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Movie
Poster for Buena Vista Social Club

Buena Vista Social Club

1999 · 105 min

A warm, unhurried immersion in music and memory, where the joy of performance mingles with the dignity of lives long lived.

Tagline
In Havana, music isn't a pastime, it's a way of life.
Overview
In this fascinating Oscar-nominated documentary, American guitarist Ry Cooder brings together a group of legendary Cuban folk musicians (some in their 90s) to record a Grammy-winning CD in their native city of Havana. The result is a spectacular compilation of concert footage from the group's gigs in Amsterdam and New York City's famed Carnegie Hall, with director Wim Wenders capturing not only the music -- but also the musicians' life stories.

Search YouTube for the trailer

Stream in the UK
  • Disney Plus
  • Curzon Amazon Channel
More options Data from JustWatch
In your watch list

How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone
  • warmstrength 3 of 3
  • earneststrength 2 of 3
  • melancholicstrength 1 of 3
  • upliftingstrength 2 of 3
Pacing
measured, 2 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention
engaged, 3 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes
  • music
  • art
  • aging
  • friendship
  • memory
Places
  • big city
  • home
Era
contemporary
Audience
adult
Form
  • documentary
  • true story
  • ensemble
Content intensity
  • Gore none
  • Language mild
  • Violence none
  • Sex none
All scales, 0 to 10
Scales, 0 to 10
ScaleValue0 to 10
Action0
Horror0
Humour3
Realism9
Romance2
Tension1
Darkness1
Complexity3
Emotional weight6

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Where to watch in the UK

Stream
  • Disney Plus
  • Curzon Amazon Channel
Rent
  • Amazon Video
  • Curzon Home Cinema
  • YouTube
Buy
  • Amazon Video
  • YouTube

Streaming data from JustWatch.All options on TMDB

Details

Genres
documentary, music
Directed by
Wim Wenders
Written by
Wim Wenders
Starring
Compay Segundo, Eliades Ochoa, Ry Cooder, Joachim Cooder, Ibrahim Ferrer, Omara Portuondo, Rubén González, Orlando 'Cachaíto' López
Cinematography
Robby Müller, Jörg Widmer
Runtime
105 min
Country
Germany, United States of America, United Kingdom, France, Cuba
Languages
English, Spanish

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