To some he is a champion of the poor and powerless; to others he is a ruthless dictator. He is often dismissed as a relic, yet many revere him as a savior. He is Cuban President, Fidel Castro.

Estela Bravo, an American filmmaker who has lived and worked in Havana for many years, obtained rare interviews with Castro and exclusive footage from Cuban State archives. For the first time on film Castro is revealed swimming with bodyguards, visiting his childhood home and school, joking with his friend Nelson Mandela, meeting with Elian Gonzalez, and celebrating his birthday with the Buena Vista Social Club.

The story continues to unfold through the words of Alice Walker, Sydney Pollack, Ted Turner, Muhammed Ali, Harry Belafonte, Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., Congressman Charles Rangel, Ramsey Clark, Wayne Smith, and others.

Juxtaposing the personal and anecdotal with the history of the Cuban revolution and Castro's fight to survive the post-Soviet period and the continued U.S. embargo, FIDEL tells a story that has yet to be told.

"Timely and invaluable."—Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles TImes

"A refreshing change from the self-interest and paranoia that shape most American representations of Castro. Archival news footage of the graphic horrors of Fulgencio Batista’s regime sets the stage for Cuba’s revolution as a source of symbolic and material support for an emerging Third World."—LA Weekly

"I wish I had as many eyes as Estela Bravo's camera."—Eduardo Galeano, Author, Memory of Fire (1985 -1988) and Open Veins of Latin America (1971)

"Estela Bravo's films are the work of an intelligent heart; moving, informative, challenging, all at once: a viewer feels trusted to be just as smart and compassionate - in a tough way - as she is."—Alice Walker, Author, The Color Purple

"Rousing!"—New York Times