From: Peter Brush <PWBRUS0@UKCC.UKY.EDU>
Subject: Re: Regis Debray (multiple responses)
>Can someone fill me in with information on Regis Debray, the French
>journalist who followed Che Guevara in Bolivia and was imprisoned there?
>I saw a fascinating movie last night called "The Journal of Che Guevara."
>Debray was mentioned, but the movie neglected to tell what happened to him
>after he was put in prison.
La plus ca change . . .
In 1996, Regis Debray possed with/interviewed Mexican guerrilla
Subcommander Marcos in Chiapas, the latest in a stream of writers
working on books and documentaries about Marcos, who is the
ideological successor to Che' in Latin America.
Peter Brush
____________________________
[2]
From: Elizabeth Manny <em@laplaza.org>
Subject: Re: Regis Debray (multiple responses)
To Ted Morgan and others
The film on Che Guevara was a Swiss/French production directed by Richard
Dindo. Debray only appeared in newsreal footage from 1967. He was not
interviewed for the film. He appeared only briefly. What was stated was
that he followed Che and his troops for sometime, but only as a
journalist, not a fighter. When he was apprehended, he was jailed as a
guerilla.
Thanks to everyone for the info.
PS. I am sending a separate post with program notes for the film in case
anyone wants to try to find it. It may be out on video.
Elizabeth Manny
em@laplaza.org
Film: "Ernesto Che Guevara: The Bolivian Diary."
"Directed by Richard Dindo. France/Switzerland, 1994. On 10/9/67, Che
Guevara was executed by the Bolivian army, aided by the CIA. Guevara's
diary, a detailed, personal account of his futile 11-month attempt to
foment revolution in Bolivia, is the basis of this moving portrait. Che's
relationship with the mysterious Tania [an Argentine of Jewish descent,
the namesake of SLA soldier Patty Hearst], his betrayal by local peasants,
his constant battle with asthma, and his distress at the death of
comrades
are recounted. Interviews with Bolivians who met Che during these final
days testify to a man who embraced sacrifice for this ideals. While his
Marxism may be out of vogue today, his selfless devotion to some of the
poorest and most oppressed people in our hemisphere cannot be denied.
"The final struggle of Che Guevara and the dream he left behind,
remembered
with grace and style." - Newark Star-Ledger. 94 minutes."
I give this film the highest possible recommendation. I think it is
essential that young people, who are probably not acquainted with Che,
see this film. It is an important part of the history of the 1960's and a
triumph of the documentary style.
Elizabeth Manny
em@laplaza.org