In this fascinating Oscar-nominated documentary, American guitarist Ry Cooder brings together a group of legendary Cuban folk musicians (some in their 90s) to record a Grammy-winning CD in their native city of Havana. The result is a spectacular compilation of concert footage from the group's gigs in Amsterdam and New York City's famed Carnegie Hall, with director Wim Wenders capturing not only the music -- but also the musicians' life stories.
A documentary that explores the myth behind the truth. Different people around the globe reinterpret the legend of Che Guevara at will: from the rebel living in Hong Kong fighting Chinese domination, to the German neonazi preaching revolution and the Castro-hating Cuban. Their testimonies prove that the Argentinian revolutionary's historical impact reverberates still. But like with all legends, each sees what he will, in often contradictory perspectives.
In the summer of 1975, the young director Steven Spielberg set new standards for cinema worldwide with an oversized shark bite, a plastic shark fin and an unmistakable two-note main theme composed by John Williams. With the horror from the deep, a man-eating, gigantic great white shark, the film of the same name became a similarly traumatic reference as Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho": it triggered lasting primal fears across generations. On the beaches of the world, there was clearly a "before" and an "after". Steven Spielberg, who was only 28 at the time, not only set new standards for the thriller genre, but also hid his biting criticism of US capitalism in the 1970s behind it.
The brilliant self-taught pianist Erroll Garner left his mark on jazz forever. His song Misty, which he allegedly composed between two concerts on an aeroplane, immediately became one of the great jazz standards and is still one of the most covered ballads in the world today. Who was the man behind the ever-friendly smile from the ghettos of Pittsburgh, whose talent brought him to the biggest international stages?
A resistance writer and pioneer of nature writing with a controversial personality, Edward Abbey wrote more than twenty books on the theme of eternal nature. A gem of counterculture, his 1975 novel The Monkey Wrench Gang inspired a generation of environmental activists and readers with rebellious souls. Portrait of a rebellious, lyrical, and rude writer.
Extremely rare Cuban documentary reveals rockers that find liberty by injecting themselves with the HIV virus, at a time when this was almost synonymous with a death sentence.
This revealing portrait of Cuba follows the lives of Fidel Castro and three Cuban families affected by his policies over the last four decades.
The young American Pablo Menéndez came to Cuba to study Music at the National School of Art. Here he formed a family and became one more Cuban. Member of the Sound Experimentation Group of ICAIC and promoter of the teaching of the electric guitar in Cuba, he is, together with his group Mezcla, one of our most original musicians.
A huge bestseller in its day, the novel Uncle Tom's Cabin championed the abolitionist cause while perpetuating racist prejudices about African Americans. A remarkable analysis of a work steeped in ambivalence, which left a lasting impression on readers.
The Antonio Maceo Brigade consists of fifty-five children of Cuban families that escaped the revolution and settled down in Miami. To the annoyance of their parents, the children developed pro-Castro ideas. This documentary follows the Brigade on its first visit to Cuba. When they meet family members and embrace old neighbours, childhood memories surface.
A documentary on the origins of Changüí.
A documentary on the origins of Cuban Son.
Student at the University of Nevada-Reno discuss voter efficacy and the division behind voting amidst the coming midterm elections.
The notion of a Cuban civil society is often misrepresented in the U.S. mainstream media. According to most sources, Cuban civil society is limited to the opposition, which has little impact on the Cuban political scenario. Regardless, yearly, the U.S. government allocates tens of millions of taxpayer money to empower dissidents in the island. By doing so, it overlooks genuine expressions of pluralism, reform and contestation which are shaping the Cuban public sphere, sometimes in autonomous ways, sometimes within State-run institutions. Through in-depth interviews to members of Cuban Civil society, this documentary explores the complexities associated to these processes, following the itinerary of the debate about the concept of civil society generated in Cuba, since the 90s to the present.
In the summer of 1994, a team of public television reporters filmed and interviewed seven Cubans a few days before their risky venture of setting out to sea in homemade rafts to reach the coast of the United States. Six made it far enough to be picked up at sea by the U.S. Coast Guard. When these balseros (rafters) were finally allowed to go to the United States, the film crew went with them to a string of several cities. Seven years later, the film crew visits them again, to discover that their destiny has been in the United States. Theirs is a true story about some of the authentic survivors of our times, the human adventure of people who are shipwrecked between two worlds.
Elizabeth Smart's harrowing abduction at 14 from her family's Utah home unfolds through her own words and never-before-seen material in this documentary.
In Portobelo, two friends go to a Congo dance and witness an invasion of demons, while Panama is invaded by Americans troops in 1989: this turns into an account of what happened in the cities of Colón and Panamá.
Greenland, a semi-autonomous territory of Denmark, is currently at the center of international covetousness and tensions. In his rivalry with China for technological supremacy, Donald Trump has made the acquisition of this Arctic territory a priority in order to secure American control over rare earth elements, of which Greenland is believed to hold one of the world's largest reserves.
Tracing the careers of these two cinema enthusiasts, this documentary reveals the secrets behind the work of Ethan and Joel Coen, screenwriters and directors who are interchangeable within the same two-headed entity. It features fascinating, previously unseen interviews with some of the most iconic actors from their filmography.
Shot in Cuba in 1961, this documentary follows a volunteer militia brigade organized in defense of the Cuban Revolution. Joris Ivens and his crew observe military training, daily life, and collective discipline among civilian volunteers. The film emphasizes popular mobilization as a defining feature of the revolutionary state.