I was born the year after this movie came out,but I clearly remember the soundtrack as my mother had it in her record collection.It has followed me through almost 30 years now,and I still love it.Said to be based on a true story this movie is about a young man called Ivanhoe(Jimmy Cliff;who also performs several great,classic songs) who arrives in Kingston by bus after his grandma's death,with nothing but high hopes of being discovered by a producer and to record an album,some mangoes for his mother and few personal belongings.After trying and failing to convince him to return to the countryside,his mother rather desperately sends him to a preacher who she hopes can help him to stay away from criminal activities,find a decent job and lead a good Christian life,but he has other plans. However,the corruption in the record industry is just as bad as anywhere else and upsetting the wrong people is never good for a career...this is basically a tragic movie of hopes that become tainted by harsh circumstances,but the wonderful music somehow makes sure you never lose hope for the characters.
I must add I have never seen it with subs,so it wasn't always easy to understand(especially since English isn't my first language),but it was worth the extra effort.Jamaican Patois must be the coolest accent in the world.A true diamond in the rough from the early seventies,with brilliant singer Jimmy Cliff in the leading role as an extra bonus.
I must add I have never seen it with subs,so it wasn't always easy to understand(especially since English isn't my first language),but it was worth the extra effort.Jamaican Patois must be the coolest accent in the world.A true diamond in the rough from the early seventies,with brilliant singer Jimmy Cliff in the leading role as an extra bonus.