The Man by the Shore

Political and social ferment in '60s Haiti as recalled by an innocent young girl. Initially too fragmented and arty - it comes on at times like a Caribbean Spirit of the Beehive - the film slowly settles down into an effectively understated portrait of a society beset by betrayal, fear and violence. Generally sturdy performances (though one character, wrecked after torture, seems a grotesque, metaphorical caricature) and sustained control of the unsettling mood make for a minor but intelligent entertainment.