Cuba libre

This feature-length documentary from 1974 takes viewers inside Fidel Castro's Cuba. A movie-making threesome hope that Fidel himself will star in their film. The unusual crew consists of former Newfoundland premier Joseph Smallwood, radio and TV owner Geoff Stirling and NFB film director Michael Rubbo. What happens while the crew awaits its star shows a good deal of the new Cuba, and also of the three Canadians who chose to film the island. (NFB)

Spanning several decades, this powerful biopic offers a glimpse into the life of famed Cuban poet and novelist Reinaldo Arenas, an artist who was vilified for his homosexuality in Fidel Castro's Cuba.

A British mercenary arrives in pre-Revolution Cuba to help train the corrupt General Batista's army against Castro's guerrillas while he also romances a former lover now married to an unscrupulous plantation owner.

Errol Flynn, playing himself as a war correspondent, reports the dangerous goings-on of a band of Cuban rebels- Two of which are misguided teenage girls from America. The film was shot with Castro's cooperation while he was still fighting Batista's forces.

Fidel Castro rises to power in Cuba.

Documentary about Fidel Castro, covering 40 years of Cuban Revolution. Rare Fidel Castro footage: he appears swimming with a bodyguard, visiting his childhood home and school, playing with his friend Nelson Mandela, meeting kid Elián Gonzalez, and celebrating his birthday with the Buena Vista Social Club group.

An adventurer gets caught up in a plot to kill Fidel Castro.

Oliver Stone's second documentary on/interview with Fidel Castro specifically addresses his country's recent crackdown on Cuban dissidents; namely, the execution of three men who hijacked a ferry to the United States.

In Havana, Cuba in the late 1950's, a wealthy family, one of whose sons is a prominent nightclub owner, is caught in the violent transition from the oppressive regime of Batista to the Marxist government of Fidel Castro. Castro's regime ultimately leads the nightclub owner to flee to New York.

Biography of Argentinian revolutionary Ernesto "Che" Guevara, who helped Fidel Castro in his struggle against the corrupt Batista regime, eventually resulting in the overthrow of that government and Castro's taking over of Cuba. The film covers Guevara's life from when he first landed in Cuba in 1956 to his death in an ambush by government troops in the mountains of Bolivia in 1967.

A Yank comes to Havana in search of an old friend who disappeared during the Cuban Revolution, and discovers a group of Batista sympathizers plotting to overturn Castro.

Underground is a 1976 documentary film about the Weathermen, founded as a militant faction of the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), who fought to overthrow the U.S. government during the 1960s and 1970s. The film consists of interviews with members of the group after they went underground and footage of the anti-war and civil rights protests of the time. It was directed by Emile de Antonio, Haskell Wexler and Mary Lampson, later subpoenaed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in an attempt to confiscate the film footage in order to gain information that would help them arrest the Weathermen. (Wikipedia)

Dollan Cannell's documentary on the hundreds of alleged plots to assassinate Fidel Castro, and a look at the evolution of Cuban politics. If the title of this extraordinary film sounds ludicrous, don't be fooled. This film looks at the incredible story of the 638 alleged plots by the CIA and Cuban exiles to kill the Cuban leader Fidel Castro.

The world is still reeling from the assassination of JFK - but has yet to lose his kid brother Bobby. In the midst of all this, a reluctant hero by the name of Lucien Rivard becomes enmeshed in a web of global political intrigue and corruption.

Havana, spring 1971: The poet Heberto Padilla has just been set free and appears before the Cuban Writers' Union where he pronounces a statement of "heartfelt self-criticism", declares himself to be a counterrevolutionary agent and throws accusations of complicity at many of his colleagues present at the event, among them, his wife. A month previously, his arrest under the accusation of endangering the security of the Cuban state had mobilised prominent intellectuals all over the world, who wrote a letter to Fidel Castro calling for the release of the poet, whose only sin had been to dissent through his poetic work. The writer's mea culpa, the recording of which is shown for the first time to the public, marks the narrative line of a story including the testimonies of Gabriel García Márquez, Julio Cortázar, Mario Vargas Llosa, Jean-Paul Sartre, Jorge Edwards and Fidel Castro.

