Greetings and welcome back after a (somewhat extended) spring break!
For this week's posting, we are going to try a new experiment for our class discussion this Monday and Wednesday, which will be based on the film you are seeing this weekend, Habana Blues.
Please post two discussion questions about Habana Blues; these questions should be appropriate for generating lively discussion in our actual course this week. We will use your own questions as a basis for our conversation about the film.
If you are able to post by 8 p.m. as usual, please try to do so. Several of you have seen the film already. For those of you seeing the film later this evening, however, this may obviously mean that you post sometime after 8 p.m. Please just try to post your questions at your earliest convenience so that your classmates have a chance to look at them by class time. We will continue our discussion for a second day.
There is no specific limit on the scope of the questions. You may post discussion questions that address any topic pertinent to the content of the film and/or its relation to the rest of our course content.
13 comments:
In Habana Blues, aspiring Cuban musicians rely heavily on foreign professionals to “discover” them. In other words, the opportunities to achieve fame and success lie outside Cuba. Discuss the sacrifices/compromises that Cubans must make to pursue their dreams. Compare/contrast their reasons to leave Cuba with those of Cubans who choose to live in exile?
What are the reoccurring themes of the music played in Habana Blues? How do these themes relate to the issues taking place in Cuba at that time? How do the genre and the locations (e.g., garage, patio, rooftop) where the music is played contribute to the general public feeling?
In Habana Blues, Ruy displays love for Cuba throughout to the point that by the end I felt as if he were married to the music of Cuba. That being said, if his wife and children did not leave and that conflict was not involved, would he have left with Tito for Spain?
As the spaniards are looking for groups, you hear many different genres of Cuban music. Do these types of music represent more than just different types of music? Such as stages in Cuban history or types of Cuban people?
Habana Blues is a great film which portrays Cuban musicians trying to use their music as an escape from monotonous Cuban life. In this film many themes are touched upon. With this being said, I believe that there are very interesting questions that we can debate about as a class.I would like to dive into the idea of music serving as a way out of Cuba. Why is Cuban life so dependent on this theme of music? Cuban music seems to be a recurring theme in many of the movies we have seen.
Secondly, the idea of family keeps coming up throughout the film. I would like to discuss the affects of exile in regards to the movie and how it contributes to the break up of a family. Why didn't Ruy get on the boat to leave? What was more important his dignity or freedom? I feel that all this feelings are intertwined and address a common topic of familia before libertad.
What is the significance of the music that is played in the movie considering the history of censorship that American cultural expression has endured in Cuba?
Do you think Ruy made the right decision of staying behind in Cuba? What would you have done in his place?
Ruy is most definitely a ladies’ man in that many of the female characters express love for him. What do his relationships with each female character signify? What role does music play in these relationships? (E.g. his wife, his daughter and the talent scouts)
After years of working towards obtaining a music contract Ruy gives up this dream and his friendship with Tito. In addition, he allows his family to migrate to America without him. Looking beyond the surface (an inadequate music contract and his divorce) why does Ruy remain behind, allowing his best friend and his family to begin new lives without him?
In Habana Blues, family is an essential element. How did the character’s relationship with their families change when they were given new opportunities? Which characters made sacrifices for their families?
Did you like the ending of Habana Blues? Did it surprise you? What would you change?
In Habana Blues, one of Ruy's reasons for refusing to sign the contract is that it would require him to cancel the band's concert. Why is this so important to him, and what does it tell us about his identity and the idea of exile?
The band's signature song "Doing the Havana" appears in bits and pieces numerous times throughout the film. What is its significance to the band? And Ruy and Tito in particular?
Is music more than simply a form of entertainment? Is it a form of liberation from the oppression, censorship, and poverty experienced in Cuba.
Was the decision Ruy made to stay in Cuba despite the opportunity to finally being able leave all the poverty behind right? What would you do if you were in his position?
1. How does the Cuban government appear to interact with or exploit the Cuban artistic community?
2. Ruy decided to remain in Cuba even though his best friend and family eventually flee. Would his leaving from the island remove a vital component or inspiration from his music?
Why, if most of the Cuban citizens are miserable and unhappy, do they feel that leaving the island is such a difficult decision? Why do friends and family seem to pretend to be happy for those leaving for a better life?
Will Ruy ever go to Miami to live with his kids?
Why was Ruy afraid to leave Cuba and how his songs throughout the movie changed along with the theme.
In the movie Caridad has trouble obtaining a selling lisence to sell her home made jewelry. How is this portraying the Cuban economy and their tight command of the people.
I got a lot of it but not the end. What was Ruys plan by staying in Cuba? Was there a plan?
Ruy lost everything and stay in Cuba because is a product of the system. He was the one that lived like "a fish in the water" in that hell. Outrageously abuser of his beautiful wife, neglecting his own children, and living out the musical world within the Cuban world, which is in deed very musical. Tito was sure about what he wanted, as well as Caridad. At the end, the movie shows a sad reality for the Cuban people, all foreigners that visit the island go out of curiosity or for the sex. I hope I live long enough to see a proud nation where its children won't have to emigrate for a better life, a great country where everybody else would feel jealous of been left out of Paradise!
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