Ernesto Che Guevara, das bolivianische Tagebuch (1994)

Director:

Richard Dindo

Writer:

Richard Dindo (writer)

Release Date:

4 September 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Documentary | Biography

Plot:

On October 9, 1967, Che Guevara was executed by the Bolivian Army, aided by the CIA. Che's diary, a detailed...

Plot Keywords:

Diary | Bolivia | Narration | 1960s

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Christine Boisson	...	Narrator (french version) / Récitante (voice)
Judith Burnett	...	Narrator (English version) (voice)
Ernesto 'Che' Guevara	...	Himself (archive footage)
Klaus Knuth	...	Narrator (german version) (voice)
Jean-Louis Trintignant	...	Narrator (french version) / Récitant (voice)
Susanne-Marie Wrage	...	Narrator (german version) (voice)

Also Known As:

Ernesto Che Guevara, the Bolivian Diary (USA)

Runtime:

92 min

Country:

France | Switzerland

Language:

French

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Company:

Arte

Interesting, but slow-moving, perhaps unintentionally "revolution glorifying"

This is a documentary that retraces the steps of Ernesto Che Chuevara's 1967 attempt to "liberate" Boliva. The documentary is based on his diary, which apparently was published right before this came out. Not knowing much about Chevara, I found this documentary interesting, but slow moving. It basically goes over the exact movements Che and his soldiers made during their time in Boliva. There are various interviews with people from the Bolivian countryside who claim to have had contact with Che along the way. A male narrator reads from Che's diary as we walk in Che's steps. A female narrator provides other necessary information. Che's prose is interesting: It's very careful, diliberate, and, to me, almost Walt Whitmanesque. Perhaps it was just the way the male narrator (whose slow ennunciation of every word began to annoy me) read the diary, but I find Che's prose sometimes makes the concept of "revolution" seem a lot safer, cleaner, and easier than I'm sure it was. Camping in the Bolivian countryside for a year cannot have been all that pleasant. And, Che's whole idea of traveling to Boliva to take this action is somewhat odd to me. It's like, "Gee, let's pick an "oppressed" country and go have fun stirring up a revolution there." It romanticizes revolution in a way that I am not so sure is healthy. But who I am to say? Perhaps if it was 1967 and I was in Che's shoes, I would have taken the same actions as him.