Censored Havana: Culture and Politics Through the Film Pasado Meridiano – PM (Cuba, 1961)

Abstract

In 1961, Pasado Meridiano – PM became the first Cuban film censored by the Cuban Institute of Cinematographic Art and Industry (ICAIC). Its form, visual language and content had been considered inappropriate for the new cultural politics that emerged from the new political authorities of the revolution. This article analyzes the historical process that led to its censorship, the political and cultural context of Havana in relation to freedom of expression, the cultural and political components of the film, its meaning as a cultural expression in the face of new cultural policies, and the reasons why it was censored. The “politicization of culture” becomes an important explanatory notion to understand the film Pasado Meridiano – PM as a cultural product that integrates the spheres of culture and politics beyond its artistic expressiveness.