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Reviews
Haïti: la fin des chimères?... (2004)
Dishonest and incomplete view of Haiti
I thought the film was dishonest. While the US Left may not have examined Aristide as honestly as it might, the documentary presents a pretty simplified analysis of a very, very complicated history, using the analysis primarily of Aristide dissidents and a European scholar. Nowhere do the external forces those governing Haiti wrestled with get seriously addressed. In fact, one commentator ridiculously suggests that after his return Aristide could have asked for and received anything he wanted from any world leader. The film demonstrates, despite its intentions, the ways in which some forms of democracy and dissent flourished under Aristide, yet how, unlike the unelected Sandinista and Castro regimes, the state proved unable to change economic conditions. But it ends up being one more contribution to the notion of Black incompetence instead of a thoughtful examination of the challenges of governing small states.