Soderbergh's 'Che' gets slammed, praised at Cannes

A rough, uncut version of Steven Soderbergh's highly anticipated movie about legendary Argentine revolutionary and guerrilla fighter Ernesto "Che" Guevara  (see IMDB listing here) divided critics at Cannes this week.

Some critics faulted the film, which runs more than four hours, for not having a subplot, and complained that the Commandante appears diminished, if anything, by Soderbergh's interpretation.

"No doubt it will be back to the drawing board for 'Che,' Steven Soderbergh's intricately ambitious, defiantly nondramatic four-hour, 18-minute presentation of scenes from the life of revolutionary icon Che Guevara. If the director has gone out of his way to avoid the usual Hollywood biopic conventions, he has also withheld any suggestion of why the charismatic doctor, fighter, diplomat, diarist and intellectual theorist became and remains such a legendary figure; if anything, Che seems diminished by the way he’s portrayed here. ... Neither half feels remotely like a satisfying stand-alone film, while the whole offers far too many aggravations for its paltry rewards."  Todd McCarthy, Variety.

Read the Los Angeles Times report here and BBC Mundo's for Spanish language.

Update: A.O. Scott of the New York Times had kinder, if qualified, words for the film.

Photo: Actor Benicio del Toro and director Steven Soderbergh at the Cannes photo-call for "Che."

WireImage.

-- Deborah Bonello in Mexico City

Comments

[Devils Advocate]

notice how the americans post the majority of the anti-guevara, anti-socialist, anti-communist and basically brain-dead comments on here.

particular reference is made to "Robert NYC" and the power madness and self interests remarks - which is such an irony coming from an AMERICAN haha!

no wonder you yanks hate guevara and the rest who tried to make a difference, because the difference they try to make is directly against your own greedy, corrupt, capitalist USA that ensures globalisation, imperialism and exploitation however it can and at the disposal of any inferior country such as cuba bolivia argentina iraq afghanistan the list goes on.........

try to think outside the box from what your brainwashing government and media spoon feed you relentlessly from birth and try to spare a thought or compassion for those on the recieving end of Americas crimes.

America secretly and unjustly governs so many countries throughout the world, firstly they stage some kind of 'conflict' or express through propaganda some kind of 'threat' to the USA.

then they use this so called threat as a justification to attack ("defend") the usually 3rd world, defenceless, helpless and inferior country.

they then steal any material or resource of any value i.e. oil etc.

they then help "promote peace and freedom"(kill anyone who dares to speak out or challenge america)

then coincidentally a new government is formed months later and all seems well - only because the yanks intervened of course !!!!!!

unfortunately it turns out that the new government and leader was put there by the americans anyway only upon promising to provide certain resources to america at ridiculously low unfair prices - forever!

and the expolitation continues from here on in......

until that country decides to try and take back what is rightfully theres of course................. and then it all starts again.........

[forshorn]

One irony of actors and directors idealizing Che Guevara, outside of his dubious status as a (rather vicious and racist) hero, is that Guevara despised American entertainment above all, including music, film, and books. He probably would have had Soderbergh imprisoned or shot for producing bourgeois propaganda. If Che were to wear somebody's t-shirt, he might have picked his own hero, Mao, who decimated his own people. (Cool word: "decimated" literally means to kill one out of ten people. Pol Pot killed one out of five Cambodians, so what's the word for that - pentamate?)

[Uncle Juan]

This discussion reminds me of the mild controversy surrounding the novel, "UNCLE JUAN'S CABIN."

Timely too--since this immigration story-related novel also includes the election of an African American US President!

Hmmmm....

[Rock]

Che was a hypocrite. He liberated Cuba from a dictator only to put in it's place another dictatorship. After his "liberation" in Cuba, Che ordered the execution of 100's of people who would not be welcome in Communist Cuba. And then moved on to Bolivia to do it again, but completely failed instead.

[Zeev Reuteman]

So many lies, so many exagerations and so many distortions of the "true" life of Che Guevara will hardly make the film credible or enjoyable.

He did not fit in Cuba because he was climbing higher and faster than the true Cuban revolutionaries.

But there is no legacy to pull out of the huge pile of false stories built upon him. Cubans have idolized and divinized him, but the truth is that he knew what he was against, he gambled in guerilla warfare game and lost. Like another ordinary human being.

[Heyche]

For more information about the movie... hey-che.com

[joe]

i think that you cannot really capture che in a 4 hour movie but it is worth the try :) and atleast someone is doing it!!

[joe]

i think that it is really hard to capture che in a 4 hour movie but the effort is what counts :)

[Robert NYC]

You mean Hollywood made another movies about a lefty socialist as a movie hero and it did not work? Awww... too bad.

Dreamworld Dreamworks and Dreaming economics

Put the Movie where it belongs - in the trash unless it reveals his power madness and self interests.

[beesle]

the movie got mixed reviews. It's quite dishonest to say that it didn't impress critics. A huge part of the critics in Cannes loved the film and believed that it should gain the Palme d'or. And another part hated it. but it's difficult to mention one without mentioning the other and it would be very inaccurate.

[Jimb]

to tom: hilarious post ! lol

[Tom Martin]

I love movies...but, sometimes it's just better to read a good book, which there are many detailing the life of Che Guevara. With so many "formula" requirements for a film, I can't see how it will be any different than the latest "epic" about Jessie James with Brad "what's his name"...pure eye candy but little more. A better treatment may be a fiction piece about Che Guevara who is transported from death to the year 2008 where he is a cook at a House of Pancakes on Santa Monica Blvd., with a goal of bringing the IHOP franchise to Cuba. Now this is something I think Mr. Soderbergh could wrap his skills around.