I’ve always loved Bob Marley, so the second I saw the preview for the biopic Bob Marley:  One Love, I knew I had to see it.  This past Saturday (Feb. 17, 2024), my mother and I went to the Starlight theatre in Charlotte, NC to check it out (we were there for a mother-daughter day), and man…I wasn’t disappointed.

One of the things I liked about One Love—and caught me by surprise, if I’m being honest—is the fact that it didn’t follow the usual music biopic formula.  You all know the formula; Walk Hard:  The Dewey Cox Story parodied it well.  We see the musician grow up, struggle until he/she makes that song that has the world in a chokehold, the musician eventually gets a big head and/or addiction and isolates everyone that truly loves him/her, which later leads to the musician having a come-to-Jesus moment and triumphing over whatever adversity he/she is going through, normally after releasing a successful album or blowing everyone away with a killer performance.  Yes, I realized I just described Bohemian Rhapsody to a T, but I don’t care; I love that movie! 

With all that said, I never disliked the music biopic formula.  It works for a reason.  However, One Love strayed from that usual blueprint, and I also found it enjoyable and refreshing.  This film starts with Bob already enjoying success with his music career.  He was not yet internationally known (not really), but he already had a few albums under his belt, and he was on the brink of performing at the Smile Jamaica concert in 1976.  Bob Marley mega fans already know where this is going.  A few nights before he was set to perform at the concert, an assassination attempt was made against Bob, his wife, Rita Marley, and his manager, Don Taylor.  Thankfully, no one perished from this incident.  From there, we see how Bob deals with his PTSD from the shooting, and how he wants to move forward with his career from that point. We also see Bob’s creation of the Exodus album, arguably his magnum opus.  Throughout the movie, we’re treated to flashbacks that show the start of Bob’s career, his introduction to Rastafarianism, his budding relationship with Rita, and his feelings toward his absentee father. According to Ziggy Marley, Bob’s oldest son and producer on the film, they decided to begin the movie at this moment in time, because it was when his father’s life drastically changed.

My mom and I had a great time watching One Love.  It was extremely well-acted, and the cinematography was gorgeous.  Kingsley Ben-Adir and Lashana Lynch both killed it as Bob and Rita Marley.  I have to say…Kingsley Ben-Adir was hot AF playing the legendary Bob Marley.  Every time he appeared on screen, I started salivating.  Panties off!

Of course, my favorite thing about this movie—aside from staring at Kinglsey—was the music.  Mr. Marley’s songs are timeless (as a matter of fact, I’m listing to some of his greatest hits while I’m writing this review), so I stayed dancing in my seat and singing along throughout the entire film.  I even heard some songs that I never really had a chance to listen to before, which allowed me to expand my reggae playlist.  I noticed as “Is This Love” played during the credits, a lot of us—including myself and my Mom—stayed in our seats to listen to the song.  That’s one of my favorite Bob Marley songs, by the way.

I’ve seen some criticism about the film not being 100% accurate to Bob’s life and legacy.  For example, there’s a theory that the CIA was behind Bob’s assassination attempt.  Another aspect that a lot of people didn’t like was that the film glossed over Bob’s extramarital affairs with other women.  If I’m being real, I wish the movie delved a little deeper into those sides to Bob’s life as well.  However, I’m still happy with the end result of the film.  Besides, biopics are never 100% accurate, especially if the subject of said film has since passed on.  If you want to see a more precise telling of Bob Marley’s life, I’d highly recommend the 2012 documentary Marley.  Over half the things I know about Bob Marley came from that film (I even whispered little factoids I know about Bob to my mom as we went from scene to scene).

Y’all, this movie was boss, and it was perfect for Black History Month (yeah, I said it).  Once it’s available for purchase, I will be buying it.  Besides, I could ogle Kingsley Ben-Adir in this movie all day!  If you’re a fan of Bob Marley, reggae music, or if you just like music biopics, go check out this masterpiece ASA-frickin’-P!

—Written by Nadiya

So what were your thoughts about Bob Marley:  One Love?  Have you seen it yet?  Are you a Bob Marley fan?  Did you feel like it depicted enough of his life?  Did you feel like it didn’t depict enough?  What features did you want to see in the movie?  Which parts of the movie did you like?  What’s your favorite Bob Marley song (for me, it’s “Could You Be Loved” and “Is This Love”)?  Let me know in the comments section!