I Am Cuba

"I Am Cuba" is a 32-year-old propaganda film that has been recently rediscovered and is making the rounds on the art-house circuit. And while it has its clumsy elements, there is no denying its remarkable cinematic impact.

Told in four separate, somewhat surrealistic vignettes, and filmed in gorgeous high-contrast black and white, "I Am Cuba" is set in the late '50s and lavishly celebrates the Cuban Revolution in a sort of tone-poem manner, narrated by the voice of "Cuba." (This lends itself to the narrative's most awkward device, Spanish-language dialogue with a Russian voice-over and English subtitles.)

The first story has to do with a young woman who reluctantly, sadly earns her living the old-fashioned way. The prostitute herself and several moments in these early scenes play to the movie's heavy-handed symbolism — which never lets up — beginning with a sort of pre-Castro travelogue, followed by drunken Americans drooling over bikini-clad hookers in a loud nightclub atmosphere.

But right off the top we begin to get a feel for what is to come, as the camera flows through the action with hand-held shots and distorted lenses to give it an edgy feeling, and some stunning, lengthy uncut tracking sequences that follow carefully the choreographed events.

The second story is the film's most emotionally effective, as an aging farmer whose crop is about to be taken away by a greedy landowner (he has sold out to the United Fruit Co.), decides to burn his sugar-cane fields in retaliation.

The third sequence is a striking look at a student radical who becomes mixed up in an assassination attempt, culminating with a riot in the streets.

And the fourth has a mountain farmer eventually joining Castro's rebel army when his fields are wiped out by government bombers.

The acting is uneven, the propagandistic set-pieces are often ridiculous (get a load of those supposedly American sailors who attack a young woman in the streets) and the dialogue is hopelessly idealistic.

But all of this takes a back seat to the film's sometimes flabbergasting visuals. There are quite a few moments when you may find yourself muttering, "How did they do that?"

No wonder Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorsese, who are credited as "presenting" the film in this form, have said they were inspired by its stunning visual work.

And as presented in this beautiful 35mm print, film fans in particular will want to be sure to catch this one.

"I Am Cuba" is not rated but is in PG territory for some language, implied sexuality and violence.