REVIEW: DVD Release: Che: Part Two

Film: Che: Part Two
Release date: 29th June 2009
Certificate: 15
Running time: 129 mins
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Starring: Demián Bichir, Rodrigo Santoro, Benicio Del Toro, Catalina Sandino Moreno, María D. Sosa
Genre: Biography/Drama/History/War
Studio: Optimum
Format: DVD
Country: Spain/France/USA

Together with Che: Part One, this completes the epic two-film drama about the life of Che Guevara from Ocean’s Eleven director Steven Soderbergh, and starring Benicio Del Toro.

This was the film Soderbergh originally intended to make; a war drama about Che’s final revolutionary struggle before his death. Whilst it is better to watch it after seeing Che: Part One, it functions as a standalone film because it does not simply pick up the story depicted in the first film. It begins several years later with an announcement from Che that he has done all he can in Cuba, so he is resigning from his position as a military and political leader in the country in order to lead revolutions wherever else needs him.

He travels to Bolivia in disguise and quickly sets up base deep within the jungle, using a false name even with his supporters so that nobody knows where he is. The country is in the same situation Cuba was several years ago, with impoverished, powerless peasants under the repressive control of a military dictatorship.

Once again, Che recruits local people into his guerrilla army, and makes contacts with the local populations to explain the fight which will soon take place. This time, however, things do not go so smoothly - the people do not seem to be completely on his side. Furthermore, with the events in Cuba so well-known throughout the world, the Bolivian dictator is taking no chances, and enlists the help of the US military. Things only get worse when Che’s own troops split up and disaster ensues. We know from the outset that this is a doomed mission for Che, but he does not go without a fight...


In many ways, this is more of the same that we got in Part One, with the same sequence of events; gathering an army, endless treks through the forests, problems amongst the troops, meetings with the locals, and Che battling his own health problems whilst being a doctor, leader and revolutionary for everybody else. We still do not get a great insight into his private life, apart from the smallest glimpse into his family life at the start of the film. However, in this film, the story that Soderbergh and Del Toro are trying to tell becomes clearer. There is a stronger sense of identity for Che here - he is not first and foremost a family man; he is a revolutionary, and he will pursue revolution almost blindly.

While the situation seems familiar at first, and can leave the viewer wondering exactly what the point is of telling the same story in a different country, it soon becomes clear that this is different. In Cuba, in Part One, there was a feeling of a general struggle; the people wanted to overthrow the government and Che was leading the country to a better future. Here, however, the people seem more concerned about whether there will be any fighting in their town than whether the revolution will succeed. This does not deter Che; he believes he knows what is good for the country. In addition, there is a greater sense of menace from the government’s milita than there was in Part One, so there is a definite sense from the beginning that this mission is ill-fated. While in Part One, Soderbergh built a feeling of optimism, here it is the reverse; there is a sense of pessimism that is compounded as the film goes on. This subtle contrast means that there is a well-constructed symmetry between the two films, which together form a more complex whole.

The structure of the film is again similar to Part One, but it is less choppy and hangs together better. There are no flash-forwards this time, which means that the viewer can really become involved with the story. This also means that it feels like less is happening, but there is far more invested in feelings and tensions between various characters, which actually leaves the viewer with more to think about. Similarly, the greatest drama in this film does not come from the loud action sequences of bombs and gunfire, though this, of course, adds to it, but from the long periods of silence, where all that can be heard is the swish of a branch or a rustle of leaves as the soldiers trek wordlessly through the jungle. This is incredibly powerful for transporting the viewer into the film, and heightens the senses to make it a completely absorbing experience.

Soderbergh has not compromised on the elements which made Part One good; this film is a visual triumph, and while the style is similar so that it flows well from the first film, it reflects the subtle differences of the story itself. The forest scenes are darker and gloomier, with less open spaces, and there are far less scenes of bright, sunlit towns. In the same way, Del Toro gives a masterful performance as Che; one which is slightly darker, with a hint of desperation which did not feature in the interpretation previously.

It would have been easy for this film to simply be a continuation of the first without giving anything new. What makes this powerful is that it flows seamlessly from Part One but gives so much more, and actually enriches the first film because of the contrasts. Not only does it provide subtle but significant contrasts with Part One, it also offers a deeper understanding of the main character. It requires some work on the part of the viewer, but if that is invested, Che: Part Two does not fail to reward.


