By JIM LUKSIC
The Progress
One would think a biopic about a peace-making Reggae musician – especially during Black History Month – would be more joyful and poignant than combative.
That isn’t the case with Bob Marley: One Love, as director Reinaldo Marcus Green often takes the volatile route, veering into firearms and political upheaval instead of embracing the movie’s titular emotion.
As penned by a quartet of screenwriters (often a dubious sign) including Green, the narrative spans from 1976-78, a successful but chaotic period around the Marleys’ stomping ground in Kingston, Jamaica.
Indeed, the film’s era spotlights when its hero was already a famous adult, a few brief flashbacks notwithstanding. As a result, it isn’t long before viewers endure an attack by gunmen at Marley’s house, which is ostensibly a guarded compound but never mind.
The singer’s strategy persists: to stand front and center at a local “unity” concert amid political conflicts. Audiences are treated to glimpses of the man’s wife, his bevy of children, and Marley & the Wailers’ fabled music – the last of which isn’t examined enough.
Perhaps some background about Marley’s upbringing and melodic compositions wasn’t on the filmmakers’ agenda, but the expectation here was to learn moments of the musician’s childhood and education. Was he enrolled in music classes or a “garage” band as a teen?
Green and his crew don’t reveal such insights, which is why biographies become bestsellers.
What isn’t lacking are tropes: The Wailers go on tour, create their universally popular album Exodus, face romantic entanglements (rarely shown on screen), and discuss Jamaica’s societal problems. Whatever the topic, Family, friends, and bandmates refer to Marley as “Skipper” and “Skip.”
Stray mentions about the religion Rastafaria go unfulfilled; a confrontation between peers in an alley comes across as unnatural, manufactured action just to enliven the proceedings.
Then comes Marley’s premature demise: The talented subject, all of 36 years old, succumbing to melanoma.
Stepping into Marley’s prodigious shoes with credible panache is Kingsley Ben-Adir (whose 5’7” height matches that of the singer). The British actor proves personable and charismatic in a challenging role.
Similar praise would describe Lashana Lynch as Marley’s beleaguered spouse, Rita. In fact, for this observer, the picture’s highlight comes when the wife retorts during an argument.
Bob Marley: One Love is well-acted and directed with style, but lacking in nuance and flourishes.
The innate, egregious problem – a constant challenge for viewers and their ears – is the thick Jamaican accent voiced by Ben-Adir, Welsh, and a smattering of others. (The screening this critic attended was supposed to include closed-captioning; subtitles were nowhere to be found.)
Authentic, yes; practical, not so much.
