THE LOST CITY

Actor Andy Garcia makes his directorial debut with this muddled period drama set in Havana on the eve of the Communist revolution. Garcia also portrays a nightclub owner, Fico, who hopes to stay neutral, even as several siblings join the cause. His family is among the educated elite (annoyingly, most speak in epigrams), and there's little explanation why some run off and grow beards with Fidel. Mostly, Garcia's overlong, poorly acted drama seems to bemoan the loss of a narrow slice of Havana, where the wealthy languidly drank afternoon cocktails, and ethnic entertainers never stopped singing and dancing. Frankly, the intersection of family, American influence, revolution and nightclubbing was handled far more entertainingly in 2004's Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights. Squirrel Hill (AH)