneva">
-- treats Arenas's homosexuality quite matter-of-factly, although it is
integral to many parts of the story. Sometimes this has the desired
effect, making his sexual preference a non-issue from the audience's
point of view. However, this biography is so thorough that at other times
it feels incomplete because no mention is made of when he realized he was
gay or of any internal struggles Arenas may have had with his sexuality,
especially considering the culture in which he was raised. <br>
The film is more focused on the political. As Castro cracks down on the
intellectual community in the early 1970s, Arenas is forced to publish
his work overseas after being censored at home. He watches a close friend
confess falsely on television to crimes against the state, and before
long he's a fugitive himself -- until his capture and imprisonment as a
"rapist, murderer and CIA agent." <br>
(One of the film's most wrenching episodes is when Arenas himself breaks
under interrogation. Given the chance to go free, he betrays himself,
writing "All the work I have done before now is garbage. I deny my
homosexual condition. I am converted into a man by this
revolution.") <br>
Every moment up to this point is utterly absorbing, and the 133-minute
film only begins to drag after Arenas's escape to the United States in
the Mariel Harbor boatlift, during which Castro allowed undesirables
(gays, ex-cons, the mentally ill) to leave Cuba en masse. Once he becomes
stricken with AIDS, "Before Night Falls" takes 15 minutes too
long to wind down and it becomes a get-on-with-it deathwatch. <br>
But even with its shortcomings, this is one of the most passionately told
screen biographies ever made. <br>
</font><font face=3D"MS Sans Serif, Geneva" color=3D"#FFFFFF"><b>EFORE NIGHT
FALLS</b> . ein film von julian schnabel <br>
mit javier bardem . olivier martinez . andrea di stefano . johnny depp .
sean penn . michael wincott <br>
</font><font face=3D"Courier New, Courier" color=3D"#FFFFFF">Before Night
Falls spans the whole of Arenas' life, from his rural childhood and his
early embrace of the Revolution to the persecution he would later
experience as a writer and homosexual in Castro's Cuba; from his
departure from Cuba in the Mariel Harbor exodus of 1980 to his exile and
death in the United States. It is a portrait of a man whose search for
freedom - artistic, political, sexual - defied poverty, censorship,
persecution, exile and death. Like Arenas' work, Before Night Falls
combines passages of transporting imagination with urgent realism; in so
doing, it embodies the creative ethos to which Arenas dedicated himself:
transforming experience into unfettered expression. <br><br>
Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the 2000 Venice Film Festival, Before
Night Falls is a richly imagined journey into the life and writings of
the brilliant Cuban author and exile Reinaldo Arenas. Directed and
co-written by Julian Schnabel (Basquiat), the film stars Spanish actor
Javier Bardem (Live Flesh, J=E1mon j=E1mon), whose eloquent, complex
performance as Arenas earned him the 2000 Venice Film Festival's Volpi
Cup for Best Actor. <br>
</font><font face=3D"MS Sans Serif, Geneva" color=3D"#FFFFFF">montagsPraxis
25/03/02 21 00<br>
<b>BEFORE NIGHT FALLS</b> . ein film von julian schnabel <br>
mit javier bardem . olivier martinez . andrea di stefano . johnny depp .
sean penn . michael wincott <br>
</font><font face=3D"Courier New, Courier" color=3D"#FFFFFF">Before Night
Falls spans the whole of Arenas' life, from his rural childhood and his
early embrace of the Revolution to the persecution he would later
experience as a writer and homosexual in Castro's Cuba; from his
departure from Cuba in the Mariel Harbor exodus of 1980 to his exile and
death in the United States. It is a portrait of a man whose search for
freedom - artistic, political, sexual - defied poverty, censorship,
persecution, exile and death. Like Arenas' work, Before Night Falls
combines passages of transporting imagination with urgent realism; in so
doing, it embodies the creative ethos to which Arenas dedicated himself:
transforming experience into unfettered expression. <br><br>
Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the 2000 Venice Film Festival, Before
Night Falls is a richly imagined journey into the life and writings of
the brilliant Cuban author and exile Reinaldo Arenas. Directed and
co-written by Julian Schnabel (Basquiat), the film stars Spanish actor
Javier Bardem (Live Flesh, J=E1mon j=E1mon), whose eloquent, complex
performance as Arenas earned him the 2000 Venice Film Festival's Volpi
Cup for Best Actor. <br><br>
<br><br>
<br>
</font></html>
--=====================_33111501==_.ALT--