Before Night Falls

2000 2h 14m EN

👍

6.7

SOLID

🍅

74%

FRESH

💯

METACRITIC

⭐

7.1

IMDB

★6.7TMDB · 317🍅74%Rotten Tomatoes●85Metacritic★7.1IMDB · 27,005

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Spanning several decades, this powerful biopic offers a glimpse into the life of famed Cuban poet and novelist Reinaldo Arenas, an artist who was vilified for his homosexuality in Fidel Castro's Cuba.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Javier Bardem
Reinaldo Arenas
Olivier Martinez
Lazaro Gomez Carilles
Johnny Depp
Bon Bon / Lieutenant Victor
Andrea Di Stefano
Pepe Malas
Santiago Magill
Tomas Diego
John Ortiz
Juan Abreu
Héctor Babenco
Virgilio Pinera
Francisco Gattorno
Jorge Camacho

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Julian Schnabel
Writers: Lázaro Gómez Carriles, Julian Schnabel, Cunningham O'Keefe
Languages: English, Spanish
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

ERA

Did you know

26 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Spanish.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Julian Schnabel, shot by Xavier Grobet. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Carter Burwell. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Michael Berenbaum shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Javier Bardem and Olivier Martinez and Johnny Depp carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0247196 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Julian Schnabel directs. Xavier Grobet behind the camera. Carter Burwell scores. Michael Berenbaum cuts. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English, Spanish.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

126 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Spanish.
3Directed by Julian Schnabel, shot by Xavier Grobet. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Carter Burwell. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Michael Berenbaum shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Javier Bardem and Olivier Martinez and Johnny Depp carry the top of the cast.
7IMDB entry: tt0247196 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Classified under 16 themes, including "new york city", "suicide", "aids", "cuba".