Antes que anochezca

Julian Schnabel is primarily a visual artist and secondarily a film director, and his mastery of visual media dominates this patient and precise bio of the late Reynaldo Arenas, a novelist and poet who was imprisoned and later exiled from his native Cuba for his controversial writings and his open homosexuality.

Most of the objections to this film have to do with the faithfulness with which Schnabel treats the memoir of Arenas (also titled 'Before Night Falls'), which, despite its beauty, is undoubtedly biased in its presentation of history. Furthermore, Schnabel seems to downplay Arenas' contempt for Fidel Castro and the post-revolutionary totalitarianism of his regime, under which countless poets, writers, artists, and practitioners of alternative lifestyles deemed 'counter-revolutionary' by the regime were jailed, tortured, murdered, and, in some cases, expelled from Cuba. Schnabel presents Arenas as far more of a victim than an active voice of dissent, which is, in a certain sense, unfaithful to his legacy. It feels as if Schnabel may have had some reservation about being overcritical of Castro and, by default, of Communism, both of which are sympathized with by many artists and leftists worldwide (including the family of the film's star, Javier Bardem, a Spaniard whose parents--influential figures in Spanish cinema--are longtime outspoken Communists/Socialists).

Both actor and director have publicly avowed that the film means to critique totalitarianism in general more so than Castro or Communist Cuba in particular, which seems like a bit of a cop-out. Nevertheless, art, despite its inherently political nature, should strive to be a-political, and this film does so effectively with its blending of gorgeous image and fine, subtle performance, particularly by Bardem as Arenas. Bardem has the face of a classical statue, and his deep set eyes, broken, Roman nose, and expressive mouth are mesmerizing. With the right role, he could (and should) be a major star in the US, as he has been for some time in his native Spain. Every move he makes is compelling to watch, and he creates a sympathy for Arenas few other actors could manage. His narration of Arenas' poetry and prose is patient and soulful, adding much to the already gorgeous shots of rural and urban settings (the film employs archival footage from Cuba, but was filmed in Merida and Veracruz, Mexico, in the Yucatan, the region of Mexico closest to Cuba).

Because the film is based on a memoir, it proceeds episodically, following the young Arenas from his boyhood to his early accomplishments as a poet and novelist through his imprisonment and later his escape to the United States during Castro's 'purge' of undesirables in 1980 (the same means by which Tony Montana escapes Cuba in 'Scarface'), when criminals and homosexuals were invited to voluntarily expatriate to Miami so that the demand for basic resources in Cuba under the US-led embargo could be relieved somewhat. The film spends considerable time reflecting on Arenas' sexual initiation and his gay lifestyle, which is slightly problematic in that it suggests that Arenas was persecuted solely for being homosexual, which is at best a half-truth. Though Arenas himself was probably persecuted less for his lifestyle than for his public criticism of the regime, it is probably not inaccurate in its portrayal of the turn against art, life, and experimentation taken by Castro's brutal totalitarian ethos. In any case, Arenas ultimately makes his way to New York with his friend Lazaro (Olivier Martinez), where in 1987 he began to suffer symptoms of AIDS. He died in 1990, after which his memoir and several letters condemning Castro and the failure of the US to rescue the Cuban people from his tyranny were published, to wide acclaim.

The film should not be overly criticized for its historical errors and omissions, because it is primarily a showcase for Schnabel's artistry as a director and Bardem's astonishingly charismatic performance as Arenas. The film is also graced by fine performances by Martinez as Lazaro, who rebuffs Arenas' sexual advances but later becomes his dearest and most trusted friend; Johnny Depp in dual roles as a jail house transvestite who helps Arenas smuggle his manuscripts out to the world and as a sadistic prison guard; Sean Penn as a farmer who encounters the young Arenas on the road to Havana; and Michael Wincott as Herbet Z. Ochoa, a poet and essayist forced to publicly renounce his art by a Communist tribunal.

