Rating: 
Summary: La Cuba de Castro en dos sabores
Review: Este es probablemente uno de los pocos filmes que ha abordado el tema del homosexualismo en un país comunista sin convertir el tema en un melodrama imposible de digerir. El secreto está en la dirección y el guión a cuatro manos y dos afinados cerebros de Tabío (Una novia para David) y Gutiérrez Alea (Memorias del Subdesarrollo). Las actuaciones de Jorge Perugorría y Mirtha Ibarra son insuperables. Ni siquiera el gris Vladimir Cruz y el insoportablemente mediocre Francisco Gattorno logran restarle mérito a ésta excelente oferta muy recomendable.
Rating: 
Summary: A Glimpse Inside A Closed-Off World
Review: Fans of foreign films (and I number myself among them) have to admit, when pressed, that they too are only catching a glimpse or two into the culture portrayed onscreen. I know next to nothing about Cuba--to my eternal embarrassment--well, only what every other American my age does...the Bay of Pigs, the Missile Crisis, Ricky Ricardo... Not a lot really.Seriously, though, I had always understood that gays in Cuba pretty much were routinely rounded up and sent to harvest sugarcane...if they were lucky. "Strawberry and Chocolate" creates a somewhat more nuanced picture. The gay writer, Diego, portrayed by Jorge Perugorria, has good reason to be paranoid of the government, but he is able--at least in late 90s Havana--to have a life, work and keep a well-decorated apartment. What he doesn't have is a significant other, and while he doesn't exactly succeed in wooing a young, unsophisticated idealistic college student(Vladimir Cruz), he does manage to engage the younger man on a platonic level, exposing his young charge to the world of poetry, art and ideas. And to romance, too, indirectly, since he fixes the younger man with his eccentric female friend, Nancy. "Strawberry and Choclate" offers us some insight into another world only ninety miles from our shores. It's themes of friendship, love and betrayal are, of course, universal. But it's understated, benignly cynical worldview is probably uniquely Cuban. What do you make of a betrayal that is really almost accidental--more due to the zealotry of one's friends than to one's own rapidly evolving beliefs. Ultimately, a Bildungsfilm, this remains the younger man's story. He goes from peasant, to college student, grateful to his Communist regime for that opportunity, but his older friend provides him with a education beyond the socialist curriculum. It's a remarkable insight into a society that has not stopped evolving, despite the rigidity of its government--one that has not lost its flair for life and for color, despite the socialist drabness that it has to pay homage to.
Rating:
Summary: masterpiece
Review: Finally, a movie that deals with homosexuality in Cuba. This issue, which has been absent from both public discourse and the Cuban cinema, is dealt with in surprisingly clear terms in this neo-classic. The director's treatment of the gay protagonist, Diego, was fair and responsible. The other characters were typically Cuban: beautiful, intelligent, and witty.
Rating:
Summary: PERUGORRIA IS STRANGELY MESMERIZING
Review: I FOUND THIS MOVIE TO BE HAUNTINGLY UNIQUE AND ENTERTAINING. IT IS ABOUT A HOMOPHOEBIC,NAIVE COLLEGE STUDENT WHO'S INTO COMMUNISM AND WHO RUNS INTO AN OPEN GAY MAN WHO HAS A FEW THINGS TO TEACH HIM ABOUT LIFE, THE ARTS AND THE PASSION OF LIFE. YOU WILL LOVE JORGE PERUGORRIA'S PERFORMANCE AS DAVID (THE GAY GUY).PERUGORRIA IS STRANGELY MESMERIZING AND LEAVES YOU WANTING TO STUDY HIS CHARACTER EVEN FURTHER. A MOVIE I THOUGHT I'D HATE I ENDED UP RENTING OVER AND OVER JUST TO SEE PERIGORRIA'S PERFORMANCE. DON'T MISS THIS ONE! HE'S GOING TO BE A GREAT STAR!!
Rating:
Summary: Where's the DVD???
Review: I was captivated by this charming little film many years back, what with its setting, performances, humour, and all the little nuances that foreign films have mastered over their Hollywood big-buck counterparts. My only complaint is why there hasn't been a DVD release of this movie just yet! With such vastly overrated mediocrities such as "Like Water For Chocolate" or "Babette's Feast" now available, it should only be a matter of time. A phenomenally enjoyable film, whatever your personal preference.
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful, funny, and thought-provoking
Review: I watched this movie for a class in international film, and I keep wanting to see it again and again. The actors who play Diego and David are superb, and the characters are so endearing. I love the way David and Diego interact, raising tensions and questions, but never quite resolving them. This movie is like a window into their lives, and very little about it seems contrived. (And the Spanish is beautiful!)
Rating:
Summary: Powerful statement !
Review: In this film you will face two opposite sides between a gay lover of the arts and a alienated and confused fanatic of the ancient regime. This ideological train crash will be adjusting when the time goes and slowly every one of these men will respect and admire each one another .
Above all the prejuices you may have about this disturbing tour de force between two human beings with different visions about the life , this movie shows you a new reality . Becasue the aparience is many times the only lense that many people employs to judge the world . And you know the world is a complex web of relations .
If you only read what you like you will never be an illustrated man, said once Seneca . And that statement may be well translated to thah brave , poignant , reflexive, artistic and captivating film.
Try to find as soon you can Memories of the underdevelopment , the masterpiece of Tomas Gutierrez Alea , the best cuban director of the XX century.
To love and learn about the inmense possibilities of art is live twice .
Rating:
Summary: Subleme
Review: It is a heart-warming, feel-good movie. A realistic movie that turns out to be funny too. The setting is very beautiful. And you see and hear of both sides of the revolution.
Rating: 
Summary: Not a Bad Berry....
Review: It's a good movie, but not what I expected. From the amount of foreign films I've seen, there have been some outstanding ones like Central Station, City Of Lost Children, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Like Water for Chocolate and Amelie. I guess I hold all foreign (subtitled) films to this high standard. The actor who played Diego, Jorge Perrugoria was wonderful though. He's one of those few actors that uses his eyes to convey so much internal action. Over all, I'm not saying the film was bad, but it wasn't one I'd watch again and again. First film from Cuba nominated for an Oscar.. *** stars
Rating:
Summary: Not a Bad Berry....
Review: It's a good movie, but not what I expected. From the amount of foreign films I've seen, there have been some outstanding ones like Central Station, City Of Lost Children, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Like Water for Chocolate and Amelie. I guess I hold all foreign (subtitled) films to this high standard. The actor who played Diego, Jorge Perrugoria was wonderful though. He's one of those few actors that uses his eyes to convey so much internal action. Over all, I'm not saying the film was bad, but it wasn't one I'd watch again and again. First film from Cuba nominated for an Oscar.. *** stars
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