The Agronomist
Encyclopedia
The Agronomist is a 2003
American
documentary
directed by Jonathan Demme
, and starring Jean Dominique
. The documentary follows the life of Dominique, who ran Haiti's
first independent radio station, Radio Haiti-Inter
, during multiple repressive regimes.
, Haiti's first independent radio station. Jonathan Demme puts together this documentary with historical footage and interviews. The result is a serious recount of Haiti during its numerous regimes.
Radio Haiti-Inter was Radio Haiti in 1960 and in 1969, it became Radio Haiti-Inter. It finally ended its broadcast three years after the assassination of Jean Dominique. His broadcasts were primarily for the struggle of democracy and he was able to capture the feelings of those who were poor and powerless.
The remarkable account of Jean Dominique and his radio hosting days is that his struggle was able to last as long as it lasted. While almost a majority of any repressive society would silence its critics, Radio Haiti-Inter wasn't silenced for decades. Even after his assassination, his wife and fellow journalist, Michèle Montas
, tried to keep the radio broadcast going until it finally collapsed 3 years after his assassination.
The documentary starts with an interview where Jean Dominique recounts a day when he was able to broadcast gunfire outside Radio Haiti-Inter.
The film received favorable reviews by critics. It received a 96% "fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes
Praise focused on the use of historical footage combined with interviews.
Box office receipts totaled $226,189 in 21 theaters in the U.S.
2003 in film
The year 2003 in film involved some significant events. Releases of sequels took place with movies like The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, 2 Fast 2 Furious, Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, The Matrix Reloaded, The Matrix Revolutions, Pokémon Heroes, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines,...
American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
documentary
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
directed by Jonathan Demme
Jonathan Demme
Robert Jonathan Demme is an American filmmaker, producer and screenwriter. Best known for directing The Silence of the Lambs, which won him the Academy Award for Best Director, he has also directed the acclaimed movies Philadelphia, Rachel Getting Married, the Talking Heads concert movie Stop...
, and starring Jean Dominique
Jean Dominique
Jean Léopold Dominique was a noted Haïtian journalist who spoke out against successive dictatorships. He was one of the first people in Haïti to broadcast in Kreyòl, the language spoken by most of the populace...
. The documentary follows the life of Dominique, who ran Haiti's
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
first independent radio station, Radio Haiti-Inter
Radio Haiti-Inter
Radio Haiti-Inter was the first independent radio station in Haiti. The station was notable for its use of the Kreyòl language, spoken by most Haitians, while most other media broadcast in French, and also for its broadcasting of international and local news....
, during multiple repressive regimes.
Summary
The Agronomist is about Jean Leopold Dominique who hosted Radio Haiti-InterRadio Haiti-Inter
Radio Haiti-Inter was the first independent radio station in Haiti. The station was notable for its use of the Kreyòl language, spoken by most Haitians, while most other media broadcast in French, and also for its broadcasting of international and local news....
, Haiti's first independent radio station. Jonathan Demme puts together this documentary with historical footage and interviews. The result is a serious recount of Haiti during its numerous regimes.
Radio Haiti-Inter was Radio Haiti in 1960 and in 1969, it became Radio Haiti-Inter. It finally ended its broadcast three years after the assassination of Jean Dominique. His broadcasts were primarily for the struggle of democracy and he was able to capture the feelings of those who were poor and powerless.
The remarkable account of Jean Dominique and his radio hosting days is that his struggle was able to last as long as it lasted. While almost a majority of any repressive society would silence its critics, Radio Haiti-Inter wasn't silenced for decades. Even after his assassination, his wife and fellow journalist, Michèle Montas
Michèle Montas
Michèle Montas is an award-winning journalist from Haiti and the former Spokesperson under UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon . Prior to her appointment, Montas headed the French unit of UN Radio...
, tried to keep the radio broadcast going until it finally collapsed 3 years after his assassination.
The documentary starts with an interview where Jean Dominique recounts a day when he was able to broadcast gunfire outside Radio Haiti-Inter.
Reception
The Agronomist was shown on May 3, 2004 at the UN Headquarters in NYC while observing World Press Freedom Day. There were no seats vacant for the showing at noon.The film received favorable reviews by critics. It received a 96% "fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
Praise focused on the use of historical footage combined with interviews.
Box office receipts totaled $226,189 in 21 theaters in the U.S.
DVD release
The movie was released on DVD on June 7, 2005 with English and French spoken language tracks, and subtitles in English, Spanish, and French.External links
- Radio Caraibes FM 94.5 live from Port au Prince Haiti, Haitian Radio stations Find all Haitian radio Stations.