Shot bag (2002)

Directed by: Cess Silvera | 94 minutes | action, drama, crime | Actors: Ky-Mani Marley, Spragga Benz, Paul Campbell, Wyclef Jean, Louie Rankin, Screechie Bop, Lennox Lewis, San San, Jabba, Assassin, Beast, Fabien Dominique, JR Silvera, Carlton Grant Jr.

In 2002 at the film festival in Toronto ‘Shottas’ is presented as a coarse and rough Jamaican gangster film. The term shottas is derived from the American word shot-caller. The term shot-caller was coined by the American police. It stands for the person who calls the shots within a criminal organization. The film shows the rise and fall of two young Jamaican boys, who try to get out of a hopeless social position and turn to the criminal path because in their eyes this is the fastest way to riches.

Given the subject of the film, ‘Shottas’ is often compared to ‘Scarface’. That is where the comparison ends. ‘Scarface’ stands head and shoulders above ‘Shottas’ on all fronts. The makers have not put any effort into a decent storyline, dialogues and character development. The lead roles (of Biggs and Wayne) are played by two musicians, Ky-Mani Marley (indeed, the son of the late Bob Marley) and Spragga Benz, who act in such a way that the viewer is completely indifferent about what happens to their characters. The characters are one-dimensional and stereotypical. A good example of this one-dimensionality is that Wayne wants to take revenge immediately after the death of the brother. He expresses no other emotion. Also the presence of the psycho sidekick Mad Max (Paul Campbell) cannot ensure that the viewer’s attention does not wander. His motives for leaving numbers written in blood at the crime scene are not apparent, other than that it should lead the viewer to believe that he is not quite tracking (but that was also clear as witnessed by the scene in which he smokes a cigarette that in the severed hand of his newly killed victim). On the other hand, the authentic Jamaican language does benefit the film.

The hip editing and the abundance of ammunition flying around should keep the film lover awake, but this hardly works. What stands out in a positive way is the well-chosen reggae soundtrack, to which Wyclef Jean has made a major contribution. He manages to nullify his positive contribution to ‘Shottas’ himself by also wanting to act in the film. He should have left this out, his role as a Miami gangster leaves no impression. ‘Shottas’ is one of thirteen out of a dozen. Not a shot-caller, but a film that you will soon forget after seeing it.