Remezcla

REVIEW: This Doc Traces Eliades Ochoa’s Journey from Farmer’s Son to Buena Vista Social Club

Monica Castillo — Tue, 23 Jul 2019 17:44:13 +0000

Cuban musician Eliades Ochoa may not have the same name recognition as Celia Cruz or Benny Moré, but the songs his guitar shared are probably familiar to many with only a passing idea of what Cuban music sounds like. As one of the core musicians of the Buena Vista Social Club, Ochoa spread the folk

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REVIEW: This 19th-Century Drama Is the Gender-Bending Story of Cuba’s First Female Doctor

Manuel Betancourt — Fri, 12 Jul 2019 16:35:41 +0000

The real life story of Enrique Faber, a Swiss doctor who practiced medicine in rural Cuba in the 19th century, is the stuff of fiction. Dr. Faber was a respected member of the Baracoa community who grew up in Europe where he gained his medical license; he then traveled to the then-Spanish territory of Cuba

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REVIEW: ‘Lejos del Sentido’ Is a Visceral, Absorbing Look at Life Through the Lens of Borderline Personality Disorder

Monica Castillo — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 18:32:55 +0000

Olivia Luengas’ Lejos del sentido, which won the top prize for a documentary at the Havana Film Festival New York, is a deeply personal work of nonfiction. Old home movies and crystal clear footage are woven together by the narration of Luengas’ ailing sister, Liliana, as she struggles to make sense of the world and of

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REVIEW: ‘Councilwoman’ Documentary Chronicles a Dominican Hotel Maid-Turned-Politician Fighting for a Living Wage

Manuel Betancourt — Mon, 22 Apr 2019 20:56:37 +0000

The midterm elections of 2018 proved that grassroots organizing are key in mobilizing large swaths of the population to elect rookie politicians who cut their teeth in service jobs, not in politics. It’s precisely what led to the surprising win of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (as the doc Knock Down the House showed). And as Margo Guernsey’s Councilwoman documentary shows, such

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REVIEW: ‘Los Silencios’ is a Quiet Marvel That Gives a Refugee Story a Supernatural Spin

Manuel Betancourt — Fri, 12 Apr 2019 16:51:20 +0000

In the beginning there’s only darkness. And silence. Or rather, the kind of silence that noisily fills up the spaces where there are no words: there’s the hushing wind, the croak of frogs, the swift and gentle swish of the water around you. A bobbing flashlight aimed ahead slowly illuminates bits of your surroundings: the

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These Are the Must-See Latin American Movies at Havana Film Festival New York

Manuel Betancourt — Tue, 02 Apr 2019 17:01:44 +0000

With over 35 films from Cuba, Latin America, and Latino filmmakers in the U.S, the 20th edition of the Havana Film Festival New York (HFFNY) is a reminder of why it’s the longest running Latino fest in the city. In addition to showcasing some of the most exciting contemporary filmmakers from the region, the 2019 program

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The Havana Film Festival New York Is an Oasis of Cinema That Transports You to Latin America

Manuel Betancourt — Wed, 28 Mar 2018 16:31:29 +0000

The Havana Film Festival in New York always delivers. Going into its 19th year, it remains an essential event for lovers of Cuban cinema. In addition to showing a slew of amazing movies both from the island and Latin America at large, 2018’s HFFNY is brimming with events that celebrate the legacy and the future

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Kiki Alvarez On How His Film ‘Sharing Stella’ Reflects Cuban Millennials’ Openness About Sexuality

Manuel Betancourt — Tue, 11 Apr 2017 16:49:34 +0000

Kiki Alvarez’s Sharing Stella is a textbook example of an independent film. The Havana-set drama takes place in December 2014 and follows a director (played by Alvarez himself) looking to cast a production of Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire. Blurring the lines between documentary and fiction, the movie is ostensibly a look at a curiously intimate audition process but it’s

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In This Dreamy Cuban Drama, ‘Fátima’ Is the Patron Saint of Drag Performers

Manuel Betancourt — Mon, 10 Apr 2017 17:34:44 +0000

“When I was seven years old, the Virgin of Fátima appeared to me in the kitchen of my house in Madruga. That’s why people sometimes see a pink halo around my head.” That’s how Manolito, the protagonist of Jorge Perugorría‘s film Fátima o el parque de la fraternidad introduces himself to us. The voiceover is lifted almost

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Grammy Winner Chucho Valdés On Improvising the Musical Score for Cuban Film ‘Esteban’

Manuel Betancourt — Fri, 31 Mar 2017 19:31:25 +0000

The Havana Film Festival New York kicked off its 18th annual program with Jonal Cosculluela’s inspiring Esteban. The movie tells the rousing story of a young Afro-Cuban boy (Reynaldo Guanche) who suddenly becomes inspired to learn how to play the piano even though he cannot afford to pay the old, cranky teacher (Hugo, played by Manuel

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