New Chomsky film

Noam:https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/f/we-millennials-are-the-beholders-of-the-apocalypse
‘We millennials are the beholders of the apocalypse’

Ben Cowles talks to director SAUL ALVIDREZ about his upcoming film Chomsky & Mujica, a documentary on the first meeting of the two leftist luminaries

A FEW weeks back a photograph appeared on my Twitter feed of the US dissident academic Noam Chomsky sitting with former Uruguayan president Jose Alberto “Pepe” Mujica in a beat-up Volkswagen Beetle.

Being somewhat obsessed with Chomsky and fascinated by Pepe Mujica – an 85-year-old former leftist guerilla who was president of Uruguay between 2010 to 2015, gave most of his salary to charity, shunned the presidential palace and chose to live on his rustic farm instead – I had to find out what they were doing together.

It turns out the photograph was a screenshot of an upcoming film called Chomsky & Mujica, a documentary about the first meeting of the two leftist luminaries.

“I believe that they are true wise men,” the Mexican director Saul Alvidrez tells me after I sought him out.

“I actually call them ‘the wise man of the north’ and ‘the wise man of the south’,” he says. “They don’t like the nicknames, obviously.”

Alvidrez holds the 91-year-old Chomsky to be one of the most important intellectuals alive: “He’s an incredible human being and a very kind person. He has an incredible brain. I don’t understand how one person is capable of holding so much information.

“He has written over 100 books. He’s the father of modern linguistics. He is the most important political dissident in the US for 40 or 50 years.”

Alvidrez is just as enthused about Uruguay’s former rebel turned president as the US academic.

“Mujica has six bullet wounds. He spent almost 15 years in prison in terrible conditions, and many years in solitary confinement.

“After the dictatorship, he was released and became a senator, a minister and then president.

“Not only is that an incredible story, his way of life is also extraordinary. He was called the poorest president in the world because he lives in the same little house in the rural outskirts of Montevideo since he was released from prison.

“He still drives an ’80s Volkswagen.

“His speeches have been shared around the world because of his sincerity, his philosophy of austerity, not austerity as it is understood in Europe right now but as a person – not as a policy, of course.

“As a president Mujica developed a lot of very progressive and interesting social policies.”

It has taken Alvidrez five years to put together Chomsky & Mujica, his first film. By the time I speak with him, his crowdfunder has already banked well over £44,600, massively surpassing the original target of £17,100.

He’s not quite sure when we will be able to see the film. But the plan is to take the project on an international film festival tour and, hopefully, release it on a streaming platform like Netflix later in the year.

As fascinating as the subjects in Alvidrez’s flick are, the 31-year-old director has led an equally interesting life….see link…”