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Before Night Falls (2000)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writers:
Release Date:
26 January 2001 (USA)
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Plot:
Episodic look at the life of Cuban poet and novelist, Reinaldo Arenas (1943-1990), from his childhood...
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Awards:
Nominated for Oscar.
Another 11 wins
&
15 nominations
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NewsDesk:
(26 articles)
Screen Queens: Best of the Gay Aughts
(From FilmExperience. 21 December 2009, 6:00 PM, PST)
Decade in Review: 2000 Top Ten
(From FilmExperience. 5 November 2009, 1:07 PM, PST)
(From FilmExperience. 21 December 2009, 6:00 PM, PST)
Decade in Review: 2000 Top Ten
(From FilmExperience. 5 November 2009, 1:07 PM, PST)
User Comments:
Beautiful and sad.
more (124 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Olatz López Garmendia | ... | Reinaldo's Mother (as Olatz Lopez Garmendia) | |
| Giovanni Florido | ... | Young Reinaldo (as Giovani Florido) | |
| Loló Navarro | ... | Reinaldo's Grandmother | |
| Sebastián Silva | ... | Reinaldo's Father | |
| Carmen Beato | ... | Teacher | |
| Cy Schnabel | ... | Smallest School Child (as Cy) | |
| Olmo Schnabel | ... | Smallest School Child | |
| Vito Maria Schnabel | ... | Teenage Reinaldo | |
| Pedro Armendáriz Jr. | ... | Reinaldo's Grandfather (as Pedro Armendáriz) | |
| Diego Luna | ... | Carlos | |
| Lia Chapman | ... | Lolin | |
| Sean Penn | ... | Cuco Sanchez | |
| Jerzy Skolimowski | ... | Professor | |
| Aquiles Benites | ... | Translator | |
| Eva Piaskowska | ... | Pretty Blonde Student |
Additional Details
Also Known As:
Antes que anochezca (USA: Spanish title)
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MPAA:
Rated R for strong sexual content, some language and brief violence.
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
133 min | South Korea:123 min
Country:
Colour:
Colour (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
New Zealand:R13 |
Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) |
Canada:14A (Alberta) |
Canada:18A (British Columbia) |
Canada:AA (Ontario) |
Canada:PA (Manitoba) |
UK:15 (cut) |
Portugal:M/16 |
Canada:14A (Ontario - 2006) |
Finland:K-15 (2007) (self applied) (TV rating) |
Finland:K-18 (2006) (self applied) (TV rating) |
Argentina:16 |
Australia:MA |
Chile:18 |
France:U |
Peru:18 |
Singapore:R(A) |
Spain:13 |
Sweden:11 |
Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) |
Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) |
USA:R |
South Korea:15 (cut)
Filming Locations:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Almost every scene, according to Guillermo Rosas, was photographed with a chocolate-colored filter on the camera lens. The contributed a great deal to distinctive colors and textures in the film, especially the skin tones, and the vibrancy in green hues.
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Quotes:
Reinaldo Arenas:
Walking along streets that collapse from crumbling sewers. Past buildings that you jump to avoid because they will fall on you. Past grim faces that size you up and sentence you. Past closed shops, closed markets, closed cinemas, closed parks, closed cafes. Sometimes showing dusty signs, justifcations: "CLOSED FOR RENOVATION," "CLOSED FOR REPAIRS." What kind of repairs? When will these so-called renovations be finished? When at last will they begin? Closed...
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Movie Connections:
Featured in The 2001 IFP/West Independent Spirit Awards (2001) (TV)
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Soundtrack:
Aguirre, Der Zorn Gottes (Lacrime Di Re)
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FAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (124 total)
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I would definitely recommend this movie to anyone. The graphic depictions of gay sexuality may offend some, and the romantic relationship between Reynaldo and Pepe is perhaps underexplored. But, the film makes some attempt to explain the sexual climate in Cuba at the time through Arenas' writing. The intense friendship between Reynaldo and his (straight) roommate Lazaro is as powerful and moving as any romance. The pace of the movie is not "slow," but poetic and thoughtful. Many movies featuring men with HIV/AIDS have been nothing more than "AIDS movies" and did little to humanize their main characters, or portray them as anything more than mere martyrs. But, _Before_Night_Falls_ is well-rounded and spares the viewer very little. Overall, this movie was intense.