‘Strawberry and Chocolate’

At the heart of the late Tomas Gutierrez Alea’s outstanding 1994 film is the friendship that develops between a gay man and a straight man, which is almost never depicted on the screen and surely never with such depth and insight. Vladimir Cruz’s (pictured) David, a devoted Communist, discovers Jorge Perugorria’s Diego, a Ministry of Culture employee, is not some sort of political and sexual decadent but “a man of more courage and principles than you could imagine.” A delightful, funny and poigant film from Cuba’s premier filmmaker (Cinemax early Wednesday at 4:50 a.m.).