FILM · 1968 · CU

Memorias del subdesarrollo

Directed by

Tomás Gutiérrez Alea

Runtime

99 min

Studio

ICAIC, Cuban State Film

10 archived facts · 1 topic · 1 source · Last reviewed Oct 2026

In the aftermath of the Bay of Pigs incident, Sergio chooses to stay behind in Cuba while his wife and family escape to neighboring Miami. Alone in a brave new world, Sergio observes the constant threat of foreign invasion while chasing young women all over Havana. He finally meets Elena, a young girl he seeks to mould into the image of his ex-wife, but at what cost to himself?

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All facts (10)

1. #001

   It was the first film made in post-revolutionary Cuba to be released in the United States.

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2. #002

   In his style, Alea was heavily influenced by Alain Resnais's Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959).

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3. #003

   Alea, in a cheeky salute to the Batista regime's staunch Catholic censors, includes a reel of exciting images they had cut from Western films.

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4. #004

   Charles Mingus's 'Oh Lord Don't Let Them Drop That Atomic Bomb on Me' is heard in the montage of Kennedy's speech.

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5. #005

   When the U.S. National Society of Film Critics gave the film a special award in 1973, Alea was denied a visa to attend the ceremony.

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6. #006

   It appears on the '1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die' list edited by Steven Schneider.

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7. #007

   At the 54th minute of the story, in the bookstore with Elena, Sergio chooses Vladimir Nabokov's 1955 novel Lolita, about a man's admiration for an intellectually immature young girl, commenting in his narration on Elena's intellectual underdevelopment.

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8. #008

   In 1974 it was chosen by The New York Times as one of the ten best films of the year.

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9. #009

   It was included on The New Republic's list of the '100 Most Important Political Films of All Time.'.

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10. #010

    The film is part of the Criterion Collection, spine #943.

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