Third World Cop

'WORLD' PARTY Audrey Reid (l.) and Campbell enjoy the moment

Movie Review

Third World Cop (2012)

EW's GRADE
C

Details Rated: R; Length: 98 Minutes; Genre: Mystery and Thriller; With: Paul Campbell and Mark Danvers; Distributor: Palm Pictures

Imagine ''The Harder They Come'' without the sublime pulse of Jimmy Cliff's music, and it might look something like Third World Cop, a low-budget crime drama that has become the all-time top-grossing movie in Jamaica. Shot on digital video, in the tin-roof ghettos of Kingston, the movie, despite a few token reggae tunes, lacks the music's sun-drenched sensuality, and its vibrant outlaw-freedom-fighter mythology, too. Like the earlier film, though, this one feels like a bulletin from the Caribbean underground. The new message: Accents aside, Jamaica is now an indistinguishable part of the global trash-movie culture.

In his black beret and silver shades, Capone (Paul Campbell), a tropical Dirty Harry, attempts to pull the plug on a local gunrunner. What he doesn't know is that his old friend (Mark Danvers) has joined the crooks. For a while, the freshness of the setting camouflages the clichés, but ''Third World Cop'' ends up about as exotic as a straight-to-cable potboiler.

Originally posted Apr 14, 2000
You Might Also Like

Add your comment

The rules: Keep it clean, and stay on the subject or we might delete your comment. If you see inappropriate language, e-mail us. An asterisk * indicates a required field.

500 characters remaining
Advertisement