HR Film Fest Review: Now the People Have Awoken

Set during the December 2006 elections, the film mainly presents the views of Chavez supporters, such as Noam Chomsky and Eva Golinger, with just a few comments from opposing groups. The main message of the movie is that life has improved considerably for the poor since Chavez came to power, with more equal access to education and health, and community-owned enterprises that benefit the lower classes. Factory workers in the documentary, who had been unemployed before Chavez, now cooperatively own a shoe factory. In the film, one man said his daughter needed a $12,000 operation and because of Chavez he was able to send her to Cuba under the reciprocal Venezuela-Cuba health agreement. Other interviewees said they had been able to get an education for the first time.