The Cuban Revolution brought about an enormous transformation in socio-economic human relations not just in real life, but in the national cinema as well. As post-revolutionary Cuban filmmakers embarked on a tremendous experiment in redefining screen language, elements gleaned from the recent and distant past were added into the mix too, but in novel and surprising ways.

The Adventures Of Juan Quin Quin, a 1967 Cuban comedy classic, spins a playfully couched tale of misfortune, exploitation and guerrilla uprising that might be termed revolutionary lite. It's as if the Cuban masses had long waited for this moment to collectively exhale, and look back on the difficult and hard won struggle, softening the brutality of memory with humorous nostalgic touches.

Directed by Julio Garcia Espinosa and based on the novel by Samuel Feij%uFFFDo, The Adventures Of Juan Quin Quin incorporates action elements of traditional westerns, as well as the 16th century picaresque anti-hero of classical Spanish literature, and fuses these notions into what might be considered magical socialist realism. Juan (J%uFFFDlio Mart%uFFFDnez) may not be as readily comprehended by audiences whose social perspective has been shaped by bourgeois ideas about individualism and destiny as a purely personal quest, but he's quite fascinating as a human concept in his own right.

An ordinary man who simply reacts to fate as he goes along, warding off an array exploiters including a priest and a predatory landowner, Juan fitfully internalizes political consciousness as his awareness is formed and directed by history unfolding, often turbulently, all around him. His alternately daring and clownish escapades that culminate in a final standoff as a triumphant guerrilla leader that seems to surprise him more than anyone else, are intended to delight mass audiences while encouraging more sobering reflection about a celebrated past.

The Adventures Of Juan Quin Quin is part of the Cuban Masterworks DVD series distributed by First Run Features. More information is online at: Firstrunfeatures.com

Prairie Miller