***image1***Titles evocative of the equinox.
LEGENDS OF THE FALL
Women everywhere collectively genuflected to Brad Pitt in his breakout role as a wild, mountain man in
Legends of the Fall
. Sure lots of "movie critics" said the film was "bad." But how can you beat Anthony Hopkins, Aidan Quinn and Julia Ormond in Edward Zwick's (
Glory
,
The Last Samurai
) epic film about a family of men torn apart by a beautiful woman? The breathtaking vistas of Montana play second fiddle only to the attractive, exceptional cast, chewing the scenery as characters caught like spiders in a tragic web of their own desires. Though the film speaks volumes about the unspoken commitment between brothers, it also illustrates why having one woman to a farm is definitely not smart.
FALLING DOWN
Michael Douglas plays a man who will not stay down but who definitely goes overboard in this classic, very black comedy by Joel Schumacher. Stung to the quick by the bitterness of a life turned against him, former defense worker William 'D-Fens' Foster takes to the streets with a sack o' weapons and, among other acts of desperation, successfully negotiates the purchase of a Whammyburger (tm). Robert Duvall co-stars as the cop who, on his fateful last day before retirement, must bring D-Fens down in this significant commentary on post-Cold War white men and their rage against the machine.
BEFORE NIGHT FALLS
A film that shimmers like the sun through multicolored leaves, this stirring biopic of the life of Cuban poet Reynaldo Arenas skyrocketed the cinematic clout of artist Julian Schnabel. Less a narrative than a dreamscape woven from the many autobiographical works of the poet himself, poignantly acted by Javier Bardem (in an Oscar-nominated performance). The flick boasts a host of colorful cameos that flutter in and out of '50s Havana, including Sean Penn as a lieutenant and Johnny Depp as a transvestite. An inspirational film infused with wonder and bewilderment, where art is the very breath of life.
