Sep
17

Newfound friend — El Che

Filed Under (Uncategorized) by gimikera on 17-09-2005

My arrival at Instituto Cervantes was just right since immediately after I submitted my entries for the Manila My Manila photo contest, I got a good seat in their salon for the film showing of The Motorcycle Diaries starring Gael Garcia Bernal as Ernesto "Che" Guevara.
I’ve heard of Che Guevara and often see his picture being used in all kinds of items from bags to cellphone holders. Most Filipinos are unaware of his status as an icon for political youth worldwide — I even heard an anecdote wherein one Filipino thought Che Guevara was a lead singer for a band since his picture was on the album cover. Enough said.
On a more serious note, Ernesto Guevara de la Serna is the Marxist revolutionary icon known as "El Che" (where Che is Argentinian slang for friend). Before he became a Communist revolutionary and Cuban guerilla leader, Ernesto was a young man with a penchant for traveling, meeting young women and bent on becoming a doctor with a specialty in leprology.

However, his eight-month long road trip with a biochemist named Alberto Granado opened his eyes to the injustices being performed against his people – which he would later refer to as a unified South America without borders, bound together by a common ‘mestizo’ culture.

Their original goal was to travel 4,000 km in four months — just in time to celebrate Alberto’s 30th birthday in Venezuela. One crisp day in January 1952, Ernesto and Alberto rode on their faithful motorcycle baptized as “La Poderosa” (The Mighty One) in search of adventure.


Ernesto Guevara and Alberto Granado

They find adventure alright…as well as hardships, hunger, sickness, and the occasional lucky break. When The Mighty One finally breaks down, they part with her and they end up hitchhiking and walking on foot just to continue with their journey. They see the majestic ruins of Machu Picchu and they reflect upon the actions men have done in the name of “progress.”

By the end of the journey – a staggering 12,000 km in Venezuela – Ernesto and Alberto part ways…one of them to return to his work in science while the other will go on to become one of the most important revolutionary leaders of the 20th century.

Gael Garcia Bernal’s performance is outstanding and the fiery passion in his eyes is enough to make you believe that he REALLY is Che Guevara. Even his asthma attack on the boat seemed very real and it made me wonder how the real Che Guevara could overcome his asthma despite the harsh conditions faced by guerillas.

Far from being a heavy, dogmatic film, The Motorcycle Diaries is filled with light moments and funny instances that give the viewers a glimpse of Ernesto’s true personality. My favorite scene was when they fooled a newspaper into printing a story about them being “specialists” on a mission of mercy across Latin America. They used this story to convince a mechanic to fix their motorcycle for free. That night, they went to a village party and Ernesto could not help but flirt with the mechanic’s wife resulting in a brawl that had them fleeing for their lives. Crazy!

If you want to get a more personal look into this iconic revolutionary, The Motorcycle Diaries is certainly a good start.