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    About This Item

    Unique ID Code: 0000030699
    Added by: DVD Reviewer
    Added on: 20/2/2002 06:52
    View Changes

    Before Night Falls (US)

    6 / 10
    1 vote cast
    Rate this item
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    "The Best Film Of 2000" - Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times
    Certificate: R
    Running Time: 133 mins
    Retail Price: $24.98
    Release Date:

    Synopsis:
    One of the most universally acclaimed films of the year, Before Night Falls appeared on over 75 "Ten Best" lists and features Academy Award® nominee Javier Bardem in a "mesmerizing and inspired performance!" (Rex Reed, The New York Observer)

    Julian Schnabel (Basquiat) directs this incredible journey through the life and work of the late Cuban poet Reinaldo Arenas. Victimized by a government that banned his books and jailed him for a crime he didn`t commit, Reinaldo endured unspeakable persecution in a courageous stand against censorship and oppression. Without a country but not without integrity, he fled to America where he continued to fight for personal expression and produced a stirring body of work.

    Featuring a dual performance by Johnny Depp, Before Night Falls is a tribute to the liberating power of art… and one man`s undying passion for life.

    Special Features:
    Interactive Menus
    Scene Access
    Commentary with Director Julian Schnabel, Actor Javier Bardem, Screenwriter Lazaro Gomez-Carriles, Composer Carter Burwell and Co-Director of Photography Xavier Perez Grobet
    Documentary Shorts: Excerpts From Improper Conduct 1983 Interview with Reinaldo Arenas
    Behind-The-Scenes/Home Movie By Lola Schnabel
    Little Notes On Painting Artwork By Julian Schnabel
    Cast and Crew Filmographies
    Original Theatrical Trailer

    DVD-ROM Content:
    Link To Original Website & More!

    Video Tracks:
    Widescreen Anamorphic 1.85:1

    Audio Tracks:
    Dolby Digital 5.1 English
    Dolby Digital Surround 2.0 English
    Dolby Digital 5.1 Spanish

    Subtitle Tracks:
    French
    English
    Spanish
    CC: English

    Directed By:
    Julian Schnabel

    Written By:



    Starring:
    Olatz Lopez Garmendia
    Michael Wincott
    Johnny Depp
    Andrea Di Stefano
    Olivier Martinez
    Javier Bardem

    Soundtrack By:
    Lou Reed
    Ennio Morricone
    Carter Burwell
    Laurie Anderson

    Director of Photography:
    Guillermo Rosas
    Xavier Pérez Grobet

    Editor:
    Michael Berenbaum

    Costume Designer:
    María Estela Fernández

    Production Designer:
    Salvador Parra

    Producer:
    Jon Kilik
    Matthias Ehrenberg

    Executive Producer:
    Julian Schnabel
    Olatz Lopez Garmendia

    Distributor:
    New Line Productions

    Your Opinions and Comments

    6 / 10
    This review refers to the region 2 disk and not the region 1 disk, thus the changes in the transfer and the extras.
    What starts as a promising story becomes a boring movie that goes on and on for ever without making any point at all.
    The video transfer is average. The movie has been viciously cropped to fullscreen and the compression level used was a bit too high, so compression signs can be seen occasionally. The transfer reveal a bit of grain and quite a few scratches and dust particles.
    The DD 5.1 soundtrack is flat. The surrounds are used occasionally but the sound remains flat.
    The menus are still with music.
    The disk contains no extras at all.
    Bottom line - this movie fails to deliver, simply because the story it`s telling is too boring.
    posted by Zvi Josef on 20/2/2002 07:59