By Keith Walther | Rose Law Group Reporter
After the legitimate success of “Bohemian Rhapsody” and unwarranted success of “Elvis,” music biopics are on the rise and this one falls somewhere in between these aforementioned films. “Bob Marley: One Love” is a play-it-safe retelling of the Jamaican icon that is interesting enough but lacks that emotional punch to really connect the audience to his story. However, the performances by the leads carry the film across the finish line.
The primary elements of the story take place in the late 1970s, when violence in Jamaica was tearing the small island nation apart and placing its people on the brink of a civil war. Through his music, Bob Marley (Kingsley Ben-Adir) tried single-handedly to unite his people with a message of love and justice. Unfortunately, not everyone agreed with Bob, attempting to take not only his life, but also his friends and family.
Escaping the country to keep him and his family safe, Marley sought to reconnect with his past and his music, becoming an international sensation in the process. With the help and support of his wife Rita (Lashana Lynch), he returned to his beloved Jamaica to face the danger and put on a concert to heal a hurting country.
Director Reinaldo Marcus Green, having directed another biopic, “King Richard,” in 2021 provides some strong experience for him to draw upon in crafting “Bob Marley: One Love.” He does a fine job of capturing the essence of this face of reggae, although limiting the focus to a three-year timespan late in Marley’s career certainly leaves the audience wanting more. Reinaldo does provide flashbacks to Bob’s childhood and early musical career throughout to show his background, but these snippets are just teases, which doesn’t allow viewers to truly appreciate the genius behind his music. As a result, he only scratches the surface, and the emotional connection to the story is lacking.
Even though Reinaldo plays it very safely, he demonstrates a firm dedication to an accurate retelling of this late singer’s life. He recruits Bob’s son, Ziggy, to ensure he doesn’t misrepresent the Marley’s in any way. In fact, Ziggy makes an appearance before the movie begins to show his support and let the audience know how truthful the film is. As for the music, viewers are treated to a smattering of Marley’s collection of songs, but it’s only a taste, missing an opportunity to connect the music in such a way that people want to immediately download his albums after watching the film.
Playing the title role is Kingsley Ben-Adir, a British actor who does an outstanding job transforming himself into the Jamaican reggae legend. With help from Ziggy, Kingsley learned to play the guitar and sing to perform the music as close as possible to Bob Marley. He even spent time with surviving band mates of Bob to get a better understanding of how he connected to the music. This effort pays significant dividends, yielding a genuine, dynamic, and emotionally fueled performance that shows all sides of the character. This will hopefully open more doors for the talented 37-year-old actor.
British actress Lashana Lynch provides an equally moving performance as Bob Marley’s wife. She successfully provides layers of depth to her character that makes her relatable and helps to ground the main character to his roots. She has had noticeable performances previously in films like “No Time to Die” and “The Woman King,” but this is her greatest yet.
The rest of the cast does a serviceable job in their various roles. While the commitment to executing flawless Jamaican accents is great to see, the accents are sometimes so thick and distracting, it makes understanding their lines somewhat difficult at times. This results in viewers wanting to hit the rewind button or toggle the subtitle setting.
A story like Bob Marley’s should not come across as basic and low risk, but that’s exactly what happens here. “Bob Marley: One Love” is fascinating enough with committed performances from the two stars that carry the movie to make it worth watching, but it makes for a better rental at home rather than a trip to the theater.
This movie earns:
