The real story of Pre Castro Cuba is not presented here. Of course, since the movie was made with the blessings of the Soviet Union how could it be? Pre Castro Cuba was far more complex than the Cuba seen here. The PBS series "The American Experience describes Pre Castro Cuba: "Cuba ranked fifth in the hemisphere in per capita income, third in life expectancy, second in per capita ownership of automobiles and telephones, first in the number of television sets per inhabitant. The literacy rate, 76%, was the fourth highest in Latin America. Cuba ranked 11th in the world in the number of doctors per capita. Many private clinics and hospitals provided services for the poor. Cuba's income distribution compared favorably with that of other Latin American societies. A thriving middle class held the promise of prosperity and social mobility."
Was there inequality and corruption in Cuba? Yes. As there is in every major city in the world. Were there American businessmen who sought the services of prostitutes in Havana? Yes. Just as there are businessmen from all countries doing the same in every major city in the world. Was President Fulgencio Batista a bloody dictator? Probably. On the other hand, Batista had been freely elected in 1940 with the help (ironically) of the Cuban Communist Party. He served until 1944 and then moved to the US for a while. He returned to Cuba in 1952 to run for President again, saw he had no chance of being elected, then decided to take control of Cuba in a coup. A young lawyer by the name of Fidel Castro organized a rebellion against Batista which was crushed and Castro was arrested. Batista then let Castro go free two years later. Batista was corrupt, stole millions from Cuba with which he bought homes in the USA. Batista was also getting money from organized crime in exchange for freedom to build an run casinos in Havana. If Batista was a horrible as his regime was portrayed in this movie, why didn't he execute Castro, as Castro himself executed those (including American citizens) accused of plotting against him? If the Castro regime was so wonderful, why haven't there been free elections and freedom of the media since he took power? With all it's problems, Pre Castro Cuba was probably one of the top countries in this hemisphere after the USA, Canada and maybe Argentina. In fact, if you were black, you'd have been far better off in 1958 Cuba than in most states of 1958 USA!
I was born in Cuba. My father was American, my mother Cuban. We knew other Americans who married Cuban women and would probably have lived the rest of their lives in Cuba (as we would have) had Castro not taken over. The Americans we knew were very different from the American scum portrayed in this movie. My family was part of the Cuban middle class, renting the first floor of a two family home with the Cuban landlord living upstairs, in a neighborhood of similar two family homes in Marianao, a suburb of Havana.
This movie is beautifully photographed, directed and well acted and should be seen for this reason. Don't take the movie as the true story of Pre Castro Cuba, because it's not only one sided, it doesn't even present the entire truth of that one side. It's as if a documentary of 1958 USA was filmed with 1958 Alabama or Louisiana representing the entire USA.
Review of I Am Cuba
