We Run Tings, Tings Nuh Run We
Studio: Palm Pictures
WorkNameSort: We Run Tings, Tings Nuh Run We
Despite years of being used as a scenic (and inexpensive) location for American and European films, Jamaica doesn’t get much attention for its native film industry. Chris Blackwell ‘ founder of Island Records and Palm Pictures, and perhaps the biggest Jamaicaphile this side of Garvey’s ghost ‘ has long sought to reverse that, and this three-DVD boxed set released by his company compiles three of the most notable Jamaican films made post-Harder They Come. Of the trio, 1997’s Dancehall Queen is the best-known to U.S. audiences, while 1999’s Third World Cop is the most successful film in Jamaican box-office history. But it’s 1982’s Countryman, rather than those popular urban thrillers, that is the highlight of the box. While suffused with the gritty danger of the other two movies, Countryman takes advantage of its raw, rural scenery to present a hard-boiled story in an evocative and beautiful environment.
This article appears in Nov 8-14, 2006.