‘Third World Cop’, the breakout hit that defied an industry

The year is 1999, and it’s a terrific year for cinema. The Matrix captivated viewers with a digital world, The Phantom Menace took audiences back to a galaxy far, far away. In Jamaican cinemas, the place people wanted to go was right in their own backyards. The breakout success at the turn of the century was none other than Third World Cop, but by today’s standards, it may never have been made.

The film was the brainchild of producer Chris Blackwell, writers Suzanne Fenn and Chris Salewicz, and co-writer and director Chris Browne. Speaking about the film’s inception, Browne recalls a conversation with Blackwell where he set out an aim to surpass the gross of Dancehall Queen. “He goes: ‘I want you to stay on schedule. I don’t want to spend more than my budget, and I want to make more money than Dancehall Queen,’” recalls Browne.

The plan was simple. Just as the films Dancehall Queen and The Harder They Come had earned returns for their featured musical artistes, Third World Cop was to do the same for the acts under the purview of Chris Blackwell’s production company, Island Records, after its acquisition by the music label Polygram. “Coming off of the back of The Harder They Come, which was a massive album sale, once Polygram took over, he [Chris Blackwell] just made a deal with them to just make movies out of Jamaica. Obviously, this was pre music videos and YouTube, so it was a way to market the music,” Browne shared. The idea, he said, was to sell the music, but what they ended up with was something more.

The influence of music is apparent throughout. The cast is packed with artistes including Elephant Man and Ninja Man, whose role in the film is instrumental. Third World Cop’s 13-track album was produced by Sly and Robbie and features the likes of Beenie Man, Luciano, and Lady G, who also appear in the film.

PLOT

It tells the story of policeman Capone, who makes a name for himself cleaning up the streets of Port Antonio. His track record earns him a promotion to patrol his home of Kingston. There he learns that the criminals he is hunting are the same faces he knew as a young boy.

Third World Cop is a violent, explicit film. It features drug use, gunplay, and opens with a sex scene. It is the kind of film that would make any tourist board quake in its boots and certainly be laughed out of any pitch for corporate sponsorship. Still the film caught fire with its audience. “The minute there’s a mention of a gun, they run scared into the hills. So when I first came back from film school and tried to get any money from any corporate entity, they would try to change things or water it down. I would say ‘No, it’s okay. I don’t want to change the story I want to tell because of your image.’ Because then what’s the point? I’m [not] doing a commercial for you,” said Browne, describing his experience in attempting to obtain funding for the film.

The film also unabashedly uses Patios and makes reference to the local environment. In one scene, a character declares that he will help the government avoid any court fees and simply send a wanted criminal to Dovecot. That specificity is what most local film-makers would avoid for fear of limiting the film’s reach with international audiences but it was not a consideration for Browne. “I think that if you’re making a movie for half a million dollars, you have the Caribbean, and you have the diaspora. If the film breaks out of that direct audience, fantastic. Those are the people who will take the time to learn or already have committed to Jamaica. Anything under half a million, why are we worried about anyone else?” declares Browne.

The movie’s accessibility goes even further. Third World Cop is deeply entrenched in the world of Jamaican gang violence. Thanks to copious research and interviews with the local police, the film-makers were able to craft a script that spoke to reality. “They had so many funny true stories where we’d go ‘Really?’ and so we’d have to put that in,” recalls Browne.

But while the film contains police anecdotes, what you won’t find is any talk of politics. It takes a look at organised crime, and the smuggling of guns, suggesting a sprawling conspiracy. Despite its multilayered plot, it never invokes the involvement of political officials. Third World Cop has no problem showing you brutal acts of murder but shudders at the thought of inciting any backlash from a passionate political people.

“Blackwell just wanted it to be a police story, and not anything political in any sense of the inner city. Which was a challenge to write without referring to politics of any nature only because the inner city tends to be very politicised,” said Browne

At the heart of the film is its story, which tells a tale of brotherhood, betrayal, and brutality. The cast is full of heavy hitters like Paul Campbell, and Carl Bradshaw, whose portrayal of the hook-handed don in colourful feathered hats is captivating. Its grasp of humour in the midst of tension makes it impressively approachable. It is far better than it has any right to be for a film that was shot in only 21 days and began as a glorified music video.

Damian Levy is a film critic and podcaster for Damian Michael Movies.