Director and film producer Wim Wenders has done those of us who love music and the world a great service. First, he joined with Ry Cooder to bring us "The Buena Vista Social Club." Now he brings us, as producer, with German Kral taking the directorial helm, "Musica Cubana." This film, now available on DVD, brings us the last performances of the late Pio Leiva, the final surviving member of Cuba's Buena Vista Social Club, who - by a quirk of fate - met a cab driver who dreamed of being a music producer and helped to bridge a generational gap in the process. "Music Cubana" released on DVD by Cinema Libre Studio on 19 June, 2007, is a DVD that anyone who loves music and feels the joy it can spread needs to get right away. Yesterday.

Yes, as with any Wenders production, there is a narrative to this film. Cab driver meets 85 year old maestro from the legendary Buena Vista Social Club and gets the wild idea to start a new band - this time of Cuba's great young musicians. Maestro Pio thinks the guy might be nuts but decides to come along for the ride and meet the musicians. Why not?

In the process, the young musicians and maestro Pio buy into the dream. The cabbie, being an entrepreneurial type, works every Japanese tourist in Havana he sees, playing his demo disks of the band's rehearsals. Presenting "Pio Leiva and the Sons of Cuba" - there are also some very talented and attractive daughters of Cuba along for the ride, of course.

Voila! A concert in Tokyo for the entire band materializes and our heroes are off on a plane. The Toyko concert is the culmination of the film.

Sadly maestro Pio Leiva passed away last year. One of the most poignant moments in the film is seeing him ride in a Tokyo taxi cab with the Havana cab driver-turned-music producer and exclaim how happy he is.

Even at 85, Pio could work a crowd. Within moments, he has his Japanese audience learning enough words in Spanish to sing a little song with him. It's an incredibly affecting moment that demonstrates his consummate showmanship.

For those who missed "Buena Vista" and don't know much about Cuba's musical tradition, this a great opportunity. For those who loved "Buena Vista," as I do, this is a bonus. I spent most of the screening of this film with tears of joy in my eyes. You might, too.

One of the best parts of this DVD purchase, Gentle Reader, is that you get both the Krahl film AND a DVD of the Tokyo concert filmed by Wim Wenders and Mikio Kawasaki. The price suddenly becomes a gift to anyone who loves rumba, samba, rap, and classic al Afro-Cuban and Spanish music. Run, don't walk, over to Cinema Libre and buy this package.

View the film trailer here.

View the Film Trailer Here.

1 July 2007: I was not very sanguine about watching the film "Conventioneers" if only because my PA, Bonnie - who I had hoped would actually screen and review it for me for a little extra dosh - told me that she had tried watching it twice and could only last about twenty (20) minutes. That was not the highest recommendation one could expect. So I begin this review with a disclaimer: I'm starting to believe that Bonnie may suffer from Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) as I had no problem watching "Conventioneers" at all. In fact, I found myself quite captivated by this modern day Romeo-Juliet spin-off.

First of all, the fact the film takes place and features highlights of the Republican Party's 2004 national convention in New York City a few years back gives it a novel setting. That it attempts to chronicle a possible love affair between a Republican delegate to that convention from Midland, Texas (of all places) and a Democratic activist from New Haven, Connecticut protesting the convention on the streets of Manhatan provides interest piques of its own. Of further interest, at least to This Reviewer, is a subplot about a character who acts as a translator for the deaf (which the featured actor actually did a the Republican Convention - no explanation is provided on how Stephens, the director of the film pulled that feat off) finding himself in the position of translating for President Bush and planning his own personal act of protest.

The dilemmas faced by the latter character, a new husband and father, are ones that any young person facing building a life will readily understand and find resonance around. Meanwhile, the conflict and affinity of the protagonists present each of us, no matter what our political persuasion with interesting questions. Mora Stephens keeps the story very human and earthy rather than trying to be doctrinaire. In the process, she presents us with characters who are seductive and interesting and who grow through the very process of colliding, bouncing off and interacting with each other. These are people we would like to know.

Mora Stephens, who co-wrote and directed the film, is a daring individual. Not only did she choose to film this on location, she and her crew did jail time in NYC while shooting live at protests there. (This was not planned. In fact, the police had generally cooperated with the production. In the "Special Features" section of the DVD I screened, Ms. Stephens expressed a bit of frustration with the sudden change of attitude of the NYPD toward herself and her crew.)

This film is no light-weight indy; it is a provocative love story. It garnered the 2006 John Cassavetes Award at the Independent Spirts and the Grand Jury Prize at the 2006 Florida Film Festival. Variety said of "Conventioneers":

A rare instance of U.S. narrative cinema that engages the politics of the moment...

I suspect that some viewers will be both disconcerted or even troubled with the conclusion of this love story. What happens is unexpected but feels very real. This Reveiwer gives props to Stephens for not going for a predictable conclusion to the film or the love story. Works for me.

View the Film Trailer Here.