Sunday, November 14, 2010

Hope Down South

South of the Border (2009) - Stone
Photobucket
Oliver Stone tours Venezuela, Bolivia, Argentina, Paraguay, Brazil, Ecuador and Cuba, hobnobbing with 'evil' dictators- playing soccer with Morales in Bolivia, cracking a sexist joke at Kirchner in Argentina, etc. This is by far the best Stone film I've seen. He narrates the film but the narration and his presence are very unobtrusive. The film lays out these countries' tumultuous histories. South America, after years of American imperialism and devastating measures from IMF, is finally getting back on its feet and there seems to be genuine solidarity. Curiously Nicaragua is missing from Stone's itinerary.

Since the US is not a superpower anymore and still tangled in the Middle East, is there a hope for Africa?