The Harder They Come (1972, dir. Perry Henzell)

The Harder They Come (1972, dir. Perry Henzell)

What Is It?: A nifty outlaw/folk-hero story that introduced reggae to much of the Western world.

What About It?: Jimmy Cliff vaulted to the international music scene with this little low budget thriller, the first feature film to be made in Jamaica and one of the more popular "midnight movies" of the 70's. What's the big deal? Well, it's the music, mainly, as the outlaw tale is fairly well stripped from standard Western genre tropes -- not that there's anything wrong with that. Jimmy Cliff is charismatic as the anti-hero and the realism of the film -- the poverty and squalor of the shanty towns of Kingston -- is affecting. The many chase scenes are shot with a grittiness that leads to an urgency for the whole enterprise.

Why Should I See It?: Because you have a thing for movies with such heavily-accented English that you need subtitles? No, you're seeing this for the great musical numbers by Cliff, Desmond Dekker and Toots & the Maytals, terrific all.

What Else Is It Like?: Third World Cop, White Heat, Countryman.

Reserve it at the Multnomah County Library.

--ddt/pdx

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Bonus MP3:
Many Rivers To Cross - Jimmy Cliff (from The Harder They Come Soundtrack)