Total Eclipse

Total Eclipse(1995) Behind the Scenes

Impassioned by genious. Inflamed by desire. Imprisoned by love.

Arthur Rimbaud (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Paul Verlaine (David Thewlis) as french poets.
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Plot
The film follows the true story of 19th century French poets Arthur Rimbaud (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Paul Verlaine (David Thewlis). Rimbaud has a homosexual love affair with the older Verlaine falling into a whirl of drugs, alcohol, abuse, and sadness.

The Controversial role
Many who were close to DiCaprio worried that playing the role of a homosexual would hurt his image. DiCaprio didn't have a problem with playing the role but he does admit the kissing scenes were harder to do. DiCaprio says, "It's just acting".

"This role is one of the most important of my career and one of the best roles to play for a young actor. Rimbaud wanted to change the world from one day to the next. He was someone courageous, who didn't worry about the consequences of his actions."

Dad noticing DiCaprio's talent
After seeing Leonardo DiCaprio in Total Eclipse, DiCaprio's father started to realize the talent that his son possessed. "I think he's the most surprising young actor. I think he's like a medium, not like a character. He opens his body and his mind to recieve messages coming from another person's life. I think maybe Rimbaud was a medium visted by extraterrestrials and Leo also has this capacity."

Leonardo DiCaprio was very excited about his character "Basically it's about stepping into the unknown" he says.

Nude Scenes
At the time, the film was a flop, it only made $350,000 in its domestic release but now the nude scenes represent big bucks for magazines such as PlayGirl who want to expose the photos from the film in their magazine. Recently a settlement solved the issue but it's not going away.

Critics Review
"As the young Rimbaud, DiCaprio delivers an absolutely riveting interpretation of one of the literary world's great maddening characters"
--A reviewer for The Kansas City Star

"The film's many failures cannot be traced to its male stars, who are sensational."
--A reviewer for The Patriot Ledger

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