Chavez Film: Oliver Stone and Tariq Ali: brothers in arms

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Wednesday July 28, 2010 14:59

by pat c

Tariq Ali has written the commentary for Oliver Stones new documentary about Hugo Chavez. Here he writes on how the film was made. Full story at link.

Almost a year and a half ago I received a phone call from Paraguay. It was Oliver Stone. He had been reading Pirates of the Caribbean: Axis of Hope, my collection of essays on the changing politics of Latin America, and asked if I was familiar with his work. I was, especially the political films in which he challenged the fraudulent accounts of the Vietnam war that had gained currency during the B-movie years of Reagan's presidency.

It does not set out to be an analytical, distanced, cold-blooded view of leaders desperate to free themselves from the stranglehold of the Big Brother up north. The film is sympathetic to their cause, which is essentially a cry for freedom, the interviews with the seven elected presidents forming its spinal cord. Chávez is given centre stage, because he was the pioneering leader of the radical social-democratic experiments currently underway in the continent, and his country has large oil reserves. "If the film convinces people that Chávez is a democratically elected president and not the evil dictator depicted in much of the western media," Stone said, "we will have achieved our purpose."

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Comments (1 of 1)

Coup Threat

Fri Jul 30, 2010 11:29

This is a message that was posted to the Irish Left list.

Comrades,

The situation in Venezuela has become very tense over the last few days.
There are increasing concerns that the US will try to overturn the
revolution, either through a coup by the right wing in Venezuela or by
directing a military intervention from Colombia - or both.

Our comrades in 'Marea Socialista' have issued an appeal for the
mobilisation and arming of the population to defend the bolivarian
revolution in Venezuela. The statement is online:
- Spanish at http://mareasocialista.com/editorial-640.html
- French at http://bit.ly/bQHYjO

We are working on an English translation.

Please be alert for news from Venezuela and start to prepare for
solidarity actions.

Best wishes,

Duncan.

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Chavez Film: Oliver Stone and Tariq Ali: brothers in arms

Comments (1 of 1)