I recently watched the movie Shottas starring Kymani Marley, one of the musician children of the late great Bob Marley, Spragga Benz, Paul Campbell, Wyclef Jean and other Caribbean actors and entertainers. The movie is somewhat of a modern day Scarface in the sense that two childhood friends make it their mission to take over the Miami drug trade. Scarface is about Cubans and Shottas is about Jamaicans. Some of the scenes in the movie are similar to scenes in City of God, especially one of the early scenes where Biggs (Kymani Marley) and Wayne (Spragga Benz) are hanging around the older gangsters/ “badman dem”. Unlike City of God and Scarface, Shottas is not an award winning film, but it is a great movie for some reasons that only true fans can appreciate.
The soundtrack to the movie is great. There is some hip-hop in the movie, which is a reflection of the Jamaica of today, but the most of the music is reggae, true Jamaican music. Obviously, the movie stars Kymani Marley and its fair to say, Marley related songs dominate the film whether its Bob Marley or Kymani Marley. Definitely, a plus for the movie.
The language of the movie is top notch. Many of the scenes contain people speaking Jamaican Patois, especially when Spragga Benz is in the scene. This is one of the better Jamaican movies for someone looking to speak Jamaican. From a learning standpoint, the movie is worth its weight in gold.
The acting in the movie leaves something to be desired, but that is expected when mostly musicians are acting for the first time. The acting and storyline could be better, but it is still interesting.
Overall, this is a great movie for the person looking to speak Jamaican Patois, loves Reggae music or loves a good rise and fall film.
I definitely recommend this film.
Soon Come,
Ras Zuke