Jimmy Cliff, Janet Bartley, Carl Bradshaw
A classic story of the high price paid for a rise to fame.
Ivan (reggae legend Jimmy Cliff) is a wannabe singer who leaves his rural Jamaican village to head to Kingston in search of everything that glitters. First robbed of all he owns, he is then beset by unscrupulous record producers. Undeterred, he shifts into drug dealing.
Set against a backdrop of real Jamaican locations, this story of success by any means necessary ranks alongside Scarface as one of the best films about crime and urban living. It’s is also a cinematic document of tremendous significance and the quintessential reggae movie, with a soundtrack every bit as famous as the film itself that’s said to have introduced reggae to the world, boasting tracks by Jimmy Cliff, Desmond Dekker, The Slickers and Toots and the Maytals. A deserved cult classic with a gritty, authentic edge, The Harder They Come is a landmark film in Caribbean cinema.