José Torres Movies

Ring of Fire: The Emile Griffith Story documents one of the most shocking and brutal events in the history of boxing. During a bout against Benny Paret in 1962, Griffith beat the man so badly that Paret died from the injuries sustained in the ring. This tragic incident becomes more complex when one learns that before the fight Paret made a derogatory comment about Griffith's possible homosexual orientation. The bout was televised nationally. The film includes footage from the fight as well as interviews with Griffith himself, journalists, historians, and others. This film played at the Sundance Film Festival. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

In this documentary, director and screenwriter James Toback asks a wildly divergent group of people to ponder some basic philosophical questions for his camera -- How did the world begin? How did we get here? What's the purpose of life? What do we love, what do we fear, and how would we spend the rest of our lives if we could choose the circumstances ourselves? Toback's interview subjects range from a pair of ten-year-olds, a nun, a medical school student, and a holocaust survivor to basketball star Darryl Dawkins, movie producer Don Simpson, boxer and author Jose Torres, and classical violinist Eugene Fodor. Some of the responses are funny, some are moving, and most say a great deal about the people who give them, but ultimately most of Toback's subjects come to a similar conclusion -- we all have ideas, but no one really knows for sure. The Big Bang also includes, as a framing device, footage of Toback attempting to secure financing from a producer who sounds a bit dubious about the commercial prospects of a film in which a bunch of people discuss philosophy for 80 minutes. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Exposed is the film in which concert violinist Rudolf Nureyev grabs his bow and "plays" the lissome body of Nastassja Kinski. This may well stand as the silliest bit of erotica in screen history, but in the context of the film it's a model of restraint. We're asked to believe that Kinski is Elizabeth Carlson, a Wisconsin girl who has come to the big city to make it as a pianist or model. We're also supposed to be convinced that Nureyev is part-time espionage agent Daniel Jelline, who is determined to bring terrorist Rivas (Harvey Keitel) to justice. Much of the film takes place in Paris, where at least the scenery is lovely. The various plotlines and characters never quite congeal. Despite the fact that director James Toback is given sole screenplay credit, the film seems more like a "committee" project. To its credit, Exposed is never dull; with that cast, how could anyone fall asleep? ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi