American Experience: Fidel Castro
For most Americans, Fidel Castro is just an aging dictator with a beard who smokes a lot of cigars. But this superb documentary, from PBS'sAmerican Experienceseries, gives a broad and vivid look at the Cuban leader's remarkable life. Though his childhood friends described Castro as crazy and reckless, they also recognized his charisma and ambition. His political aspirations were cut short when he was thrown in prison by then-President Batista, but Batista might have preferred Castro the congressman--instead, Batista's actions turned Castro into a populist revolutionary whose guerrilla tactics overthrew the loathed despot. Castro's reign began with a 600 mile drive across Cuba with his small army; the scruffy leader was greeted with cheering throngs all along the way, for genuine change seemed not only possible but almost within reach. Using a wealth of film and television footage and interviews with writers, former political prisoners, and political analysts from Cuba and the U.S.,Fidel Castrodepicts this shrewd politician's career with an even hand. The documentary appreciates Castro's accomplishments and admires his sheer political skill (he's been in power longer than any other contemporary leader besides Queen Elizabeth), yet doesn't shy away from the horrific means Castro has routinely used when confronted with trouble (shocking scenes of military executions may disturb some viewers).  Few political lives have been this eventful, touching on everything from the Bay of Pigs to the Iran/Contra scandal. Even those who oppose Castro are astonished by how Castro turned this small island into an international force.Fidel Castrois both a revelatory history lesson and an engrossing personal story of brutality and resilience.--Bret Fetzer