For his latest controversial foray into history, Oliver Stone gained unprecedented access to Cuban leader Fidel Castro. Edited from 30 hours of conversation with El Comandante himself, and illustrated by an impressive selection of archive footage, the film traces the trajectory of the Cuban revolution and the nation it shaped. Although Castro lapses into well-rehearsed stock responses when the film addresses questions such as political repression and persecution of homosexuals, American critics may find his obvious popularity with ordinary Cubans hard to swallow. But it’s the human side of Castro, so rarely revealed – his shaving habits, liaisons with women and views on Viagra – that makes this such a fascinating portrait of a man who, love him or hate him, has become one of the icons of our age.