Story: Exploring the life and times of singer, songwriter, and spiritual activist Bob Marley. Focuses on his life from 1977 through 1978, including the creation of his hit album, “Exodus”.
Genre I’d put it in: Biopics That Paint With Historical Fact To Provide A Feel Rather Than Portrait
Release Date: 2024
Remake, Sequel, Based-On, or Original: Based on the life of Bob Marley.
Gotta say: I’ve never been a music snob. (Someone who bought the 45 of “Disco Duck” could never claim that level of pretentiousness.) But I do believe one of the highest levels of this music is one where message and music blend together, turning them into an indivisible whole that settles deep in your soul. Bob Marley was a singer/songwriter that excelled in these types of songs, a craftsman who seemed to do this effortlessly, when many performers dream of creating just one song half as meaningful. Love delivers that same sort of feeling, most probably thanks to the the many members of Bob’s family that worked on this film.
Love isn’t so much a biopic as it is a distillation of Marley’s beliefs, faith, and the message he wanted to send out to the world. The film shows the lengths he went through to deliver the message. Even to the detriment of his health and safety. He dealt with acral lentiginous melanoma from 1977 until his death in 1981, postponing and rejecting treatments due to his religious values and touring schedules. Love shows a man who went through more than his share of troubles, yet always tried to live his life with an open heart, and a drive to lift up others spiritually, and in terms of the impoverished, economically.
As Bob, Kingsley Ben-Adir delivers a performance that paints the musician as a man desperate to get his message out with what little time he had left. Ben-Adir’s performance is electric, and I hope he’s remembered when this brand-new year’s award season rolls around in December. Special shout-out to Lashana Lynch as Bob’s wife Rita, whose love and support in their marriage and his music was something I didn’t know much about. Lynch paints Rita as a woman fierce in her faith, and strong in personality. I got a sense that she’s the living embodiment of “remember who the fuck you are”, and I love how Lynch portrays that quiet fierceness.
There is a clear-eyed gaze at the musician in Love, a “warts and all” look that shows Bob at his absolute best, and at his withdrawn, frustrated, worst. And yes, the affairs and children they both had with other individuals, are mentioned. More of an aside than in-your-face, the loving, grounding relationship between these two is shown to be the result of hard work, appreciation, and forgiveness. It’s a beautiful look at a real relationship, and I give props to Bob’s family for putting that in. We all know a biopic or three where the individual’s past gets gussied up for the camera…
Peace, love, unity, and hope shines through every bit of Love. From Bob’s devil-may-care attitude toward finances – he seemed to be fine with whatever, as long as everybody else got paid, and nobody took advantage of anyone else – to his deep faith, Bob is shown as a man who put his whole self into what he believed. We could use a whole lot more of that from everyone, including yours truly, right about now.
#Protip: Want a deep dive into Exodus, the album that made Marley a global phenomenon? Polyphonic digs into the album, the singer/songwriter, and the world that inspired both.
