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THE LOST CITY
Directed by: Andy Garcia.
Produced by: Frank Mancuso, Jr. & Andy Garcia.
Written by: G. Cabrera Infante.
Director of Photography: Emmanuel Kadosh.
Edited by: Christopher Cibelli.
Music by: Andy Garcia.
Released by: Magnolia.
Country of Origin: USA. 143 min. Rated: R.
With: Steven Bauer, Richard Bradford, Nestor Carbonell, Lorena Feijóo, Andy Garcia, Dustin Hoffman, Bill Murray, Elizabeth Peña, Millie Perkins, Enrique Murciano, Jsu Garcia & Inés Sastre.

Two decades in the making, Andy Garcia’s directorial debut follows a Cuban family during the tumultuous period between the last days of dictator Fulgencio Batista and the beginning of Fidel Castro’s regime, focusing specifically on the eldest son (Garcia), the owner of a Havana hotspot. In the scenes set in his nightclub, the music and choreography are excellent, and the film acquires passion and even soars. Unfortunately, the rest of the film does not measure up.

One of the problems is the cliché-ridden screenplay, which, surprisingly, was written by literary great G. Cabrera Infante. The story of Garcia’s Fico Fellove and his tribulations unfolds in such a predictable way that there is no mystery. In an early scene, when the Fellove family is arguing about the state of Cuba, the dialogue is pompous, as if lifted from a pamphlet. And the romantic scenes between Fico and Aurora (Inés Sastre) comes across like a soap opera. A bad one.

However, the film is at its best when the second son, Luis (Nestor Carbonell), and his comrades, who are part of an underground rebellion, blast their way into Batista’s palace. These scenes are intertwined with the extremely vivid music and dancing. In a few cases, the characters come alive, such as Che Guevara (Jsu Garcia), portrayed not larger than life but as an active militant of Fidel’s forces. Enrique Murciano, as the youngest brother, Ricardo, also gives a good performance as a man – a boy, really – who dreams of freedom and justice until he joins the revolution and discovers what being a member of Fidel’s ranks really means. Roxana Ramirez
April 28, 2006