Review of Total Eclipse (1995) by Zoran S — 13 Sep 2008

Wow, this film pretty much stinks and I should take a shower after watching it. Agnieszka Holland misfires badly on this one, though really I think itâ??s the script that sucks more than the over the top performances.

(The film is beautifully shot by one of my favorite cinematographers Giorgos Arvanitis who did stunning work on the early films of Theo Angelopoulos.) Basically, this is the story of the tormented relationship between Arthur Rimbaud and Paul Verlaine that simply comes across as insufferable and boorish.

Look at how tormented and excessive the male geniuses are! This is a movie where Leonardo DiCaprio, who plays Rimbaud, barks like a dog and David Thewlis, who plays Verlaine, sets his wifeâ??s hair on fire.

I am not really sure what I learned from having to see that.