Olivier Assayas’ Wasp Network has been generating strong word of mouth here at the Venice Film Festival where it premieres in competition tonight. The spy drama, based on Fernando Morais’ boo…
It tells the true story of a group of Cuban spies sent to Florida in the 1990s by then-president Fidel Castro, revealing the tentacles of a terrorist network with ramifications in Central America and with the consent of the U.S. government. The men were convicted in 2001 in Miami on charges that included conspiracy. They are known as the Cuban Five in America, and go by Cuban Heroes at home.
Actually shooting in Cuba was “a complex process,” Assayas told a press conference today. Initially, “the answer was no, they did not want us to make this film. They were a bit suspicious of a Frenchman dealing with their modern history.” Although they were “ultimately completely free” to make the film as they wanted, Assayas allowed, “I won’t say we were not spied on, we were monitored to put it mildly. But there were no consequences on the film.
Ramirez and Bernal play two of the Cuban Five, and the former waxed on the characters’ patriotic motivations. “Was it worth it to leave your family behind, to crush their heart and have everyone in your life think you’re a traitor? I don’t know if it’s worth it. That’s why the movie is so interesting. To be a spy is to be splitting your personality constantly. I think it has little to do with loyalties or ideologies — patriotism could be the trigger, but you’re forced to be someone else.
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