Forty-two years ago today, Ernesto “Che” Guevara was shot in the village of La Higuera in the mountains of Bolivia after he was caught by the Bolivian government and the CIA. To those people who have no idea of Che and yet continuously wear that famous portrait of his face in their fashionable shirt, allow me to share some insights on the man they called “the True Revolutionary”.
This is not another boring-to-death lesson like what we had imagine our history class was during our schooldays. Instead, this is an independent review of sorts of the biographical film, which has received critical acclaim since it was presented in 2008 Cannes Film Festival.
The film, directed by Steven Soderbergh, was produced by Laura Bickford and its lead star Benicio Del Toro, who portrayed the revolutionary leader himself. The biopic depicts Che’s revolutionary involvement in the successful Cuban Revolution until his tragic assassination in Bolivia. This was supposed to be a single 5-hour film highlighting his exploits within both Latin American revolutions, plus some partial interviews and his speech at the United Nations. Instead, it was split into two parts.
PART 1 – The Argentine
The first part of the movie depicted Che’s involvement in the Cuban Revolution. From the famous dinner/meeting with Fidel Castro in Mexico, to that journey in that overloaded (almost like in terms of ratio but not as tragic as MV Doña Paz) boat Granma, to the mountains of Sierra Maestra were Fidel, Raul, and the Cubans discovered his ruthlessness as well as his intelligence. It showed how an outsider like him were able to instill discipline and single-mindedness to a person who is in the forefront of a revolution, his health struggles, the racial barrier (he was often called Argentine instead of comrade), as well as the compassionate traits this doctor had that the Cuban common people had learned to loved throughout the years. Part 1 also highlighted some of the revolution's key points, including the Battle of Santa Clara which turned the tide in favor of Castro and Che. It also depicted one of his dark sides, where he executed one revolutionary for committing a very heinous crime to the Cuban people that has always supported them throughout war against US-backed Cuban president Fulgencio Batista. The film ends as Che leads the revolutionaries to Havana to meet Fidel Castro and the thousands of Cuban supporters that ended Batista’s dictatorship.
One unforgettable highlight of the film is near the end where one of his comrades shouted something like they can go home now since they already won the revolution. Che answered back with words like "we only won the war, the revolution starts now". Watch out also his speech at the U.N. where the words “Patria o muerte!(Homeland or death)” were exclaimed.
PART 2 – The Guerilla
After the success of the Cuban Revolution and the Cuban were slowly reaping the benefits of the government that Fidel Castro has dreamed of for the Cuban citizens, Che disappears from Cuba and re-emerges in the mountains of Bolivia to start his dream of a Latin American revolution. Hiding within the mountains with assumed names together with some Cuban comrades and some Bolivian recruits, he tried to enlist the people of Bolivia to the revolution but was unsuccessful enough for the Bolivians were not very much cooperative to the revolution unlike the Cuban people. Due to the lack of arms, funds, medicines, and support from the poor Bolivian that he wants to emancipate, he was captured at the Yuro ravine when his troops encountered the Bolivian army. He was later brought to the nearby village of La Higuera, and was shortly executed and his body mockingly displayed.
Part 2 tells of the sacrifices, idealism, Che’s unparalleled guerilla warfare experience, as well as the failures which brought him to his untimely death.
Throughout the whole film, it is believed that Steven Soderbergh and the producers, including Del Toro, would help us come to understand how and why Che remains a symbol idealism and heroism, that lives in the hearts of the people around the world, and as well as a murderer in the eyes of those spiteful and with limited understanding to all idealists and sees them as a threat to worldwide capitalism.
Overall, the movie promises a very good account from historical facts that happened during those tumultuous times, including superb production of re-enactment of historical events. Personally, I love the country side shots that were reminiscent of the Cuban revolution more than 50 years ago. The natural lighting that was most used on the film depicted the environment was good, including the simplest and the complicated scenarios expected in the any jungle warfare. The Spanish setting of the towns, buildings, roads, and even the train was superb and had complimented the film's depiction of Che and his comrades. Del Toro's acting and make-up was excellent that sometimes it is even hard to differentiate the actor from the real Che Guevara.
