Cert – 12, Run-time – 1 hour 44 minutes, Director – Reinaldo Marcus Green
As his fame rises across the globe, Bob Marley (Kingsley Ben-Adir) attempts to arrange a concert to unite Jamaica when his country is on the brink of civil war.
While not a direct biopic, largely focusing on Bob Marley (Kingsley Ben-Adir) attempting to unite his home country for Jamaica with his music, One Love still feels itch-inducingly conventional. Flashbacks to his origins, particularly in his relationship to his wife and backing singer, Rita (Lashana Lynch), may have some interest, but those leaning more into his start in music add little to the film overall. Even delves into the creative process as songs are gradually formed on the spot with fellow members of The Wailers lack a properly euphoric spark.
Jamaica is on the brink of civil war, with tensions and violence in the streets rising. Marley is a victim of this in the film’s opening stages when gunmen break into his home attempting to assassinate the singer. Sending his family to America while he eventually escapes to London Marley’s fame begins to rise rapidly, alongside the influence of reggae. With the release of his album Exodus and an upcoming world tour he attempts to spread the message of peace and one love to as many people as possible, with his eyes continuously set on his home – and an African leg of the tour, which record label representatives simply brand as uncommercial.
While a number of scenes have a very by-the-books presentation there’s still enough here to help things move by with ease. Part of it might be the familiarity, although at this stage with musical biopics it’s very much a factor that works against the film, however the best factor are the performances of Ben-Adir and Lynch. Both of whom put in engaging and effective performances which help to lift the film around them. Ben-Adir in particular demonstrates Marley’s points and messages with a likable and relaxed charisma, allowing the audience to buy into his mission more than the One Love concert sequence itself – largely because it doesn’t really exist.
Where the film best succeeds is not in the music itself but in Marley’s various relationships. The people who crop up throughout his life, inspire him and spur him on. While one or two moments might lead to slight bumps of convention – one particular outburst in the later stages of the film feels slightly out of character, although intentionally so it doesn’t entirely come across best – the group around the singer, not just those in his band, provide some interesting and engaging moments. As a whole there’s enough details and beats to engage throughout the film to stop it from feeling overly bland or distancing. There may be a lot of familiarity in the overall style, but thankfully a good leading performance helps to move things along and stop the proceedings from feeling overly bland, whilst also truly conveying the beliefs and motivation at hand.
While it might suffer heavily from feeling like another conventional biopic Bob Marley: One Love believes in its well-performed focus’ mission and beliefs, allowing the viewer to buy into them and for things to not dive into destructive blandness.
Just A Little Bit Random 