Before Night Falls, based on late Cuban author/poet Reinaldo Arenas' autobiography, is a dreamy, passionate ode to freedom -- of thought, of expression, of every person's innate right to simply be. As directed by painter Julian Schnabel, the film conveys the dignity and mounting desperation of Arenas' lifelong quest for an idealized freedom he would never attain, even after he fled Cuba during the 1980 Mariel boatlift.

Principal cast: Javier Bardem, Andrea Di Stefano, Olivier Martinez, Michael Wincott.
Rated: R