The little-discussed topic of the persecution of homosexuals in Castro's Cuba is the prevailing theme throughout Julan Schnabel's masterful film of the life of writer Reinaldo Arenas. But this is far more than a simple piece of political agit-prop; instead, it's a beautifully constructed movie about the artistic temperament but with plenty of the same quality itself; visually, the movie is consistently striking, and yet of a piece. There's also a fine performance from Javier Bardem in the lead role. What the film doesn't do very much is follow it's characters in real time for anything longer than the duration of a snapshot; this slightly distances the viewer from the mechanics of the drama, and in consequence, at times it feels slow. Instead, it communicates through images (and fragments of the writer's own poetry); and the scene where the hot air balloon rises through the roof of a ruined church is so perfectly created it's a work of art in itself. 'Before Night Falls' is not light entertainment; but it's seriously good.

There's no doubt that Julian Schnabel knew exactly what he was doing and what he wanted in making this semi-bio on Cuban poet-novelist Reinado Arenas ('43-'90).

Trouble is, how interesting a film is it? Clocking in at 133 minutes, it's a long time to wade through so much flabby footage to get to the good material.

In a most meandering manner, the film mixes fact with fiction, and contains equally engrossing and tedious episodes. Often actors take too long to react to too little. Then again, the screen is filled with some compelling scenes, which make impressive statements.

Like his "Basquiat," made four years earlier, Schnabel doesn't seem to be able to create a consistently viable product with a sense of directorial energy, timing, or structure.

On the plus side is Javier Bardem's well executed lead performance. Almost unrecognizable American actors Sean Penn as Cuco Sanchez and Johnny Depp as a striking Bon Bon and slimy Lt. Victor also equip themselves extremely well.

But it's Schnabel whose at the helm here. This self-proclaimed neo expressionist "lion of New York art world" painter-art director-writer-director is a bona fide talent. What seems in order is for someone to shape and direct that talent into something with more pertinence and drive.

"Antes que anochezca" does have its followers, however, and they can continue to support Schnabel's esoteric art house film career.

People's revolutions begin with the best of intentions, such as removing unjust rulers, but often have an unfortunate tendency to go awry, exchanging one dictator for another. Cuba is an excellent example of this axiom: in 1959, a small band of revolutionaries led by a young lawyer named Fidel Castro ousted Fulgencio Batista, the US backed dictator. Castro would have been welcomed with open arms by the US, had he not embarked on a campaign of nationalization, which led to Cuba's regional isolation and eventual alliance with the Soviet Union. In keeping with communist doctrine, Castro the liberator became Castro the jailer and began purging the freethinkers and anyone who was "different". If you happened to be a gay author and poet, yours was a dismal future indeed.

Reinaldo Arenas grew up poor and free, enjoying the liberation that only a child of the land can experience. His carefree world was shattered when a teacher discovered the boy's artistic bent, and communicated this to Reinaldo's grandfather. His reaction was to banish the boy and run away to the city. Undaunted, Reinaldo continued to nourish his talents and in the newfound post-revolution euphoria explored his sexuality. His ideas and sexual persuasion soon attracted the unwanted attention of an increasingly repressive regime, which would ultimately lead to his internment, re-education and exile.

For the second time in as many months, I find myself having a hard time reviewing a movie. According to the trade journals, "Before Night Falls" made fifty film critics' top ten lists (not a difficult feat given the dearth of decent films in 2000), has won numerous awards and is "one of the best films ever made". In light of these rave reviews, I keep asking myself one question - "Did I miss something?"

