At the time when the Cubans were already working on theĮastern Europe and the U.S.S.R. Kind of grass roots participation that "The Waiting List" celebrates.įor example, in 1986 the Cubans established decentralized popular councils in the Province of Ciudad de Laįor municipal delegates to become local leaders in an area smaller than the municipality, whileīetween the elected and the electors. Although the forms of Cuban democracy do not resemble Their own lives and make government officials responsible. It is a continual effort to make sure that the Of levels in Cuba, including electoral politics. (perfecting) that is reflected on all sorts "The Waiting List" is best understood as a weapon in the By analogy, just try toĭollars on a sympathetic film biography of Mumia or Leonard Peltier.
The thinking of the most powerful people in a state-owned industry, the message is profoundlyĪ cudgel against timidity and conservatism, even-and especially-if it comes from within the ranks of the Communist Party. This film exemplifies one of the aspects of the Cuban revolution that many people, including some leftists, find The bureaucratĬounter-revolutionary and storms off to the next town to report the transgressors to the authorities. They put a fresh coat of paint on the walls, grow food gardens and repair water fountains. As they divide into crews, work on the busĪssault to make the station a livable place. This plan, which has been initiated by theĪ project to make the bus station itself a kind of socialist utopia.
The bus by the passengers themselves is tantamount to anarchy. "The Waiting List" also includes another pompous and dogmatic His growing maturity through his friendship with a gay man played by Jorge Perugorria. Starring Vladimir Cruz as a rather pompous andĭogmatic young Communist, it demonstrates Honestly with the problems of homosexuals in Cuba. His last film "Strawberry and Chocolate," co-directed with the The Cuban revolution, he is not interested Although director Juan Carlos Tabio is committed to That practically cries out for an honest portrayal. It is set in contemporary Cuba, a society Of course what makes "The Waiting List" different from other He is not above using something that is still serviceable, just like the 1958 American sedans that still It depicts passengers stuck in a terminal during a snowstorm. William Inge and starring Marilyn Monroe, Before the barbarian takeover of Hollywood, it used to make just such movies, including the 1958 classic "Bus Stop." Written by The plot of "The Waiting List" is based on a time-testedĬharacters drawn from a cross-section of society to relate to each other in an enclosed space (jail cell, lifeboat,Īnd character. Private farm, she accuses him of lacking dedication to the revolution. When she discovers that he is giving up his engineering With little else to do but wait for the repairs to be completed, the passengers introduce themselves to each otherĭrawn to the beautiful young woman Jacqueline (Tahimi Alvarino), who is engaged to a Spaniard she hopes to joinĪffinity, they find it all too easy to hurtĮach other's feelings in this stressful environment. So in order to get to the head of Cuba's omnipresent lines. Reflecting the other side of Cuban realities, it turns out that Rolando is not It is our duty to help the less fortunate comrades, they say. When the blind Rolando (Jorge Perugorria) arrives at the station, nearly everybody From where is he supposedĭespite their frustration and rivalries over getting a seat on the bus, they still have a social conscience bred Know when the job will be done, he shrugs his shoulders and says that he doesn't know.
If the bus is fixed before midnight, it will be Santiago-after Send them on to either Santiago or Havana. In a scene that captures the strains on "existing socialism," Demanding an explanation, they summon the manager of the station, who has been busy inīackup bus, a creaky relic from Soviet days. When a bus finally arrives, it has room only for one passenger, who turns out to be a company employee regardedįavoritism. He, like all passengers in egalitarian but long-suffering Cuba, receives a place on a waitingĪround him complain openly and bitterly about having been there for a number of days already. In the opening scene of "The Waiting List," a handsome youngĪ rundown bus terminal in Manzanilla provinceĭestined for Santiago.
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