MamaGravity good back-story, and good acting

Ceticultsot Beautiful, moving film.

TeenzTen An action-packed slog

Lidia Draper Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.

tsimshotsui Una Noche gives a nuanced perspective of Cubans in Havana that I can trust. It tells the story of a brother and sister and Raul. Raul and the brother (Elio) have been planning to cross to Miami. An incident makes their plan the very top priority, and the sister, Lila finds out. We gradually figure out that Elio is in love with Raul, though never explicitly spelled out, and is willing to do everything for him. Raul has had a difficult life, with his mother having AIDS and his father gone. He is apparently in Miami, and Raul desperately wants to be with him. But that leaves Raul to take care of everything, and we find out he does sex work to make ends meet. Lila is adept at taekwondo and is always just by herself. She prefers to watch people than talk to them. The exception is her brother Elio, who she said she couldn't live without. Together the three of them set off to Miami. I would have liked the movie to have centered Elio more, since he is the center of it all. We get to appreciate him through his sister, and through Raul, but we don't quite get to spend time with him as his own character. Dariel Arrechaga is effective and magnetic as Raul. I loved the film showing the complexities of life in Cuba, without it implicitly going one way (the usual way when Cuba is viewed through US Capitalist lens).

Nihil I really enjoyed this film, it showed me how much some people want to come to the United States so bad. I understand why because they want a better life. But are they really getting a better life? They have to start over loose all there stuff and just hope that they will eventually get back up on their feet. My favorite thing about this movie was probably how it showed so many really nice scenes of the water and the only thing I disliked was a part of the plot. I did not like Elio's sister at all. She should not have even been a character. Her role has a slight effect on the movie but she seemed to ruin everything for Elio and Raul. You can tell that this film is not American by the way that the movie ends. It is a very harsh ending that most people do not seem to get unless if looked upon closely. In fact the ending of the film was the only part I did not full comprehend, if I was not for I my teacher I would have left the room thinking there was a decently happy ending.

logatherum This has been my favorite film out of the three that we, as a class, have watched. I really enjoyed it because I felt as though the movie never really lost my attention; I always was excited to know what would happen next. There was just so many themes- and so much suspense! The themes in this movie particularly intrigued me, and interested me, because I could relate to them in terms of American society a little more than the other movies. The fact that the males seemed to act sexist towards the females, like when Raul pushed himself on multiple girls on multiple scenes when they declined him. Even when Lila, Elio and Raul were rowing to Miami, Lila barely rowed, as if it were a "man's" job. There was also quite a bit of bullying along with this, like when the girls in the street were making fun of Lila for the hair on her arms. Another main theme was homosexuality. There were so many references and slang terms used in this film, and most of the characters treated homosexuality as a joke and something gross that is not to be spoken of. I thought it was really interesting and surprising when Elio kissed Raul while he was sleeping, and how his sister completely accepted it, and Raul did not. This makes me wonder if Cuba is as evolved as we are when it comes to accepting homosexuality. There was also a lot of sex in this movie, and sexual advances, such as, again, when Raul pushed himself on multiple females, trying to force them to get together with him. Elio and Lila's mother was also cheating on their father with another man, and Lila actually saw them, which must've been hard on her. Raul's mother was dying from AIDS, yet was still prostituting herself, which Raul also walked in on her with a client, similarly to Lila's situation. During the movie introduction that Mac did, he mentioned that two of the actors went missing during the filming of this film, and once they were found pled for a political asylum. This interested me, and made me wonder; what does this mean? A political asylum is defined in the dictionary as "the protection granted by a nation to someone who has left their native country as a political refugee." So, this basically means that one can apply for asylum and can be granted refugee status. One can apply if you have fled your home country in fear for your life, and do not want to go back. The actors, Javier Nunez Florian (the character of Elio) and Anailin de la Rua de la Torre (the character of Lila) were the pair who went missing during the filming of this movie, while at an airport in Miami. Even their costar who played Raul, did not know where they were or why they had disappeared, which caused director and the entire film crew to panic. Thankfully, three days later, the two (who played twins in the movie) were not only found, but also were pleading political asylum. Interestingly, these two happened to be in a romantic relationship outside of the set!

Turfseer 'Una Noche', is first time feature director Lucy Mulloy's take on modern day Cuba and its attendant contradictions. Mulloy is New York based but spent a good deal of time in Cuba, learning about its culture. In the first third of the film, before the main plot kicks in, we're introduced to Lila, a teenager living in Havana with her brother Elio and her parents.Lila serves as both narrator and 'observer' of the action. She is worried about her brother Elio, who has befriended the homophobic Raúl, who both work at a pantry. Elio has developed a secret crush on Raúl, who has dreams of escaping to Miami in order to make a better life for himself.Mulloy not only sets out to tell a story based on a real-life event, but also give us a feel for what Cuba is like today. The city of Havana appears to be full of run-down buildings and cars from the 1950s, still running on the street. Cuba is still a paternalistic culture, evidenced by its widespread disdain for gay people. We see that when a group of youths on bicycles taunt a gay kid walking on the street. Raúl's homophobia is also on constant display—in one particular memorable scene, he curses out a prostitute after he discovers she's a transsexual. Raúl also may be typical of the 'macho' type who treats women as sex objects. He's always coming on to Lila who will have none of it, and protects herself by taking Taekwondo lessons. Lila is also alienated when she follows her father and observes him making love to another woman.It takes a while but the plot gets in gear when Raúl purchases some medication on the black market for his AIDS-infected mother, who works as a prostitute. When he comes home to give her the medication, he finds her having sex with a tourist which enrages him. Raúl assaults the tourist and later we find out that he's wanted by the police since the tourist may actually end up dying (assaulting tourists appears to be a very serious offense, in economically depressed Cuba).Now Raúl must go the U.S. or else he'll end up rotting in a Cuban prison. Elio, reluctant earlier, now decides to go with Raúl to the U.S. Lila, the perennial observer, confronts Elio in front of Raúl, and begs him not to go with him. When she can't dissuade him, she agrees to help the guys with their makeshift raft. The superstitious Raúl insists on going to a woman who attempts to lift a potential curse the three may be facing, when they're adrift at sea.The last third of the movie and the dark moment of the second act is when Raúl, Lila and Elio attempt to make it to the U.S. on their flimsy raft. Neither the motor or GPS work, so they're relegated to paddling with tiny oars. I won't give away the ending but suffice it to say, things don't go well for the hapless trio.Dariel Arrechada steals the show as the rough and surly Raúl. The part of Lila (played by Anailin de la Rua de la Torre) is underdeveloped since her role appears mainly relegated to the part of the narrator. Javier Nuñez Florian does well as the less extroverted Elio, playing off nicely against the more aggressive Raúl. In a major real-life postscript to the film, both actors playing Lila and Elio, ended up defecting to the United States.Lucy Mulloy is an up and coming director to watch. She has a feel for both the camera and the actors she directs. Mulloy not only captures the troubled nature of Cuban society but also its incredible buoyancy. In her next feature, perhaps it might be a good idea to rely less on narration to move her story along. I have no doubt that Hollywood will be offering this talented director some higher budgeted jobs in the future.