Quartile rating: 7/10 · 1 rating
Bob Marley's universal appeal, impact on music history and role as a social and political prophet is both unique and unparalleled. Directed by Academy Award-winning director Kevin Macdonald (The Last King of Scotland), MARLEY is the definitive life story of the musician, revolutionary, and legend, from his early days to his rise to international superstardom. Made with the support of the Marley family, the film features rare footage, incredible performances and revelatory interviews with the people that knew him best.
Marley (2012) benefits enormously from its subject's singular life and music, giving the documentary a natural narrative arc from humble Jamaican roots to global icon status. Kevin Macdonald assembles rare archival footage and intimate interviews effectively, though the cinematography is constrained by the nature of documentary filmmaking. The novelty score is high because Marley himself is a one-of-a-kind figure — no other documentary could replicate this combination of subject, family access, and cultural weight. The ending, covering his illness and death, is moving but follows a fairly conventional biographical documentary structure. Acting is not applicable in a traditional sense, but interview subjects are candid and compelling. Overall a respectful and thorough portrait that doesn't break new documentary ground formally but delivers on its subject's extraordinary story.