Che Guevara: The making of an icon

Dec 6, 2014

0h 52m

★ 6.0

Overview

How does a politician – assassinated more than 50 years ago – gradually become a public figure? An extremely vibrant image which shows up where you least expect it. It served as figurehead for the Arab Spring revolutions, from Rabat to Sanaa, whereas we had thought it had been relegated to t-shirts and cigarette lighters. Why has this image become so universal that we are no longer surprised to find it in drawings, graffiti, tattoos and prints on all types of media in all sorts of contexts the world over? How can this image be used to advertise luxury automobiles and also be brandished angrily by indignant agitators? What is the formula that made this figure go viral? This documentary is a journey to investigate and decode a piece of iconography.

Genres

Documentary

History

Production Companies

TS Productions

Che Guevara: The making of an icon Trailers

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Cast

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After the Cuban Revolution, Che is at the height of his fame and power. Then he disappears, re-emerging incognito in Bolivia, where he organizes a small group of Cuban comrades and Bolivian recruits to start the great Latin American Revolution. Through this story, we come to understand how Che remains a symbol of idealism and heroism that lives in the hearts of people around the world.

6.8

Che: Part One

Sep 5, 2008

The Argentine, begins as Che and a band of Cuban exiles (led by Fidel Castro) reach the Cuban shore from Mexico in 1956. Within two years, they mobilized popular support and an army and toppled the U.S.-friendly regime of dictator Fulgencio Batista.

6.1

The Lost City

Sep 3, 2005

In Havana, Cuba in the late 1950's, a wealthy family, one of whose sons is a prominent nightclub owner, is caught in the violent transition from the oppressive regime of Batista to the Marxist government of Fidel Castro. Castro's regime ultimately leads the nightclub owner to flee to New York.

10.0

Personal Che

Sep 1, 2007

A documentary that explores the myth behind the truth. Different people around the globe reinterpret the legend of Che Guevara at will: from the rebel living in Hong Kong fighting Chinese domination, to the German neonazi preaching revolution and the Castro-hating Cuban. Their testimonies prove that the Argentinian revolutionary's historical impact reverberates still. But like with all legends, each sees what he will, in often contradictory perspectives.

6.5

Comandante

Feb 14, 2003

Oliver Stone spends three days filming with Fidel Castro in Cuba, discussing an array of subjects with the president such as his rise to power, fellow revolutionary Che Guevara, the Cuban Missile crisis, and the present state of the country.

0.0

Maestras Voluntarias

Apr 22, 2022

Ana Deborah Mola and Belkis Lescaille were among the first young teachers who started pilot programs around the island of Cuba in 1960, laying foundation for the massive National Literacy Campaign that would take place the following year.

7.8

Bloody Che Contra

Jan 1, 1968

The story of Che Guevara's desperate attempt to escape the mountains of Bolivia. Pursued by an elite ranger unit of the army led by a determined CIA agent, Che is eventually trapped and his men are killed.

6.8

The Crazy Che

Nov 19, 2015

The incredible story of Bill Gaede, an Argentinian engineer, programmer… and Cold War spy.

0.0

8A

Jan 1, 1993

The Kafkaesque world of Cuba under Castro's rule is brought to light in this reconstruction of the 1989 trial and execution of General Arnaldo Ochoa Sanchez, the highest-ranking general and hero of the revolution, and commander of the Angolan and Ethiopian campaigns.

6.8

Living Dangerously

Jul 24, 1987

In 1950s Havana, a romance blooms between two young revolutionaries whose clandestine printing press publishes pamphlets meant to stir up rebellion against the dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista. As their popularity grows, so, too, does their revolutionary zeal and their desire to mobilize other urban guerilla units.

10.0

Seguridad

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In her feature documentary Seguridad, Newfoundland-based filmmaker Tamara Segura—once named “Cuba’s youngest soldier” in a militia publicity stunt—portrays her troubled relationship with her father in the context of the Cuban Revolution. When Segura accepts a scholarship to study film in Canada, the move offers crucial distance from her alcoholic father. After four years, she returns to Cuba hoping to make amends. But her father’s sudden death just days after her arrival forces Segura to explore his troubled past and the role Cuba’s highly militarized system played in his downfall. Through a series of deeply personal on-camera interviews with her immediate family, Segura unearths long-held secrets that ultimately tell a story of resilience and profound love between family members. Seguridad artfully weaves a lifetime’s worth of still photographs into its intimate narrative, which offers a rare glimpse into the inner lives of Cubans in the post-revolutionary era.

6.7

Fidel: The Untold Story

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Documentary about Fidel Castro, covering 40 years of Cuban Revolution. Rare Fidel Castro footage: he appears swimming with a bodyguard, visiting his childhood home and school, playing with his friend Nelson Mandela, meeting kid Elián Gonzalez, and celebrating his birthday with the Buena Vista Social Club group.

0.0

Yankee Comandante

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Two people rose to the rank of comandante during the Cuban Revolution. One was Che Guevara. The other was a man from Ohio.

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0.0

Tania

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GDR 1961: Tamara Bunke, daughter of Jewish exiles from Argentina, not only falls for the political goals of the rousing revolutionary Che Guevara during a state visit. She also meets Ulises Estrada, the commandant of Che's team. Ignited by the fire of the revolution, she gets involved in a diabolical espionage deal with the Stasi in order to cheat her way out of Cuba. In Cuba, she ends up caught between all fronts: under the watchful eye of the Stasi, which expects results from her, but in reality solely dedicated to Che's revolution, Tamara allows herself to be trained as a double spy by Che's troops. At the same time, her honest love grows for Commandante Ulises, who eventually gives her the choice of following her personal happiness and going into hiding rather than following Che's plans to liberate South America, which by now he considers a suicide mission. An unresolvable, deeply tragic conflict that ends fatally for Tamara in the battle of Bolivia's Rio Grande..

7.4

Hello Cubans

Nov 26, 1963

A photo montage of Cubans filmed by Agnès Varda during her visit to Cuba in 1963, four years after Fidel Castro came to power. This black & white documentary explores their socialist culture and society while making use of 1500 pictures (out of 4000!) the filmmaker took while on the island.

0.0

L'oro di Cuba

Dec 31, 2009

The Cuban Revolution turns fifty years old. Fifty years of history, myths and challenges of a country that has influenced politics and culture around the world, becoming for many the symbol of the revolt against capitalism.A country full of contradictions, but which has always exerted a great fascination for its strong political and cultural identity. "The Gold of Cuba" wants to go deep and reconstruct the most exciting and the mostdramatic moments in the history of the Caribbean island. But it also wants to analyze the present through the testimonies collected from many young people who tell their hopes, opinions, expectations and dreams, trying to imagine the future that awaits this small country with a great history.

7.1

My Enemy's Enemy

Aug 31, 2007

Reveals an alternate history of the post-war world. This is a version of history where, in contrast to what we are all told, fascist ideology prevailed. The story of Klaus Barbie, Nazi torturer, American spy, tool of repressive right-wing regimes, is symbolic of the real relationship that the "Western" governments had with fascism and makes us see the world as it is today - and the politicians that inhabit it - in a different way.

0.0

Island Ablazed

Jan 1, 1961

Documentary recounting the story of the Cuban Revolution and its impact on the young people of Cuba.

8.0

Plantadas

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Alina, Luisa and América are three women who after fighting to restore and stabilize democracy to their country realize they’ve been betrayed by the leader of the revolution. The three women begin to confront and challenge the new system in their own ways and for different reasons they find themselves jailed.