An American professional gambler named Jack Weil decides to visit Havana, Cuba to gamble. On the boat to Havana, he meets Roberta Duran, the wife of a revolutionary, Arturo. Shortly after their arrival, Arturo is taken away by the secret police, and Roberta is captured and tortured. Jack frees her, but she continues to support the revolution.
At best, Pollack achieves a counterfeit sense of this atmosphere. But he insists on continuing the card game anyway, an over-extended misdeal of a movie that refuses to fold.
– Desson Thomson,
Washington Post,
1 Jan 2000
rotten:
Some fundamental things still do apply as time goes go by.
– Peter Travers,
Rolling Stone,
12 May 2001
fresh:
The glittering decadence of this culture on the verge of collapse is in fact the film's most fascinating aspect, and Mr. Pollack has re-created it extravagantly.
– Janet Maslin,
New York Times,
20 May 2003
rotten:
Director Sydney Pollack and star Robert Redford have lost their normally dependable quality touch as they slog through a notably uncompelling $45 million-plus tale of a gringo caught up in the Cuban revolution.
– Variety Staff,
Variety,
26 May 2008
rotten:
Elaborate visual mounting and iconographic placement of the romantic leads are the movie's preoccupation, with the overthrow of Batista merely providing local color.