Written by Fumo Verde
If you think the "Bay of Pigs" incident was the only attempt to remove Fidel Castro from power, you need to see this documentary. It's a story of how one sovereign nation has tried to take out the leader of another. You may laugh at the title, but it is a sad truth. Since his rise to power in 1959, Castro's enemies have been plotting his demise. They want to free Cuba from his grip, have tried almost everything, and aren't about to stop.
Director Dollan Cannell opens up this world of shadow agents and assassinations, giving us an in-depth look at the many attempts to bring down one of the world’s most loved and hated men of the twentieth century. He presents the stories of the people who schemed and attempted, how and why they tried, and those that foiled the plots.
This has been one of the most informative and clever documentaries I have seen in a while. Conspiracy-mongers, time to freak out because it is all here. Did the C.I.A. take part? Why, yes they did, but so did a lot of Cuban nationals and even friends of Castro. The first culprit was a man who knew Castro when they went to the university together. Enrique Avarez was a close friend of Castro, but he soon realized that the cigar smoke clouded Castor’s true intentions. He says, "Fidel is for Fidel. People say Fidel was a communist; he was nothing. Fidel is a Fidelista, full stop. For him, that's it."
After the revolution, Castro was still walking around unprotected. Avarez bumped into him at a restaurant and thought that his assassination would be an easy thing to do, but couldn't bring himself to do it. That was attempt number one, and it's not even counted in the number of the title.
Cannell takes us on a trip that includes snipers, a poison milkshake, and exploding baseballs. The C.I.A. didn't try to kill Castro at first. They had better ideas, like cutting off Samson’s hair to sap his strength, and putting powder in his boots that would make his beard fall out. I still don't see how that would work, but those were our tax dollars and well, the government knows best, right?
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