"Papa: Hemingway in Cuba" (2016 release; 109 min.) brings the story of a young journalist's friendship with and mentorship by Ernest Hemingway in Cuba in the late 50s. As the movie opens, we are in "Seattle 1935", where the then 4 year old boy is abandoned by his father in the middle of a department store. We then flash forward to "Miami Globe 1957", where we get to know the journalist Ed Myers. He finally sends a letter to Hemingway to express how much Hemingway's writings inspired Myers in his darkest hours. Much to Myers' surprise, some time later Hemingway calls and invites him to visit him in Cuba, and so off to Cuba goes Myers. At this point we're not even 15 minutes into the movie, but to tell you more would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.
Couple of comments: first, all of the marketing materials regarding this movie list this as "Papa: Hemingway in Cuba", but in the movie itself, it's simply announced as "Papa: A True Story" ("Papa" is of course Hemingway's nickname). Second, this movie is written by Denne Bart Petitclerc, the actual journalist to whom this happened (I figure he changed the name to Ed Myers as, let's face it, his real name is more than a mouthful). Third, this is directed (in his directing debut) by long-time producer Bob Yari. Yari brings the story aptly but without any real surprises or revelations, it's as if he is directing "by the numbers". As you may surmise, given that the story is set in the late 50s, the movie is a mix of observing Hemingway the person, and also seeing how the revolution is playing out in the background. The cast is just okay, with the previously unknown (to me anyway) Adrian Sparks in the Hemingway role. Keep your eyes open for a quick cameo by Mariel Hemingway, the real life granddaughter and erstwhile 'buzz' actress herself. Minka Kelly plays a nice secondary role (as Myers' girlfriend). But you know who is the real star of this movie? That would be the location where much of this was filmed, namely the sprawling Hemingway estate (called Finca Vigía) in Cuba, where Hemingway lived for many years, and which nowadays is the Hemingway national museum in Cuba. Looks to be an amazing place, at least when seeing it on the big screen. Last but not least, there is a nice orchestral score, composed by Mark Isham. Bottom line: this movie has its pros and cons, and its good moments and not-o-good moments. Still, I found myself enjoying this more or less, hence a mixed rating of 3 stars.
"Papa" opened recently at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati. The Sunday early evening screening where I saw this at this past weekend was attended okay (better than I expected, frankly), and fairly heavy on the seniors side. If you like a historical drama involving some big personalities, "Papa" is worth checking out, be it in the theater, on VOD, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray.
