If one were one to say that Joaquin, twice nominated for an Oscar, is the kind of fella that has such strong likes and dislikes and he could spit out an over seasoned curry at a high class Indian restaurant, would you be surprised? Would you be concerned his feelings run so deep they could hit the centre of the earth? That he either loves you or hates you and is not shy of showing it? That his multi-layered sentiments are not only to do with his Scorpio sun sign but something rather complex regarding the structure of his soul? He is a bizarre man, the unkind would say down right weird. Perhaps this has to do with his unusual looks. A cross between Mr. Rochester of “Jane Eyre fame” and a Mexican bandit. He is genial, fervent, borderline obsessive and as stubborn as an ox, he will push and pull at his roles to get the hidden, more esoteric meaning over to his audience and he never fails to give stirring performances as a result. His brilliant interpretations make our blood run cold. His mad, incestuous Caesar in the Gladiator was historic and fitted him like a glove! The thing is Joaquin does away with niceties, he considers them a waste of time. He is easily aroused, incensed and fiery. He has fought demons within himself including a drink problem and had to overcome the death of his beloved and gifted brother River Phoenix that pushed him to the brink of breakdown for over a year. His Venus in Scorpio gives him a sixth sense about what’s up with virtually anyone and he will court a woman so passionately the heat would warm a football stadium, his sexual charisma pushing her to do things she never thought possible! He was the son of a family of Children of God Missionaries, which might account for his sense of the infinite, the divine, and an unusual mission to transform reality, to tell the total truth of it, to go deep into it. He does not shrink from the cruelty of life; his capacity to suffer is deep seated. His subconscious mind stimulates a constant search for outer expression. No emotion can be locked away for long within him. But the positive energy of Mercury in Libra refines these rough edges, knocks back his excesses, makes his perceptions surprisingly gracious, cultured, and as refined as he can seem coarse! For underneath the volcano instead of lava there are gushing streams of creativity and Oh such a delicate soul! His Neptune in Sagittarius makes him a bit of a wizard, a bit of a shaman, with the capacity to embrace universal ideas and extend those outwards. No small time, narrow-minded life attitudes for Joaquin, it all has to be grand, large scale, spread out! He loathes bigotry and middle class prejudice. Jupiter in Pisces stresses an inner path to follow, and this will continue over the coming years. He will want to create more polished performances, a distinguished reputation. Maturity will help him turn the corner, and grow more peaceful, more balanced. He has fought to overcome his childhood feelings of inferiority, he has pushed to use his deeper feelings to make a strong case for his professional life, and his talent, with Saturn in Cancer his romances have been learning tools against which he can measure his humanity. He is a spiritual being; he might carry more inner light than is apparent. Over the next couple of years he will have to deal with the stringent laws of cause and effect and learn from them once and for all. He could be faced with emotional challenge, as he sees his career stall somewhat and he cannot define where he is going artistically. But he will arrive at a superior form of living his life eventually and will find love and career take on less intensity but more depth. His search for truth and enlightenment is somewhat Buddha-like, and will eventually help him to rediscover a more gracious sense of himself and his profession. We will see less of him for a year or so and then he will burst back onto the showbiz scene and stun us with a mighty performance, an indication of his greater sense of Self. Joaquin is a challenge to our perceptions, a wizard touching our unconscious and stirring us to strong reactions! He will prove his inspiring worth over the next few years. He is someone to watch indeed!