Engaging and powerful, this film is a feast for the senses. It provides a perceptive and complex portrayal of one man’s last stand. KS

REVIEW: DVD Release: Che: Part One

Film: Che: Part One
Release date: 29th June 2009
Certificate: 15
Running time: 134 mins
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Starring: Julia Ormond, Benicio Del Toro, Rodrigo Santoro, Demián Bichir, Ramon Fernandez
Genre: Biography/Drama/History/War
Studio: Optimum
Format: DVD
Country: France/Spain/USA

Otherwise known as The Argentine, Che: Part One is the first of two instalments from the director of Ocean’s Eleven, Steven Soderbergh, with Benicio Del Toro in the title role. The film was hotly anticipated on release, covering the life of the enigmatic Ernesto “Che” Guevara, the key revolutionary figure of Latin America during the 1950s and ‘60s.

Following the success of The Motorcycle Diaries in 2004, which documented Che’s beginnings as a revolutionary, Che: Part One picks up the story in Cuba, starting in 1955. The film opens with a flash-forward shot in black-and-white of an interview with Che in 1964. This commentary is interspersed with the events of the Cuban revolution, which charts Che’s varied career as commander, medic and revolutionary. The film also gives an insight into Che’s professional relationships and the conflicts involved, particularly with Fidel Castro.

This is also a war film, so this too builds in the plot; from the first missions with a group of rebels, to the recruitment and training of a revolutionary army, we get treks through the jungle, shootouts with Batista’s army, and the final culmination with the battle in Santa Clara. The documentary-style footage of the flash-forwards reflects the main events, with Che now a leader in Latin American politics answering questions in an interview and giving impassioned speeches to the UN...


From the first few scenes, this film is tantalizing, and promises so much, but it is strangely disappointing. There is no doubt that there are superb elements within it, but they do not quite come together. In the first half, the audience gets glimpses of Che, often hidden in shadows, as he struggles asthmatically through a forest, offers medical advice to a peasant worker, and trains new recruits, but he remains somewhat elusive. Part of the problem is the frequency of the cuts to the black-and-white footage, with the character giving a retrospective commentary on the events going on. This is effective, at first, but happens so often in the first half that it serves to act as a barrier between the audience and the main story, as it often cuts in just as you are getting swept up in the action. In the second half of the film, this happens less, and the viewer can get engrossed in the main action. However, it is at this point that Che emerges, fully-formed in the revolutionary image so well-known from t-shirts and magnets - there is the sense that the chance to really get to know this character has passed.

That is not to say that this is a terrible film - it is visually stunning, with verdant forests, bright Cuban towns and moody, and half-lit scenes in which Che and Castro exchange words which will change the future of Cuba. It also gives a real insight into the Cuban revolution, although this can be a little heavy at times. Benicio Del Toro is the star of this film; he puts in a career-defining performance and is utterly believable in his role. He is Che Guevara, whoever that may be.

Director Steven Soderbergh says that he was not interested in Che’s private life, how he got the nickname Che, or how he came to wear that beret. It is clear that he wanted to avoid the usual sentimentality of biopics, but this is where the film’s greatest flaw lies. By avoiding these subjects, we get to know very little about the man behind the symbol. The great success of The Motorcycle Diaries was that director Walter Salles humanised Che Guevara in a way that allowed the audience to get to know him, and he did this with very little sentimentality. In this film, Soderbergh does not give any insight Che’s personal life, and only a limited one into his ideology.

That said, there is a very real integrity to this film; the speeches at the UN are a great example of Del Toro truly inhabiting the character of Che Guevara, and he delivers the speeches with an authority and intelligence. This is the most obvious expression of Che’s values and beliefs, which are more understated elsewhere in the film. Furthermore, the decision to make this film in Spanish gives it an authenticity that would not have been achieved had it been done in English, as originally planned. It meant that the film lost out on funding from the US, but it would have had much less impact, and would have removed the audience from the story it is trying to tell.

Furthermore, despite its shortcomings, it does somehow leave you wanting more. The film builds to a crescendo in the final scenes, with a tense battle for Cuba that is as psychological as it is physical. Che’s reaction to the victory is unexpected in its control and measure; he warns his men that this is only the beginning of the revolution - that the real work is only just beginning. He remains as unknowable a character as he was at the beginning, but maybe, just maybe, in Che: Part Two, the real Ernesto “Che” Guevara will be revealed.


Soderbergh certainly knows how to hook viewers, and he portrays this portion of history with integrity. It does not quite live up to all its promises but there is something about it, as enigmatic as Che himself, that makes you want to go back for more. KS