Heading South of the Border

I thought the beginning of South of the Border was a little bumpy, incorporating some unpleasant clips from Fox News. However, overall, I got exactly what I hoped to see.

This built off of “The End of Poverty” for me. Somewhere in “The End of Poverty”, the movie mentioned the rebellion in Bolivia over the privatization of water. The citizens were successful! They got back their own water, and they got back their chance of survival. I felt like here was a real life example of the little guy (poor people) pushing back against the big guy (capitalistic foreign corporations). I was intrigued and inspired.

In “South of the Border” I saw more of South America. I got a glimpse into various South American countries, especially Venezuela. My friend and I fell in love with Hugo Chavez and his incredible charisma. Hugo took us around his country, driving himself and the camera crew around in his own car, demonstrating developments in the country, jovially greeting all he passed, and receiving equally warm welcome in return. (“I am with you, Chavez!”)

Instead of the “terrorist” our media portrays him to be, we saw Chavez as a great big teddy bear, adored by the people and also one of the people. He took us to the rooftops of the capital city, and he shared with us his extreme determination and belief in his cause. As a soldier once himself, he will never forget his fallen comrades who went before him and what they fought for. We also met Hugo as the late night scholar, with various texts strewn across his desk into the wee hours of the morning. “Do you read for pleasure?” He responds that his research is fun for him!

Hugo almost didn’t make it. And he knows why. “Petroleo.” (Oil.) Venezuela has an incredible amount of oil. When Chavez stopped exporting oil and began to use the resource to improve the life of his own people, the price of oil abroad went up, and the United States squawked and made plans to get rid of him. Chavez was ousted for a time, but the people brought him back from prison and continue to elect him democratically, election-after-election (13 times).

His success in bring his country back from oppression and poverty has inspired other South American countries to do the same. Presidents Cristina Kirchner (Argentina), Evo Morales (Bolivia), Lula da Silva (Brazil), and Rafael Correa (Ecuador) have joined in the movement toward a stronger South America, to the South America that existed before colonization.

Does this movie show the whole picture? Of course not. Just as the movie reveals how slanted the media is in the United States and Venezuela, the movie might be slanted in the opposite direction.

However, This movie is a great reminder that each of us needs to undertake our own research and remember to carefully evaluate what information we receive with an open eye.

Related posts:

1. Reversing the Sands of Time
2. What’s Up, Holmes!
3. Up, Up, and Away!
4. Monsters vs. Aliens
5. Who Watches the Watchmen?