Che

Name: Che
Genre: Biography, Drama, History, War
Released: December 12, 2008
Duration: 135 min
Rating: 64

2008

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 24 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 62 Ratings

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7.0	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 62 Ratings

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Movie Details & Credits

IFC Films | Release Date: December 12, 2008 | Not Rated

Summary: November 26, 1956; led by Fidel Castro , a band of 80 rebels sails to Cuba. Among these young rebels is Argentine physician, Marxist, soldier, Ernesto "Che" Guevara. Nation-less, strapped for resources and fueled only by determination, the group engages in swift, bloody battle to free the Cuban people from the corrupt dictatorship ofNovember 26, 1956; led by Fidel Castro , a band of 80 rebels sails to Cuba. Among these young rebels is Argentine physician, Marxist, soldier, Ernesto "Che" Guevara. Nation-less, strapped for resources and fueled only by determination, the group engages in swift, bloody battle to free the Cuban people from the corrupt dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista. Che and his soldiers wrestle the nation's resources and affection from Batista's grasp. Though considered a hero by some, Che becomes a hugely controversial figure. At the height of his fame and power, he disappears. Entering South America incognito, Che recruits another band of guerilla fighters in the harsh Bolivian jungles. They embark upon a mission to spark revolution throughout Latin America. (IFC Films)… Expand

Director: Steven Soderbergh

Genre(s): Biography, Drama, History, War

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 135 min

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Critic Reviews

Keith Phipps

In both halves, Soderbergh emphasizes observation over ideology with an eye toward the mundane details of life on the front lines of a revolution. Read full review

Wesley Morris

The labor applied to Che is apparent, but it would be wrong to characterize the movie as laborious the way it was in, say, 2006's "The Good German," where Soderbergh took great pains to re-create 1940s Hollywood wartime glamour. Read full review

J. Hoberman

Every Bolivian sequence has its Cuban parallel, which is why Che's two parts are best seen together. Guerrilla may be the more realized of the two--and could certainly stand on its own--but it is only comprehensible in the light of The Argentine. Elevating Guerrilla to tragedy, The Argentine puts some hope in hopelessness--and even in history. Read full review

A.O. Scott

Mr. Soderbergh once again offers a master class in filmmaking. As history, though, Che is finally not epic but romance. It takes great care to be true to the factual record, but it is, nonetheless, a fairy tale. Read full review

Todd McCarthy

If the director has gone out of his way to avoid the usual Hollywood biopic conventions, he has also withheld any suggestion of why the charismatic doctor, fighter, diplomat, diarist and intellectual theorist became and remains such a legendary figure; if anything, Che seems diminished by the way he's portrayed here. Read full review

David Edelstein

Che is an impressive physical feat, but especially in the second part, which gives you day after day of rebels being killed and indigenous poor people not joining the good fight, you start to look forward to Che getting riddled by bullets. The whole movie is a forced march. Read full review

Mick LaSalle

If Soderbergh's ambition was to make us feel just how dull it would be to a woods-dwelling communist guerrilla, he succeeded. Read full review

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User Reviews

Jan 4, 2009

Fantastic and inspiring. Captures the idiolistic feelings and hopes of a reveloution in the first part and in the second it tears them apart.

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[Anonymous]

Jan 17, 2009

'Che' is an amazing journey, and is Soderbergh's masterpiece!

0 of 0 users found this helpful

Tyrone

Apr 27, 2009

Unparalleled in execution and unbiasedness , a truly un-hollywood picture uncompromising and meticulously realized. there will never be another like it or not .

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AndyB.

Feb 12, 2009

Utterly different to normak Hollywood fare- Engrossing, as it builds towardsa crescendo.

0 of 0 users found this helpful

tonyGreen

Jan 6, 2012

This is strangely dull for a biopic of such an interesting historical figure. I didn't hate it. The pace could be described as languid, and it goes on for 5 hours (in two parts on DVD; 'The Argentine', 'Guerilla'). Well shot and has the tinge of authenticity. More edifying than entertaining.This is strangely dull for a biopic of such an interesting historical figure. I didn't hate it. The pace could be described as languid, and it goes on for 5 hours (in two parts on DVD; 'The Argentine', 'Guerilla'). Well shot and has the tinge of authenticity. More edifying than entertaining. I'm glad i watched it but i don't need to watch it again… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

zurnzurn

Oct 27, 2015

Only the last shots of the second part are truly captivating, even haunting. The rest is oddly detached and muted though, with the screenplay giving a strange version of Che which seems to capture neither his best nor his worst. Although the slow pacing does a decent job in the first part ofOnly the last shots of the second part are truly captivating, even haunting. The rest is oddly detached and muted though, with the screenplay giving a strange version of Che which seems to capture neither his best nor his worst. Although the slow pacing does a decent job in the first part of conveying how a guerrilla campaign might have a slow buildup (although the real Cuban revolution was fantastically successful), and some of the details of the early struggle are interesting, the second part, while appropriately depressing, misfires and simply drags.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

PaulS.

Jan 20, 2009

I did not pay 15 dollars to see 5 hours of a man trudging through harsh terrain. I get it; his life was hard. I learned little about the man or the history surrounding his life in five hours, which seems like an imposssibility but is true. I was angry with myself for staying in the theater I did not pay 15 dollars to see 5 hours of a man trudging through harsh terrain. I get it; his life was hard. I learned little about the man or the history surrounding his life in five hours, which seems like an imposssibility but is true. I was angry with myself for staying in the theater for the whole film, but I kept thinking this movie might get better. This is an apic failure on Soderbergh's part.… Expand

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