How Ziggy Marley helped bring authenticity to ‘Bob Marley: One Love’

[ad_1]

People had been coming to Ziggy Marley and his family for years with ideas about how to turn the life of reggae icon Bob Marley into a movie. But it never felt quite right, until a few years ago he decided to be the instigator.

“It was just a feeling,” Ziggy Marley said of bringing his father’s life to the screen in a recent interview with The Associated Press. “We explored it without knowing that we definitely wanted to do this because we needed to make sure that the people we did it with were the right people. People who respected what we wanted to do, the culture, the authenticity that we wanted.”

He said, this time he found the right partners. But it was a gamble for everyone: for Paramount Pictures and other producers, who wanted to live up to Bob Marley’s story, his music, and his message and were worried about what would happen if they didn’t do so; For Kingsley Ben-Adir Stepping into place of an icon; For family and friends who shared their memories for a more intimate story; And to a director, Renaldo Marcus Green, who had to bring it all together and create the song.

Early indications suggest that it worked for moviegoers. “Bob Marley: One Love” has only been in theaters for a few days, but it’s Already making waves at the box office, On its first day alone, it grossed $14 million in North America, a record for a mid-week Valentine’s Day debut. As of Sunday, it had grossed an estimated $80 million globally. Although Critics have been mixedTicket buyers responded enthusiastically, giving the $70 million film the highest score in exit polls.

Paramount Motion Picture Group co-chairman Mike Ireland said, “This is a rewarding validation of what we decided to do.” “The audience is the ultimate judge of every film and anything you put out into the world. And getting them to react that way? It’s wonderful.”

The film focuses on a specific period of Bob Marley’s life from 1976 to 1978. During that time of political turmoil in Jamaica, the reggae legend survived an assassination attempt, creating his seminal album “Exodus” in an 18-month exile in London. , was diagnosed with cancer and returned to Jamaica to reunite with his family and stage the famous “One Love” concert.

Multi-Grammy winner Ziggy Marley said, “I’m a movie guy.” “My selfish goal was to make a film that had entertainment and action. I told him, ‘I don’t want a boring film.’ And this time was the most active and entertaining.”

The story and screenplay were drawn from stories by Ziggy Marley and the legend’s widow, Rita Marley, played by Lashana Lynch in the film, and others who knew him well. He shot on location in the UK and Jamaica, where he worked with locals in front of and behind the camera, many of whom had personal or at least second-hand connections to Bob Marley.

For Green, one of the biggest challenges of a film like “One Love” was getting the Patois language right and making it feel real without screwing it up. That said, they were essentially making a foreign language film but without subtitles. This is one of the key ways in which his largely Jamaican cast and crew added texture and validity to everything.

“I would say we cast 98% Jamaicans,” Green said. “We also have real musicians. It creates that authentic feeling. It doesn’t feel like you’re watching actors try to play music. You have real music from real musicians.”

Studios and production companies relied heavily on the local government and film commission for help filming in Trench Town and recreating Bob Marley’s house.

“You have to get the blessing of the Jamaican people first for something like this, you know?” Ziggy Marley said. “We couldn’t do this without Jamaica.”

And all hope that they have helped contribute to Jamaica’s film production infrastructure. It’s no surprise that the film has now overtaken “Black Panther” to hold the record for Jamaica’s biggest opening day ever.

Bob Marley was on everyone’s mind – starting with the music that most audiences would know about and expect certain things from, and moving on to the personal and inner life of the larger-than-life man. Ben-Adir learned to sing and play the guitar, which he did during filming under the guidance of Ziggy Marley – who wanted an artistic interpretation and not an exact copy. The final film blends Ben-Adir’s voice with archival recordings.

Ziggy Marley said, “Kingsley did a good job.” “He worked. He really studied.

Sometimes when family and properties are involved in the biopic process, life can become vulnerable and sanitized. But Ziggy Marley and his family clearly said they want to show a real person, flaws and all. And who better to drive the process and large-scale re-creation of famous concerts than a man who is also an acclaimed musician in his own right?

Ziggy Marley hopes the film will “make people feel like they’re part of the family, part of the crew, part of the band,” he said. “Now you are in. You are not a fan from the outside.”

But he said, mostly it’s about the message.

“We are highlighting the idea of ​​unity for humanity, a love for people,” he said. “We are most proud of the fact that we are serving a purpose.”

[ad_2]

Source link

Leave a Comment