Movie Review

Defiance and Che 2 -Two Films, Two Perspectives

By Arturo P. Garcia

Two movies, Che 2 and Defiance with two different settings have two separate and different perspectives

Defiance was based on World War II experience of the Byelorussian Jews fierce struggle as guerillas to survive the German pogroms. It was derived from the story of three Jewish brothers who went on separate ways- one joining the Red Army and other forming his own guerilla army.

Essentially, it became a propaganda tool of Zionist groups in the face of their unpopularity during the Gaza crisis from December 27, 2008 until today. It heralded how the Jews fought the German, the common theme of all Jewish movies drawing sympathy from common people for Israel.

On the other hand, Che 2 narrates the last days of Ernesto “Che” Guevara and his band as The National Guerilla Army of Bolivia and his less than 300 days struggle trying hard to build a new front against US Imperialism in South America.

It was a good sequel of Che 1 after the victory of the Cuban revolution. If Che 1 was a victorious feat and a celebration, Che 2 was a defeat with a conviction and lessons.

It has poignant theme unlike Defiance, which showed the victory of the guerillas in the end. Che 2 was a glorious defeat but a foreboding of new struggles to come.

For the director Steven Soderbergh and the actor Benicio Del Toro - they did justice to Che 2 by showing the tenacity of Commandante Che and his band of brothers-comrades and how they struggle in spite of tremendous odds in a hostile territory.

By showing the details in action, though it lacked the dialogues for propaganda and explanations, Sodebergh maybe discouraging romanticizing Che Guvarra as an icon but successful showed the realities of hard struggle a guerilla has to face. Truly actions speak a thousand words.

Defiance also dramatized the terrible hardships a guerilla army has to undergo in a freezing terrain during winter. The conflict was central to the brothers and their ways to win the war. But in the end brotherhood and faith wins.

The only common theme between the two movies is the depiction of the forest as a refugee and a place for people who wanted to be free.

In Che 2, the terrible fate of Che is negated and shown is his faith to the people and to the ideals of the revolution. Actor Benicio Del Toro was almost like Che in his acting. The true combination of form and content.

We can truly say as a movie audience-- Che Vive, Che Lives!