[MARLEY screens Saturday July 14th at 9:00 pm at the Cleveland Cinematheque.]
Review
by Bob Ignizio
As often happens to iconic figures, in
the just over thirty years since the death of influential reggae
musician Bob Marley, the man has largely been obscured by his legend.
Kevin McDonald's documentary film MARLEY
sets out to rectify that, presenting a comprehensive and balanced
portrait of Marley and the forces that forged his music and ideology.
MARLEY
is
presented in an “oral history” style. Nearly everyone who had an
important role in Bob Marley's life and career and is still alive is
given the chance to relate their memories as they see fit. Even some
people who are no longer with us, including Marley himself, get to
speak their piece via archival footage. Occasionally one interview
subject will contradict another, but thankfully there is no effort
present one viewpoint as more true than the other. The result is a film
that paints a
portrait of its subject just as ambiguous as real life without
feeling messy or unfocused.
Aside
from poverty, the other major societal force that played a key a role
in Marley's evolution was the religion of Rastafarianism. Rastas are
often reduced to little more than dreadlocked ganja-smoking
stereotypes in popular culture, so it's appreciated that MARLEY
provides a decent primer on the belief system for those looking for a
better understanding of it. That's important, because Rastafarianism
played such an integral role in Bob Marley's music as to be
inseparable from it.
As
one would expect, MARLEY
is largely a celebration of its subject's life and music. That said,
it doesn't shy away from showing his flaws. Some might feel the need
to invoke the old saw about separating the art from the artist; a
more appropriate response would be to accept the fact that our
heroes, no matter how influential or talented, can't be perfect in
every aspect of their lives.
Stylistically
MARLEY feels like
countless other artist biopics, interspersing old film clips and
photos between the talking heads. There's no sense in reinventing the
wheel, though, and the frankness, thoroughness, and nuance of
McDonald's film elevates it above the average “behind the music”
style biopic. 3 out of 4 stars.
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