Rockers - 25th Anniversary Edition

Horsemouth (played by real life musician, Leroy 'Horsemouth' Wallace) is a Kingston drummer, known to be one of the best session players around. But times are hard inna the ghetto and Horsemouth can't get enough work to feed his children. After he convinces his very patient wife to give him her life savings, he purchases a motorcycle and travels the island as an independent promoter, distributing the hottest reggae tunes to the record stores starved for the latest rhythms. Everything is going smoothly until Horsemouth accidently stumbles upon a massive burglary ring run by some shady "mafia boy" businessmen.

But no worries, Rasta cyaan fail. With the help of his musical bredren (including Gregory Isaacs, Burning Spear, Jacob Miller, and a host of other reggae legends) Horsemouth triumphs in the end.


Cinema verite look at the art of creative survival in JA   March 12, 1999
11 out of 11 found this review helpful

Rockers is a rough, rugged and raw look at Jamaica in the mid 70s, a time of extreme political unrest and economic desparation.

Horsemouth (played by real life musician, Leroy 'Horsemouth' Wallace) is a Kingston drummer, known to be one of the best session players around. But times are hard inna the ghetto and Horsemouth can't get enough work to feed his children. After he convinces his very patient wife to give him her life savings, he purchases a motorcycle and travels the island as an independent promoter, distributing the hottest reggae tunes to the record stores starved for the latest rhythms.

Everything is going smoothly until Horsemouth accidently stumbles upon a massive burglary ring run by some shady "mafia boy" businessmen.

But no worries, Rasta cyaan fail. With the help of his musical bredren (including Gregory Isaacs, Burning Spear, Jacob Miller, and a host of other reggae legends) Horsemouth triumphs in the end.


Loved it!   September 11, 2005
Stephen C. (Sydney, Australia)
8 out of 8 found this review helpful

I loved Rockers. Authentically captures the magic of Rasta and the Reggae scene at its heyday. Great acting, delighful and chaotic Jamaican dialogue, and well filmed. The musical performances are just awesome, especially the hauntingly beautiful acapella version of Jah No Dead by a young Burning Spear.
The patois glossary in the extras is fun if a bit cheesy, and although the interview with the director is a bit slow it is still interesting for its insight into the Jamaican music scene at the time.
This film is a one of a kind and very satisfying for lovers of Reggae, Rasta and Jamaica.


Horsemouth is the hardest salesman in town   February 18, 2000
ODB (USA)
9 out of 11 found this review helpful

This movie is a refreshing look at the Rasta way of life, in the process depicting enteprenuership, the Jamaican record industry, micro economics, passion for a classic motorbike, and imaginitive courage in the face of a downpressing system.

A truly authentic movie, so thick in dialect, and pure in inspiration. The music score fits meaningfully into every scene, and Burning Spear does some excellent melodic counseling in person.

The whole record industry element of this movie is also especially interesting with the advent of mp3 and our current music habits.

I usually don't buy VHS anymore, but I dont think this is on the list for DVD conversion- so I bought it a couple weeks ago.


Lots of Fun, Mon!   September 9, 2005
Grateful Jeff (NY)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful

I'll just add that Burning Spear's acapella solo, "Jah, No Dead"
is worth the price.