The story of a group of friends in Madrid.

God in America explores the tumultuous 400-year history of the intersection of religion and public life in America, from the first European settlements to the 2008 presidential election. This series examines how religious dissidents helped shape the American concept of religious liberty and the controversial evolution of that ideal in the nation's courts and political arena; how religious freedom and waves of new immigrants and religious revivals fueled competition in the religious marketplace; how movements for social reform -- from abolition to civil rights -- galvanized men and women to put their faith into political action; and how religious faith influenced conflicts from the American Revolution to the Cold War.

Sixteen years ago, Jack Tanner's bid for the White House ended at the 1988 Democratic convention. Now the former congressman is the subject of a documentary film directed by his daughter Alex focusing on the toll paid by failed contenders.

Kidnapped in Africa and subsequently enslaved in South Carolina, Aminata must navigate a revolution in New York, isolation in Nova Scotia and treacherous jungles of Sierra Leone, in an attempt to secure her freedom in the 19th century.

For millions, the election of Barack Obama marked a new era of hope. This four-part series tells the story of how he tried to reshape America as told by his inner circle - and the president himself.

Luis Salinas, the new ambassador to Thailand, who knows he's going to get his hands dirty in the next four years – if he makes it that long. He's accompanied by his wife, Claudia, and their daughter Ester. Aware that the familiar constellation of life in the embassy is about to change radically, the staff gear up in nervous anticipation. Life does change, but in a way that Luis would never have imagined it. He must not only cope with the chaos and corruption he was expecting, but also with the implosion of his family life, as Claudia and Ester become involved in affairs that might seriously damage relations between Spain and Thailand. Will the glamorous, globe-trotting diplomatic life swallow up Luis or will he continue to fight for integrity and morals?           

Documentary series that starts in 1977 -with the first democratic elections held in Spain after the Franco dictatorship- and ends 40 years later. The program tells for the first time the history of these years through the voices of its citizens, its authentic protagonists. Each chapter summarizes what happened in one of those 40 years, and includes - in addition to personal testimonies - unpublished archive material, fragments of films and television programs, as well as the music that was heard that year.

Historic footage and leading voices of the era examine the "Bobby Phenomenon" of the 1960s and the legacy of the man who helped redefine the country.

Former best friends Hache and Belen reunite in Malasana, the hippest neighborhood in Madrid. Hache is freshly single and still mourning the demise of her relationship, while Belen is a struggling actor. As they fumble their way through unexpected setbacks, dating mishaps, and apartment woes, they soon realize that life is better together.

Six-hour documentary series focused on the President’s personal story and his vision for America, set against the backdrop of the country’s racial history. It traces his own search for identity and his role shaping a more inclusive American identity that has been under attack since he left office. Through the words of some of the people who knew him best, and through some of his sharpest critics, the film ultimately reveals the fallacy of America as a post-racial society, and confronts the work still needed to achieve a more perfect union as the work of a country, not just one man.

Four teen friends work to reverse a curse after a peculiar old box seems to bring misfortune — and more — into their lives.

Tracing the origins of anti-government extremism by examining a deadly series of historical events that galvanized far right radicals to take violent action.

Unfolding over six years, what begins as an impulsive one-off gathering turns into an ever-growing annual event attracting sponsorship from crypto-currency companies and featuring speakers such as Ron Paul and BitCoin investor Roger Ver. And when rule-avoidant freedom activists come together in one of the most dangerous cities in the world, utopian ideology collides with the unpredictability of human nature.

The story of Roman Compte, a Cuban expatriate who fought against Fidel Castro in the Bay of Pigs invasion and re-made his life in Miami, and is now the general manager of the Mutiny Hotel, the glamorous epicenter of the Miami cocaine scene of late '70s and early '80s.