From Jonathan Demme (Silence of the Lambs, The Manchurian Candidate remake) comes this documentary about Jean Dominique, a Haitian radio journalist and human rights activist who, from 1960 to his assassination in 2000, spoke out against the violence and dictatorships in Haiti, often resulting in his exile.
The documentary spends a lot of time on Dominique's face, which usually might be a bit tedious except that Jean Dominique himself has quite an expressive and engaging face. When he talks, his smiles, glances, and movements are really very absorbing, and the man was a very interesting and wise person. It's almost odd to imagine someone like him arising out of the ashes of such a tumultuous country as Haiti.
Haiti itself strikes an interesting character, being as it were one rife with violence and turmoil. This documentary analyzes the forty years Dominique experienced from behind a microphone and shows not only the personal tension, but the geopolitical issues (let's just say this movie isn't very nice to people like Presidents Reagan and Clinton).
The first part of the movie itself is most important because it spends time showing the absolute need for media in order to maintain human rights. It's difficult to watch because it shows how much we take our media for granted and how shortsighted our media really are. While we bother our comfortable heads with issues of "objectively" representing "everyone's needs", some people are struggling to make sure their voice is heard and getting killed over it. Maybe it's a good thing we have nothing really to talk about, because it shows we're not in these people's situations.
Anyways, a very powerful and inspiring documentary indeed, and one that's pretty well done despite the poor video quality. The background music and the focus on Jean Dominique's face make it very comfortable and friendly even as he's helping to reveal the issues he had to deal with. It's very good.
--PolarisDiB
The documentary spends a lot of time on Dominique's face, which usually might be a bit tedious except that Jean Dominique himself has quite an expressive and engaging face. When he talks, his smiles, glances, and movements are really very absorbing, and the man was a very interesting and wise person. It's almost odd to imagine someone like him arising out of the ashes of such a tumultuous country as Haiti.
Haiti itself strikes an interesting character, being as it were one rife with violence and turmoil. This documentary analyzes the forty years Dominique experienced from behind a microphone and shows not only the personal tension, but the geopolitical issues (let's just say this movie isn't very nice to people like Presidents Reagan and Clinton).
The first part of the movie itself is most important because it spends time showing the absolute need for media in order to maintain human rights. It's difficult to watch because it shows how much we take our media for granted and how shortsighted our media really are. While we bother our comfortable heads with issues of "objectively" representing "everyone's needs", some people are struggling to make sure their voice is heard and getting killed over it. Maybe it's a good thing we have nothing really to talk about, because it shows we're not in these people's situations.
Anyways, a very powerful and inspiring documentary indeed, and one that's pretty well done despite the poor video quality. The background music and the focus on Jean Dominique's face make it very comfortable and friendly even as he's helping to reveal the issues he had to deal with. It's very good.
--PolarisDiB