Che Guevara - Part 1 and 2

It was all a bit weird this year with no footie on New Year's Day and it actually left me with a void that I needed to fill.

The 'festive' season is one that I usually enjoy; beer flows, banter is ever-present and well, it's all about football overload isn't it? For me, I head up to Liverpool just before Chrimbo and then Boxing Day and New Years Day are usually spent either at Anfield or on the happy al's coach to some away ground, usually the furthest one the F.A. can find for our inevitable midday kick off thanks to BSKYB.

Not this year though. My plans were altered thanks to the arrival of a second nephew in the famil and my folks both coming back from the US to my Sister's house up in Lincolnshire. With two kids under two, I was never going to last the whole fortnight at my Sister's house, so I came back to London on the 27th, to chill out, have a bit of fun on my bike and to just chill really.

New Year's Eve was spent in a boozer by London Bridge where myself, Richard and a few other mates proceeded to get absolutely smashed! We staggered over to the river about 11:30 and watched the fireworks on the thames, which I actually enjoyed! I was home and tucked up by 1:30 after taking the night bus home. It was a good night, but the one thing I missed was getting up to go and watch football!!!

Instead, as I was wandering around Angel looking for a coffee shop to try to get rid of my banging headache I saw that the 'screen on the green' was having a special Che Guevara day, showing both Part 1 (out today I think) and Part 2 (which is due out in Feb apparently)....so I decided to give it a go. 4 hours in the cinema on a New Years Day; the way I saw it, I'd have fun what ever I did, whether it be watching the film or falling asleep!

Part 1 focuses on Che's time in Cuba and his role in the Cuban Revolution that saw the removal of the US-backed Batista whilst Part 2 examines Che's involvement in the attempted Bolivian Revolution in 1966-67.

Both films were primarily in Spanish with English subtitles and the casts in both part 1 and part 2 was very good. Del Toro played a very convincing Che, he certainly looked the part and I would struggle to think of any other Hollywood actor who would have played the part as well. The cinematography was equally as impressive, with stunning scenery being mixed with 'arty-farty' style close ups and the likes to great affect.

From a personal perspective, I thought the films really did glamorise Che and his involvement in the Cuban Revolution, however, what they failed to do, was expose the long string of failures that he was involved with. The films skirt over his failures in the Congo and Venezuela, and I don't think they portray a balanced view of his personality. Notably the dark-side, which included being a cold blooded murderer and to large extent a 'gross-visionary' who failed to bring his visions to worldwide or even Cuban (some would argue) fruition.

Regardless of this, I still thought they were good films and quite entertaining. On the whole I would recommend them, perhaps not as films you'd go to the cinema to watch, but more ones you could watch on DVD!

I would recommend you make your way to the Valley for an entertaining 90 minutes of quality football, then head home to watch the films before turning over to bbc1 for MOTD, happy days.