Spanish actor Javier Bardem ("Jamon Jamon") who infuses his portrayal with the appropriate emotional sensitivity and resolve brings Arenas to life. For Arenas, being forbidden to write was akin to being forbidden to breathe, he could not and would not cease his writing, even if it meant imprisonment and torture in a Cuban gulag. Like his passion for writingis sexuality, it was again not a matter of choice, which Bardem makes very clear. Johnny Depp adds another interesting character, or more appropriately characters, to his pantheon of performances in a dual role as a talented transvestite and a brutal military commander. His characters emphasize the duality of relationships in police states, where your best friend may be an informant and you trust no one (as many horrified East Germans discovered in post-wall Germany). Equally impressive was Andrea Di Stefano as Pepe, Reinaldo's part-time lover and all around bad influence. The technical aspects of the film are more ambiguous. Director Julian Schnabel's decision to splice in grainy film footage from post revolutionary Cuba was as bold as it was ingenious. The scenes, which contain little dialogue, contribute a tangible realism to the film, and convey the initial jubilation and eventual stifling repression of the newly "liberated" country. Music is also used very effectively to establish mood, with some surprising non-Latin choices- Lou Reed's "Rouge" substitutes for dialogue in a nightclub scene, and speaks more about betrayal than any words could. I do however, have several reservations about the film.

At times, the direction and editing is erratic. This in turn disrupts the continuity of the film and makes several scenes difficult to follow. For example, while I realize that the film is about an author and poet, the inclusion of his poems is done haphazardly and serves little purpose. More importantly, while the poems are read in Spanish, the bulk of the dialogue is in English. This wouldn't normally be a concern, except that, several of the cast members have very thick accents and do not speak English well. It would have made more sense to have Spanish dialogue throughout and use English subtitles. As it was, I regularly had to strain to understand portions of dialogue and almost missed several key elements.

Schnabel's film paints a beautiful and sometimes-ugly picture of one man's constant struggle against state-sponsored repression and discrimination. The story is especially poignant when you remember that events unfolding before you are true. In spite of excellent performances, and interesting direction choices, the directing is also inconsistent at times and several poor editing choices cause the film to drag in places. "Before Night Falls" is a very good film that should have been great.

Incredible central performance from Javier Bardem ties the film together and makes you really care what happens. Great supporting players: Sean Penn has one incredible scene early on, who had us convinced he was Cuban. We didn't at all recognise him. Johnny Depp plays two small parts, but two very memorable ones. Growly-voiced Michael Wincott (played the bad guy in The Crow and Along Came a Spider and The Doors' manager in The Doors) is memorable. Andrea di Stefano is great as a central antagonist of Reinaldo, as is the now-Hollywood-famous Olivier Martinez who plays a touching, platonic friend to Reinaldo.

Beautifully photographed and directed in an admirable manner that draws attention to style every now and then in a poetic way very fitting for a bio-pic about a poet, and at other times just utilises style to tells the story very well, and seem not to be fussing about style at all.

There are scenes here where the sound effects track stops and this gorgeous cello music by Carter Burwell (composer of Being John Malkovich, Meet Joe Black, Man who Wasn't There, with another beautiful score) plays while we watch Bardem sitting in a club while people dance around him, and the music tells us he is far away. It is a wonderful scene, akin to Kurosawa's use of music in the brilliant burning of the first castle scene in Ran.

The way the camera tells this story was so marvellous and slick (though using rough camera work to tell moments of uneasiness, importantly this is not over-used as it was in the recent Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) that i knew the filmmaker had been influenced by American filmmaking, but throughout i had no idea the guy actually WAS American! The TV program misleadingly told us it was a Cuban movie (which it is not - it is an American production with Spanish, Cuban and American actors)

I'm even more shocked considering this is the guy who made Basquiat, which i always thought was more a tele-movie, and more about art than about movie-style. Julian Schnabel, i now learn, was a neo-expressionist painter in the 80's! Basquiat, about an artist, perhaps was a movie where he was making the transition between art-language and movie-language. Before Night Falls uses traditional storytelling, to be sure, but it has such a spellbinding cinematic quality i felt sure its director was one with cinema on the brain. Perhaps Schnabel has caught the bug after all.