The Harder They Come

Though the low budget of this film is obvious, it is an amazing story, nonetheless so because it's based on a true one! It's also sometimes quite beautifully filmed.

What seems like it will be a simple country-boy-makes-good-in-the-city fairytale turns into a darker story of ego, searing poverty, class warfare, and a lust for fame. At first we're drawn to the Ivan, then gradually repulsed.

The compelling plot is built on a fantastic set of characters that weave a chillingly accurate portrayal of Jamaica in the late 60's -- a tapestry of desperately poor but infinitely resilient people.

To those IMDb reviewers who thought the story immoral - would you say the same thing about Bonnie & Clyde, Scarface, or Cagney's Public Enemy? This movie examines the effect of despair, desperation, and ambition. It's not a fairytale -- grow up.

I think "The Harder They Come" has been cut and re-cut many times over the years. I saw a current version of it recently, and it was not the same film I saw in 1972. There were many scenes I recall that were missing. I suspect no one commenting about the film on this site has seen the original 1972 release.

I have read that it was originally a revolutionary film, but was reduced to an anti-drug cliché diatribe through much re-editing.

When you saw it, did you see the following two things:

(1) On two occasions, when Jimmy Cliff's character got caned, they showed him stretched over a barrel with his penis hanging through a hole. Then he lost his water when the policeman hit him. They showed a close up of his penis hanging there with water coming out.

(2) When his character's new record became popular, a scene with a highly effeminate DJ, who used "love" and "lover" in every sentence, taking a telephone request for the record. "Hello Lover, this is Bob's love line. What do you want to hear, Lover?" Or some such.

I did not see these scenes when I saw the film recently, and I am sure there must have been many other things that were not the same as in 1972 original.

Does anyone know how to obtain and authentic 1972 version of this film?

Mike

It has been said of many films, but this one was indeed "ahead of its time". It is a love story, social commentary, political manifesto and comedy all rolled-in-one. You can't help but like Jimmy Cliff's character. He's trying to cut a record, romance a preacher's daughter, and "get what's his" all at the same time.

This film is especially important in the history of Black film, I would say, since the character of Ivan is clearly portrayed as a complex character. Even the cinematography conveys the idea that "black is beautiful" (remember the (semi-)nude scene in the lake? Can't say enough good things about it. See it, you won't be sorry!

Ivan is a country boy in Jamaica who comes to see his Grandmother and `make it big' by recording a record. However when he finds himself exploited by a record producer he turns to drug running to make money. When he kills a cop who is in on the trade he goes on the run and finds fame as an outlaw standing up against `the man'.

I first saw this in a cinema in 1995 and it was fully subtitled, I watched it again last night and it had no subtitles. It was slightly hard to follow some of the very thick dialogue so I suggest if you have the choice that you go for the subtitles unless patwa is a very familiar dialect to you.

The plot takes swipes at the exploitative music business but also the nature of celebrity and the problems of drugs. However at it's heart it's a reggae gangster movie that is gritty and enjoyable. The story is involving but really it's the detail of the setting that carries the film. The camera allows a great sense of place and really captures the mood and place well, using crowd shots and wandering shots to music. Really the best scenes are all natural as music plays in the fore ground.

The music is one of the strongest aspects to the film – where the gangster element is sprawling and relaxed, the music allows us to accept this whole chilled out vibe as just part of the film. The cast also helps greatly by being very realistic without much effort, not trying to make the accent easier is a brave move if you want to sell the film! Cliff is easily believable and very watchable, likewise almost all the cast are great – many not being actors.

Overall the plot may wander in the way only a Jamaican can! But the music and the vibe more than make this a cult film that is well worth watching whether with subtitles or not!

the harder they come, a jamaican experience in watching this film. A partially true story of a infamous gunman (rygin) being chased all the the way to the sandy shores and cut down in a hail of bullets. Shows also the corrupt side of the music industry. I remember when this movie was at the theaters but was too young to see it then. Score 7 out of 10 as being the first shoot him up movie from jamaica. dialect might be hard to understand if you are not jamaican or aquainted with caribbean accent.