Che!

For the 2008 film featuring Benicio del Toro, see Che (film).

Che!
DVD cover
Directed by	Richard Fleischer
Produced by	Sy Bartlett
Screenplay by	Michael Wilson Sy Bartlett
Story by	David Karp Sy Bartlett
Starring	Omar Sharif Jack Palance Barbara Luna
Music by	Lalo Schifrin
Cinematography	Charles F. Wheeler
Editing by	Marion Rothman
Distributed by	Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation
Release date(s)	May 29, 1969 (New York City)
Running time	96 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English Spanish
Budget	$2,800,000 (estimate)

Che! (1969) is an American Biographical film starring Omar Sharif as Marxist revolutionary Ernesto "Che" Guevara. It follows Guevara from when he first landed in Cuba in 1956 to his death in Bolivia in 1967, although the film does not portray the formative pre-Cuban revolution sections of Che's life as described in the autobiographical book The Motorcycle Diaries (1993).^[1] The film was directed by Richard Fleischer.

Plot

The film tells of Che Guevara (Omar Sharif), a young Argentine doctor who proves his mettle during the Cuban guerilla war in the late 1950s. He gains the respect of his men and becomes the leader of a patrol.

Fidel Castro (Jack Palance) is impressed by Guevara's tactics and discipline and makes him his chief advisor.

When Castro defeats Cuban dictator Batista after two years of fighting, Guevara directs a series of massive reprisals, yet, Guevara dreams of fomenting a worldwide revolution.

After Castro backs down during the Cuban Missile Crisis, Guevara accuses Castro of being a Soviet tool and decides to leave Cuba.

Guevara lands in Bolivia, where he attempts to begin his dream of a worldwide peasant revolution, but the Bolivian peasants do not follow his lead and he becomes pursued by the Bolivian army.

Cast

• Omar Sharif as Che Guevara
• Jack Palance as Fidel Castro
• Cesare Danova as Ramon Valdez
• Robert Loggia as Faustino Morales
• Woody Strode as Guillermo
• Barbara Luna as Anita Marquez
• Frank Silvera as Goatherd
• Albert Paulsen as Captain Vasquez
• Linda Marsh as Tania
• Tom Troupe as Felipe Muñoz
• Rudy Diaz as Willy
• Perry Lopez as Rolando
• Abraham Sofaer as Pablo Rojas
• Richard Angarola as Colonel Salazar
• Sarita Vara as Celia Sanchez

Critical reception

Critic Paul Brenner wrote: "In this badly misconceived pseudo-biography of the legendary Cuban revolutionary — played, incredibly, by Omar Sharif — Che Guevara takes up the cause as a rebel fighter under the direction of Fidel Castro, played — also incredibly — by Jack Palance."^[2]

Film critic Roger Ebert panned the film and the motivations for producing the drama, writing: "From the beginning, it sounded like a bad dream. Hollywood was making a movie about Che Guevara. Why? Probably because somebody smelled easy money, having been inspired by the sales figures on Che posters. That must have been the reason, because Che! is abundant evidence that no one connected with this stinkeroo gave a damn about Che Guevara, Fidel Castro, the Cuban Revolution or anything else requiring more than five seconds' thought".^[3]

See also

• List of American films of 1969
• The Motorcycle Diaries (2004 film) directed by Walter Salles.
• Che (2008 film) directed by Steven Soderbergh.

References

1. ^ Che! at the Internet Movie Database.
2. ^ Brenner, Paul. Che! at AllRovi. Last accessed: January 9, 2008.
3. ^ Ebert, Roger. The Chicago Sun-Times, film review, June 10, 1969. Last accessed: January 9, 2008.

External links

• Che! at the Internet Movie Database
• Che! trailer at Amazon