The joints are thick and so are the Jamaican accents in the new biopic Bob Marley: One Love. Unless your ears are finely attuned to dialects, you may want to wait for this movie to hit streaming and cable so you’ll have captions available.
The reggae tunes are cool and plentiful. The music and Marley’s vibe are the film’s main charms. Marley (Kingsley Ben-Adir) is seemingly always smiling, always moving and always brimming with optimism. Marley, as portrayed by Ben-Adir and in real life vintage clips, is not the greatest dancer but his enthusiasm is contagious. Music is performed on stages, in studios and around fire pits.
Bob Marley’s life story is told via a handful of flashbacks. Much of the movie is centered around his time in Europe in the late 70s. That’s when Marley recorded and released his landmark album Exodus. Island records exec Howard Bloom (Michael Gandolfini) tries to convince Marley to put a picture of him and the band on the album’s cover but Bob says no. (Yes, Michael is the son of James Gandolfini).
Bob Marley: One Love is being released on Valentine’s Day but it is not an especially romantic movie. Yes, there’s his loyal wife Rita (Lashana Lynch) who sets him straight and calls out his womanizing in a key dramatic scene. And we see a youthful Bob wooing a young girl. But don’t think that because the word love is in the title that this is necessarily a great date film.
Ya mon, there is quite a bit of marijuana smoked in the film. And whereas some who consume weed tend to lie about, Marley and crew are shown moving, jogging, playing soccer.
Jamaica in the 70s was the scene of political turmoil which often led to violence. Early in the film, Marley is shot by a home invader but survives. Marley arranges a concert bringing opposing political groups together, leading to a period of peace in the island nation.
Bob Marley: One Love is for music fans, especially Marley and reggae fans. Is it a definitive biopic? No. But it gives you a some good insight into the life he led, the music he created and the stamp he left on the culture of Jamaica.
Rated PG-13.
David Craig Movies 