I AM CUBA

Mikhail Kalatozov’s wildly mobile, hallucinatory film will change your view of cinema forever! Reminiscent of the city symphonies of the 1920s and inspired by Eisenstein’s unfinished film ode to Mexico (QUE VIVA MEXICO!), Kalatozov’s I AM CUBA is a loving portrait of Mother Cuba by Mother Russia that juxtaposes the harsh realities of life during the Batista era with the triumphs of the then-recent revolution. Composed in four episodes, the film crisscrosses the country from urban slums to lush countryside, embellishing its radical messages by creating a riot of innovative photography, rapid-fire cutting, screen-filling close-ups, hair-raising handheld tracking shots, crane shots, elevator shots, and still-astonishing how-did-they-do-it shots. The result is an engaging time capsule of the first flush of life after the revolution, a potent new form of radical film practice carrying the spirit of 1917. I AM CUBA is a one-of-a-kind film experience, a visually mind-bending bolt from the historical blue.