La Muerte de un burócrata (Death of a Bureaucrat)

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Movie Info

The Cuban Death of A Bureaucrat involves the demise of an inventor, who had developed a machine to mass-produce statuettes of Cuban hero Jose Martin. Unfortunately, the inventor is buried with his union card in his pocket. Unable to collect any pension money without that card, the widow attempts to exhume the body. Her hands tied by red tape, the widow is forced to rob her husband's grave. These morbid proceedings are treated as hilariously as any slapstick two-reeler or French bedroom farce by director Thomas Guttierez Alea. In tweaking the nose of Cuba's bollixed-up government, Alea condemned his film to the censor's scissors, though Death of a Bureaucrat was released intact outside of its own country of origin. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Cast

Salvador Wood
as Nephew
Silvia Planas
as Aunt
Manuel Estanillo
as Bureaucrat
Omar Alfonso
as Cojimar
Pedro Pablo Astorga
Gaspar De Santelices
as Nephew's Boss
Ricardo Suárez
as Tarafa
Carlos Ruiz de la Tejera
as Psychiatrist
Elsa Montero
as Sabor
Luis Romay
as El Zorro
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Critic Reviews for La Muerte de un burócrata (Death of a Bureaucrat)

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Audience Reviews for La Muerte de un burócrata (Death of a Bureaucrat)

  • Jan 11, 2009
    [font=Century Gothic]"Death of a Bureaucrat" starts with the funeral of Francisco Perez(Manuel Estanillo), a sculptor of patriotic busts in Cuba who also invented a machine to mass produce them. So fondly is he remembered by his comrades as a true proletariat, that he is buried with his work card. That gesture presents a problem for his nephew Juanchin(Salvador Wood) and widow(Silvia Planas) who needs the work card if she ever wants to see any of his pension. Juanchin has no luck at the cemetary trying to exhume the body where he is told to wait two years or get a court order. However, a friendly group of workers are willing to help out. After all, what could possibly go wrong?[/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic]"Death of a Bureaucrat" is a wildly funny, absurd and playful movie that asks the question: how did this movie ever get made? I mean, revolutionaries are not especially known for their sense of humor. With conflicting reports on Cuban repression, it is hard to know how far somebody could go but the bureaucracy would seem to be a pretty ripe target no matter where you are. Juanchin digs a deeper hole for himself whenever he tries to circumvent the rules which is ironic because all he desperately needs is one person to act like a human being to cut through the red tape and make his life that much easier.[/font]
    Walter M Super Reviewer
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