The following movie was screened at the 2007 Tribeca Film Festival.
The Man of Two Havanas
Discovery Documentary
2007, U.S.A.
Dir: Vivien Lesnik Weisman
Born in Havana and raised in Miami, director Vivien Lesnik Weisman was never able to fully comprehend the huge rift between the Cubans who stayed in Cuba, and the Cubans who got out. Her father, Max Weisman, is a noted political activist, journalist, and radio personality, and is also an open opponent of the embargo placed on the island by the United States, citing that the only thing the embargo does is suffocate the island-country even more than it already is.
From the beginning, Weisman states her resentment towards Cuba and the people of Cuba for having occupied so much of her father’s attention, and ultimately leaving her and her older sister aside. She visits her homeland to try and understand this resentment and why her father has fought for his country for so many years.
We find out that her father was an early revolutionary, fighting alongside Castro in the overthrow of then leader Fulgencio Batista. But, when Castro flirted with the notion of Communism and with the Soviets, Max stood up against such ideologies and decided to leave Cuba for the United States.
Weisman is able to fluidly bring to light the events her father went through as a Cuba sympathizer in a Miami that was run by right-wing radical Cubans who were against Castro and anything having to deal with their country in general. Anyone who sympathized with the plight of Cubans still on the island was seen as subversive elements of the Miami community, and was dealt with harshly. Max’s newspaper Réplica had its headquarters bombed eleven times in the mid 70’s.
Weisman traces the roots of hatred towards Cuba on behalf of Stateside Cubans all the way to the Senate and House of Representatives, where figures such as the DÃaz-Balart brothers wield a considerable influence in continuing the embargo. For them, the embargo weakens Castro and his regime, when in reality, all it does is directly hurt the impoverished citizens of an island that sees no economic stability and freedom in the near future.
As a child, Weisman never understood her father’s unyielding love for his country and why he would risk his life and the lives of his family members for it. In the end, she finally realizes that the history of this country and its people, her country and her people, is so immensely rich, deep, and beautiful, that it is worth every ounce of effort needed to fight for.
/Film Rating: 9 out of 10
May 20th, 2007 at 5:09 pm
the man of two havanas is a really strong endictment of the cuban right wing exile community aswell as the bush adminisatration and us policy toward cuba in general . this alone makes it different from all the other cuba related films made by exiled cuban fimmakers. this is the dirty little secret no one wants to tell . cuban american congresspersons have been backing terrorits for years w the tacit approval and encouragement of our government . but what i really like about this movie is that the director is telling her story , her personal perspective , her heartbreaking story about growing up with bombings and death threats against her father . this is like My architect but about politics instead of buildings and much more exciting and heartfelt .waht i really like is how non sentimental the story is . if want to see the scene where the story teller breaks down and cries well go rent terms of endearment or a lesser personal documentary
May 20th, 2007 at 5:12 pm
i give it a 10 out of 10 and believe me as radio journalist i see lots of docs and this one stands out .
February 28th, 2008 at 2:09 pm
I just saw the film. I’m a researcher looking for information about Cubans in exile. I’m not politically oriented and I feel that that is the best position to be in when one is going to write seriously about an issue or group. Otherwise, there is an agenda and it is not really relevant what one does.
Mr. Lesnik’s name came up when looking for information and doing interviews with Liberals and Conservatives Cubans, some from the Hebrew Congregation, especially in Miami. I have spoken to many of those who were in the Sierra Maestra with Fidel Castro and they have assured me that Mr. Lesnik was never part of the group. That he seemed to have approached Castro after he overthrew Batista–who was a dictator at the time Castro was in the Sierra Maestra. There seemed to be a group of young men who did what Mr. Lesnix did in order to get the benefits of the revolution without putting in the hours. Castro is not a fool and is aware and always collects. There is no free lunch!