Fidel (2002)

Who payed the critics

Simply A Masterpiece

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

With an engaging first half this Made for Cable Mini-Series is of two very separate Minds. Informative and Entertaining as the Genesis of the controversial and Dynamic Leader of the "People", this is a welcome and unbiased beginning.However, after Castro rises to the top of the Cuban Political Dysfunctional mess, this becomes weak, facile and it seems to have no momentum or intelligence. The post 1959 Revolution and its aftermath is confusing and loses its ability to Entertain as a Showpiece and inform as a Biography or even a semi-inclusive analysis of the machinations of the Mind/Leadership of this enduring 20th Century Anti-Establishment icon.There is so much left unanswered or glossed over and not much of any Political Science or Philosophy. It rests on Platitudes and Sound Bites, Images and Imagination of events, unwilling to dig deep or at least present events with enough substance to be stimulating.The Production wavers from very good pasted over with some lame and less than Dramatic effects and clichéd visual cheap shots. Not a bad introduction to the Man within His Time and Place, but considering its length, leaves the Viewer with an ambiguous feeling of the Man and His Mission, the overall effect on the Cuban People and in the end is weakened by a very weak ending.

I don't know who posted the comment before, but they obviously have no idea what the hell they're talking about. I am Cuban-American born and raised in the United States. I have been to Cuba and seen the utter poverty that the people live in. And even though Batista's government wasn't the best the people did not live in poverty like they do now. My grandfather died in the Bay of Pigs after being asked by Castro to join his regime. Just because he was a revolutionary doesn't mean his revolution was right. He killed many innocent people along the way to his political success and lied to all the people. How can someone be so ignorant to say long live Fidel when they obviously have no idea what they are talking about. The same goes for Che Guevara. I don't want to paint him as evil because in all reality he didn't know Castro was going to do what he did, but he did kill many innocent people in the name of "The Revolution." He was not the freedom fighter many "IGNORANT" people portray him to be, but a radical fanatic.

This film was well done technically, although the bias was so prevalent toward posing Castro as a monster with a gentleman's intellect that it felt fictional to anyone who understands modern Cuban history, not necessarily even sypathizes with Castro.So, one can put this film on top of the pile of disinformation concerning Cuba and Castro that has been building devotedly in Miami by the displaced Cuban business class who fled Cuba long ago.Castro is a controversial figure that inspires ideas and debate, not two-dimensional character assassination. His greatest friend in the world is Gabriel Garcia Marquez afterall.I noticed another reviewer said Castro was worse than Saddam. This should prove my point quite clearly.

This film is as if aliens who know or care nothing about either leftist or rightist politics came from another planet and catalogued Fidel's rise to power in Cuba. It very objectively chronicles the good and bad about the regime and pulls no punches.Undoubtedly, there is a considerable amount more bad than good about Castro (note: to those of you whose demonize Pinochet, Castro was worse) but we get the point just the same without having to catharticly dwell on the killed, tortured, exiled, and imprisoned souls of Cuba. Just gives us the facts... nice one.