The Companion

(El acompañante)
Pavel Giroud | Drama, Fiction, Thriller

2016 | 104 minutes | Cuba

Set in 1988 Cuba as the government dispatched HIV patients to AIDS centers under military rule, The Companion narrates the unlikely friendship between a boxing champion and a conflictive patient.

Synopsis

Set in 1988 Cuba as the government dispatched HIV patients to AIDS centers under military rule, The Companion narrates the unlikely friendship between a boxing champion and a conflictive patient.

After failing a doping test, Horacio Romero has no other choice but to serve a sentence. His fate is in Los Cocos, a sanatorium under military rule where HIV patients are compulsorily confined, with the exception of a weekly pass to visit their families under the supervision of personal wardens called “companions.”

As a “companion,” Horacio is supposed to keep an eye on Daniel -the most conflictive patient in the ward- and get him to comply to the regulations. Their interests immediately collide as Daniel is set to spend his last days in freedom and is ready to do anything to make this happen.

Horacio, on the other hand, dreams about boxing again to get his champion’s status back. For that to happen, however, he must first win this battle out of the ring...

Reviews

"One of the darkest episodes of the Cuban Revolution." — El Caiman Cuadernos de Cine

"The Companion proves once again that the arts can be a great cultural ally in the prevention strategy of HIV/AIDS and can help us to improve our culturally-oriented conversation with communities highly impacted by the virus in New York City." — Transdiaspora Network, NY

"A universal tale of struggles against adversities." — The Hollywood Reporter

"Giroud's lush cinematography and refreshingly spirited look at one of the darker periods in recent history marks The Companion as an important film to watch...A masterclass in balanced filmmaking." — Flickering Myth

"Giroud is mining new ground." — Remezcla

"A reality blow." — Diario Sur

"A subject hardly explored by Cuban art." — Diario Las Americas

Citation
Main credits

Giroud, Pavel (film director)
Giroud, Pavel (screenwriter)
Miguel Gómez, Armando (actor)
Romero, Yotuel (actor)
Rodríguez, Lia (film producer)
López, Antonio Aníbal (film producer)
Tenenbaum, Edgard (film producer)
Edelman, Pierre (screenwriter)
Brugués, Alejandro (screenwriter)

Other credits

Cinematography, Ernesto Calzado Yanes; editor, Jacques Comets; music, Ulises Hernández, Sergio Valdes.


Citation
Cataloging
Keywords
LGBTQ+, Cuba, military, exile, dictatorship, repression, government, communism, HIV, AIDS, sports, boxing, drugs, friendship, relationship, Fidel Castro, illness, history, international politics, society, culture, drama, Pavel Giroud, goya awards, spanish, spanish language, latin america, latin american cinema, latin american film, ibero america, latin, latinx, latino, latina,,gender, sexuality, gender roles, gender identity, sexual orientation, gender equality, gender pronouns, gender studies, gender spectrum, gender norms, gender roles, gender stereotypes, sexual selection, sexualization, sexual awakening, puberty, pubescence,health, healthy, physical health, mental health, emotional health, health equity, public health, health care, health policy, fitness, veracity, welfare, soundness, aging, age, old age, senior, youth, middle age, aging gracefully, advanced age, collective health, maturity,caribbean studies, the caribbean, caribeean sea, caribbean island, antigua and barbuda, bahamas, barbados, cuba, dominica, dominican republic, grenada, haiti, jamaica, saint kitts and nevis, st lucia, st vincent and the grenadines, and trinidad and tobago, anguilla, aruba, british virgin islands, caribbean netherlands, bonaire, sint eustatius, saba, cayman islands, curaçao, guadeloupe, martinique, montserrat, puerto rico, saint barthélemy, saint martin/sint maarten, turks and caicos islands, us virgin islands,sociology, anthropology, psychology, sociological, sociological perspectives, conflict theory, human conflicts, sociological thinking,conflict perspective, topics in sociology, sociology topics, sociology studies, social studies, people and cultures, human relations, human relationships, cultural studies, culture studies ,science, technology, tech, natural sciences, biological sciences, futurism, computer science, comp sci, sciences, scientific, technological, physical science, cognitive sciences, technological science, data science, data security, futurism,authority, authoritarianism, dictatorship, military regime, military government, fascism, repression, oppression, political oppression, political repression, far right, far right wing, modern fascism,migration studies, migrant studies, immigration studies, refugee studies, diaspora studies, resettlement studies, settlement studies, migration, migrant, immigration, refugee, diaspora, resettlement, settlement, refugees, international migration, continental migration, resettling, settlers, settler, migrant, migrant studies, first generation immigrant, first generation immigration, new americans, new spaniards,history, context, narrative, past, chronicle, lore, annals, historic, personal history, archive, record, saga, biography, memoir, study,family, kin, fellowship, household, immediate family, extended family, multigenerational family, multigenerational household, kinfolk, family tree, genealogy, nuclear family, modern family, family tree,THE COMPANION,companion,cuba,el acompañante,spanish movies,coco,The Great courses,pragda,pills profit protest,The Companion/El Acompañan,guantanamera,el acompante,boxer cuba,italy,gay,the help,the companion,gay movie,cuban film,"havana film festival",El angel,romero,El_acompañante,_dir._Pavel_Giroud,cuban,havana,daniel day lewis,kids,guarani,EL CID,El ángel exterminador,Lazaro’s Girlfriend,el norte,HIV,conducta,holland,Tales,spanish,_Angel Manuel Soto,a beautiful mind,havana film,spanish short film,discovering dominga,sex work in cuba,el regresso,anime,gay short film,bonbon el perro,boxer,hiv aids,el a compañante,el desencanto,medellin,award winning movies,most popular moviie,cuba film,fresa y chocolate,el 5 de talleres,clara como el agua,el pez que fuma,vertigo,el infierno,el ciudadano ilustre,Horacio quiroga,academy award,cortometraje sobre el amor,movies,El cielo dividido,foreign films,Movies about music,latin american films,epidemic; "The Companion"; Pragda Films
Clips
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Festivals

Academy Awards® - Cuba’s submission for Best Foreign Film
Miami International Film Festival - Audience Award
Málaga International Film Festival - Audience Award
Transdiaspora Network NY - Changemaker Award to Pavel Giroud
Cinélatino Rencontres de Toulouse - Audience Award, Centre communal d’action sociale Award
Goya Awards® - Cuba’s submission for Best Foreign Film

DIRECTOR: Pavel Giroud

NATIONALITY: Cuba

YEAR: 2016

GENRE: Drama, Fiction, Thriller

LANGUAGE: Spanish

COLOR / B&W: Color

GRADE LEVEL: College, Adults

SUBTITLE/CC: AVAILABLE

AUDIO DESCRIPTION: NOT AVAILABLE

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