GIVEN the thirst filmmakers have for rendering the lives of writers on screen, it's surprising more

footage hasn't been generated over the life of poet Arthur Rimbaud.

His art is revered and his life was full of adventure, debauchery, moral dilemmas and, courtesy of

Parisian poet Paul Verlaine, celebrity sex.

Director Agnieszka Holland has packed it all into "Total Eclipse, " his harsh presentation of

Rimbaud's story. The film is an unflattering portrait of the poet as a young man, and, in turn, an

inflated indictment of just about everything artistic at the turn of the century, especially the artists.

As he did in "Europa, Europa," Holland has once again created a detailed and convincing backdrop

for his film. This time around it is Europe, beginning in 1871, a time when 16-year-old Rimbaud

(played by Leonardo DiCaprio), at the invitation of Verlaine (David Thewlis), has come to Paris.

He is an ill-mannered country boy with contempt for his stiff urbane peers. He's offensive, but just

what Verlaine, a writer thirsting for inspiration and adventure, is craving.

The two eventually fall into an affair that takes them to Brussels and London, leading Verlaine away

from his wife, Mathilde (Romane Bohringer), and into trouble with the law.

"Total Eclipse" handles its subjects boldly. Love in this film is violent and abusive.

Screenwriter Christopher Hampton tells just enough about the needs and frustrations of the two men

to make their attraction believable, a considerable feat considering Rimbaud is a beautiful, young

genius and Verlaine an "ugly, aging, drunken lyric poet," as his lover rudely puts it.

But Holland's international casting hurts the film. The movie is a mesh of acting styles and accents.

DiCaprio speaks like a contemporary American. Thewlis comes off a suffering Brit, and various

other characters - notably Dominique Blanc as Rimbaud's sister Isabelle - play out their version of

the reserved French.

Acting is the film's best attribute. DiCaprio will offend purists with his brave, risky reading of

Rimbaud as a swaggering rock star. Best of all is Thewlis, who takes the plunge painfully as the

failing Verlaine.