Pegasus x Uitkijk: Soy Cuba (1964)

On 6 May, the Pegasus Bookshop film club returns to De Uitkijk! The film club screens significant films from Central and Eastern Europe, ranging from classics to obscure gems that have so far flown under the radar. This time, we are celebrating Pegasus’ return to our cinema with a screening of an absolute classic: Soy Cuba (1964) by Mikhail Kalatozov. 

Never has communist propaganda looked so breathtakingly seductive as in Soy Cuba, a film that remained virtually unnoticed for decades due to a rights dispute between Cuba and the Soviet Union. The film is accompanied by a sensual voice-over from the Caribbean island: four vignettes unfold, depicting the oppressed and exploited trying to make a living on the streets, whilst the elite revel in debauchery and roam in swimwear across Havana’s overgrown rooftop terraces. As with Kalatozov’s earlier work, the cinematography takes centre stage, with long takes and avant-la-lettre drone shots that leave you speechless and spellbound. 

The film will be introduced by Otto Boele; associate professor at the Leiden University Centre for the Arts in Society and an expert in Russian film, language and literature.