Bob Marley: La Leyenda

Bob Marley: One Love is a thoroughly generic biopic told in an entertaining fashion. It starts off with an interesting idea focusing on a specific part of Marley's life and honing in on the unifying power of his music before quickly becoming the kind of biopic that's been done so many times before, frustratingly saving the most powerful moment for the archive footage at the end.

Even when this genre is at its blandest the central performance is rarely the problem and that's absolutely the case here. Kingsley Ben-Adir gives a wonderful performance that never strays into parody and is the only time the film comes close to making Marley feel human. It's also great that Lashana Lynch is given so much, supporting whilst still getting some spotlight.

Reinaldo Marcus Green's direction ends the film a little too early and uses a flashback heavy structure to hit all the required beats but it's all done in a technically competent and very serious way which helps. The soundtrack is obviously a major highlight however the score by Kris Bowers is an unexpected highlight thanks to its very dramatic nature.

Paint by numbers musical biopic that hits all the cliches; crooked management, a "complex" love story, father-son drama and some genuinely decent concert sequences.

The many flashbacks and heavy Jamaican patois don't do the narrative any favors (subtitles needed for this one!) Cast performances are mostly solid but unspectacular. Lashana Lynch's Rita Marley is a highlight. Kingsley Ben-Adir's Bob is likeable but lightweight - at the end we don't get any sense of what really drove Bob as a musician or a strongly religious man. None of the supporting characters are sketched out much at all, so the film depends on these two performances to carry it, with mixed results.

Overall a superficial examining of an important influential artist that could've been so much more.

Bob Marley is one of the most recognizable names in the world, whose music, cultural influence and message of unity transcends borders. And while Reinaldo Marcus Green's "Bob Marley: One Love" tries to portray his influence and legacy on screen, the movie's low-risk conventional approach makes it a rather hollow experience.

The movie is as vanilla as it gets, with nothing really standing out. And that extends to lead actor Kingsley Ben-Adir, who while I think is a great actor, just isn't able to make the character work. He seems to be trying his best to replicate the legend, but is quite not all there with his portrayal that we're always aware we're watching an actor play Bob Marley and not Bob Marley himself.

While "Bob Marley: One Love" is not as boring as some of the other musical biopics I've seen (like 'I Wanna Dance with Somebody' or 'The United States vs Billie Holiday'), it surely doesn't do enough to be worth recommending. It's yet another biopic that plays like a collection of vignettes than an actual narrative story, with some 'greatest hits' backing tracks. It certainly doesn't do Marley's legacy any justice.

The acting was good, the scenes regarding the music and the artistic creativity involved in the endeavor were good, and every scene individually was fine.

What this film lacks is actually direction. It felt disjointed and choppy from the very beginning. It was hard to keep straight what was going on and why. The motivations of events were hard to follow, and conflicts appeared and disappeared without a trace. The actual flow and arc were kind of non-existent in this movie.

I felt the scenes between on-screen Bob and Rita and Bob with the band were the absolute strength. There was chemistry there that felt natural and that felt like I was really getting a glimpse into Bob Marley at this period of his life.

It's so close to being a really good movie, but the lack of continuity in the storytelling robs it of reaching the potential.

A Marley fan, I went in worried having read the critics reviews ultimately saying it's "ok" with some great performances but a missed opportunity as it's bubblegum Marley.

I disagree, this was a compelling and entertaining movie, sure there is some rich material that was left untapped, but it would take a Netflix series to unwrap his life - one day maybe!

Endorsed by and produced by the Marley family, it's clear that they wanted it to be about hope, love, unity and the making of his definitive album; Exodus. But they also did touch on some of the tougher material - but maybe didn't dwell on it as much as the critics would like. We don't witness his ill health and death, but do we really need to? I don't think so.

Lots of references and small touches that will resonate with those who know his story well, that may be missed by others. If you know, you know and that adds an extra layer, but none of that knowledge is needed to enjoy the movie.

The soundtrack is of course fantastic and acts as a narrative through the movie, there is emotion, joy and a clear mission.

A very well executed, and acted, biopic that although pulls a few punches, doesn't fail to entertain and give the viewer a window into Marley. Yes it leaves you wanting more...but thats fine by me. Come on Netflix :)