7 Days in Havana
7 Days in Havana
Plots(1)
Seven respected directors were each asked to shoot a short film set in the Cuban capital, Havana. The resulting omnibus captures, in contrasting styles and perspectives, the fascinating atmosphere of the city over a period of seven days. Benicio Del Toro follows an American tourist on his first visit to Cuba. Pablo Trapero gives us a story about a famous film director who strikes up a friendship with his Cuban driver. In Julio Medem’s love triangle, a singer must decide between her partner and a passionate Spaniard. Elia Suleiman’s film is about a Palestinian man waiting all day for a meeting with an ambassador, while Gaspar Noé depicts the ritual casting out of the devil from the body of a lesbian girl. Juan Carlos Tabío focuses on a mother trying to support her family; and Laurent Cantet gives us a portrait of an old woman whose actions are guided by visions of the Virgin Mary. (Karlovy Vary International Film Festival)
(more)Reviews (3)
After watching the film, I was reminded of a lecture by a well-known science popularizer who admitted that the motive for the creation of his latest book was not a passion for its subject, but a grant that he happened to receive and that it would not be wise to refuse. I had a similar feeling of "motivation" when it came to most of the participating directors here. It wasn't a dream project that pushed them to the limits of their creative powers, and it wasn't even a commercial thing for which they would risk their reputation with the producer. Most of them approached it like a school exercise, and sometimes I even felt like it was out of obligation. In any case, directorial qualities prevailed over screenwriting - sometimes there was palpable helplessness in that area (Kusturica's alcohol-soaked visit to the film festival). Most film fans will probably choose their own favorite story, but as a whole, 7 Days in Havana, in my opinion, doesn't hold up. It was clear from the beginning that the individual contributions would have different styles and poetics, but I must admit that I didn't expect to feel like I was on a roller coaster or riding a carnival ride when comparing the quality of the stories. Overall impression: 45%.
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7 Days in Havana served only to amuse me with a parallel to the Czech normalization. Otherwise, it is probably only worthy of attention as an extreme Easter egg story with Kusturica playing himself. Or perhaps Medem's romance with Daniel Brühl. The biggest mindfuck is, of course, Noé, but there are no surprises when it comes him and just move on to the next day without a longer stop.
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It's starting quite promisingly and it almost looks like it will be an interesting glimpse into life in Cuba. However, the first story goes downhill with its punchline. The best part is Kusturica, who plays this time, and then the film is really about nothing, it doesn't really matter where it takes place. I can't consider this as a tribute to the Cuban capital.
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