To every idealist, this movie is a must-see and a must collect, along with another Che Guevara biopic, The Motorcycle Diaries which starred Gael Garcia Bernal. To every fashion victim who wears the Che shirt proudly, this movie will help you learn information on who is that famous guy on your shirt. This film maybe boring in terms of Hollywood Blockbuster Standards, but most history books are somewhat dictated by whoever dictates their country’s economy. Expect the critics to criticize the movie as bad as they can, since the movie followed the historical facts and not those overblown blood and action-hungry scripts moviegoers would love to see.
As Che had said during his final moments that he is only a man and the revolution shall not die with him, I agree that this film will relieve the revolution as the world should have seen it sans the prejudicial violence and racial slurs, and the idealism that Che has imparted will forever inspire those who want a better world to live.
Viva El Comandante! Viva Revolucion!
Si Rizal ay mahilig maglaro ng chess. Filipino ang unang Asian Grandmaster sa Chess. At usapang chess ang napipinto nating talakayin ngayon.
Maraming naghihikayat kay Noynoy na tumakbo bilang presidente sa 2010, kabilang dito ang mga alagad ni Gloria na gusto lamang guluhin ang Partido Liberal. Chess move. Si Lito Atienza nag-iingay na siya raw ang dapat sa LP. Chess move. Nagdesisyon si Mar Roxas na suportahan na lang si Noynoy para maging stand bearer ng Liberal party. Chess move. Hinihintay ngayon ang desisyon ni Noynoy ukol sa pagtakbo sa 2010. Awaiting chess move. Kung sakali man tumakbo si Noynoy, labanan ng magpinsan ang lalabas, si Noynoy sa LP at si Gilbert Teodoro sa Lakas-Kampi. Stalemate. Kahit papano, nag backfire ang istratehiya ng mga demonyo sa Malakanyang. Stalemate!
Sa ibang dako naman, si Japeth Aguilar ay nagdesisyon na mag backout sa PBA. Chess move. Masama ang loob ng Burger King upang balakin nitong i-propose ang lifetime ban kay Japeth. Chess move. Balak mag miting ang Board of Governors upang talakayin ang posibleng commitment ulit ng PBA sa FIBA. Chess move. Ang desisyon ni Japeth na maglaro sa National Team ay tinututulan ng isang kapitalistang gahaman na katulad ni ginoong Lito Alvarez. Chess move. Ngunit hindi natitinag ang kagustuhan ni Japeth na maglaro para sa Bayan. Check mate! Panalo ang bayang Pilipinas…
Ngayon, sino ang makakapagsabi na “politics and sports don’t mix”?
When we talk about Boracay, we can generally agree that every wonderful article, blog and comments had already been said about this beautiful island in Aklan. What could somebody like me add that hasn’t been said?
Boracay is an island paradise and one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. The island’s beauty transcends above the 7000 wonders the Philippines has to offer and is probably the most visited place, both foreign and domestic tourists alike. Any travel-frenzy Pinoy have been to Boracay once or twice in their life. Majority of Pinoys on social networking sites do have an album about their Boracay escapades. Those who has been to Boracay has probably been to one of its famous hang-outs (Station 1 to 3), they have bought some souvenirs in d’Mall, they have taken pictures in Willy’s Rock and the sand castles.
So what more can I tell about Boracay from my experience that is different? It is experiencing it first class. Truthfully, I was always imagining going to Boracay, let alone stay in posh room accommodations and meals. Well, my imagination turned into reality this year. Except with some rain and monsoon winds, our trip and stay was really relaxing. We decided to choose Cebu Pacific because of their promos, but it didn’t really made a big difference with the other airlines’ fare when you add the surcharges. Too late after we heard that PAL Express might still be the best trip to look forward to.
Excitement was teeming almost the whole night before the trip. Everybody was tense, nobody was sleeping early even the kids, and everyone was anticipating the 2AM arrival of the service van we hired to bring us to NAIA 3 from Angeles City. We decided to forego the possibility of flying through Clark since there is no direct flight to Caticlan - only to Cebu - and it will probably take longer than Manila.
