(Hijos de Cuba) “Sons of Cuba,” Andrew Lang’s delicate, powerful, entertaining debut documentary, follows three handpicked young boxers at the Havana Boxing Academy in 2006, all under 12, all ready to train and devote their lives to being “good communist fighters.” With uncommon access, Lang forges a coming-of-age tale rife with all manner of implication, but without neglecting his characters or his empathic narrative style. Lang has an intuitive sense of how to fill the frame as well as the heart: this parallel tale to “Hoop Dreams” is intimate as well as lovingly shot. 88m. U. S. theatrical premiere. (Ray Pride)
Ray Pride is Newcity’s Senior Editor and Film Critic. He is a contributing editor of Filmmaker magazine.
Ray’s history of Chicago Ghost Signs is planned for publication next year. Previews of the project are on Twitter and on Instagram. More photography on Instagram.
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