Fast Forward and skipping the details of the airplane ride, we found ourselves stuck for a short time in Caticlan Airport. Due to the unpredictable weather, the airlines decided to delay our baggage until the next flight. But this is where we started to experience first class accommodations right from the airport. Our resort guide assured us that he will be bringing our baggage right to our room as soon as it arrives. In short, we didn’t have to wait for our things, he brought us to the jetty port in Tabon and accompanied us up to the hotel reception. He then excused himself to go back to Caticlan to wait for our baggage. Imagine if we decided to wait for our bags – we arrived in Caticlan at 8AM: our bags arrived at 1PM.
Fridays’ Resort is located at the white beach area just beside Discovery Suites, popular for its talcum-like sand you could mistake for your regular baby powder, or probably masses of cement powder from a building construction. We considered Discovery at first but I guess we made the right choice in staying at Fridays. We were welcomed at the front with complimentary drinks and a souvenir already consisting of shell necklace for each of us. Our names are written outside the reception, together with other guests. We were assured that our rooms were ready, even if check-in time is still at 12 noon.
Boracay’s tropical setting was complemented by Fridays’ ambiance. As someone who grew up in Manila, for some reason I have this distaste for concrete buildings for aesthetic reasons. Tropical and concrete does not really mix well, except if you are Francisco Mañosa. Fridays’ native setting was perfect for me: its Nipa Hut style using bamboo, wood, and pawid roofs as major materials made it a paradise within a paradise. A terrace with a hammock and overlooking the beach and also the pool at the side, this is almost my dream house. And if it isn’t enough, the rooms were elegantly awesome. Even without the television and the ref, it is almost a honeymoon suite – except that it has 2 additional beds – probably perfect for an orgy. The bathroom is magnificent that would sometimes set the tone for a romantic night. With the ambiance as perfect as I have imagined it would be, I am saving my excitement until dinner.
Fridays’ is famous for its restaurant, if you have the right budget. Nightly buffet are expensive even though they have specialties each night. Their best buffet is served at Friday nights, including cultural shows for guests, and even voluntary participation with the dreaded tinikling dance. As a token, they are giving certificates to those who are brave enough to dance through those bamboo poles. The last time I was involved in tinikling was in grade 2 where my feet would always get hit by the poles, so I decided to just be a spectator for the night. The restaurant offers a regional Asian, European, Fusion, American and Filipino cuisine, and daily special breakfast set, lunch and dinner menu in addition to its ala carte specialties.
Aside from what we have tasted at Fridays', there is this not-so-expensive restaurant in Ilig-Iligan that serves fresh seafoods where we ate after snorkeling. I forgot the name of the place but as far as I can remember they have served the most tasting white snapper Sinigang that I have ever tasted. We bought this big fish, they cooked the head and tail in Sinigang and the middle part were only steam fried, and we also had those spicy crabs and shrimps. My diet plans just crashed after seeing those foods on the table. If these are expensive for your taste, you can always fall back on Andok’s in d’Mall, for there is no Jollibee out there yet as far as I know. Oh one more thing, don’t ever try those fly infested breads at Julie’s. I’ve seen them. Disgusting in a sort of way, especially if you see the flies squeezed between the glass containers and the bread. They might look like raisins from a far but they don’t taste like one. Don’t forget to buy a souvenir shirt, its buy 1 take 1 for a hundred and fifty, sounds cheap but some of them doesn’t look cheap. There are designs that are classy when you wear them.
Wherever you want to stay in Boracay, you will never run out of things to do. There are lots of activities for the adventurous, for nature lovers, for the party animals, for those who wanted to relax, and even for the hopeless romantics, though it could come at a price, an expensive one, to be frank about it. We were there to relax, to getaway from the busy city life. Angeles is a chartered city full of exoticity but we wanted to experience the kind of relaxation only found in an island paradise – serenity. And serenity in Boracay is synonymous to Fridays’…
