Dancehall Queen
Dancehall Queen is a 1997 indie Jamaican film co-directed and written by Don Letts, Suzanne Fenn and Ed Wallace. starring Audrey Reid, who plays Marcia, a street vendor struggling to raise a bad-tempered daughter, Tanya (Cherine Anderson). Directed by Rick Elgood.
| Dancehall Queen | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Rick Elgood Don Letts |
| Produced by | Carl Bradshaw Carolyn Pfeiffer Chris Blackwell |
| Written by | Suzanne Fenn Don Letts Ed Wallace |
| Starring | Audrey Reid Paul Campbell Beenie Man Cherine Anderson |
| Music by | Wally Badarou |
| Cinematography | Louis Mulvey |
| Edited by | Suzanne Fenn |
Release date | October 10, 1997 |
Running time | 98 minutes |
| Language | English, Jamaican Patois |
Plot
Marcia Green (Audrey Reid) is a single mom and street vendor barely scraping by even with a financial assist from the seemingly avuncular Larry (Carl Davis), a gun-toting strongman with a twisted desire for Marcia's teenage daughter Tanya (Cherine Anderson) who he then decides to pursue. Complicating things is Priest (Paul Campbell), a murderous hoodlum who killed Marcia's friend and now is terrorizing the defenseless woman. Facing three big problems (Larry, Priest, and without money), Marcia arrives at an inspired solution: develop an alter ego, a dancing celebrity called the Mystery Lady who can compete in a cash-prize contest and put both of the men against one another.
She does so and Marcia very amusingly carries out her complicated plan, with a little help from sympathetic friends.
Cast
Audrey Reid as Marcia, a struggling street vendor, who decides to use dancing to better her situation. So, she takes on the persona of the Mystery Lady, to raise money.
Cherine Anderson as Tanya, Marcia's older daughter. Trying to live a normal life, she has to deal with the advances of Larry, the wealthy man that her mother seeks money from.
Mark Danvers as Junior, Marcia's younger brother and Tanya's uncle . After witnessing his friend's death, at the hands of Priest, he fears he'll be murdered next.
Carl Davis as Larry, a well-off man, who has an interest in Tanya, he falls for the Mystery Lady.
Paul Campbell as Priest, the knife-wielding hoodlum who's pursuing Marcia
Carl Bradshaw as Police Officer #1
Beenie Man as himself
Lady Saw as herself
Soundtrack
Dancehall Queen mixed recent hits with songs created for the movie, including the title track by Beenie Man.[1]
References
- Kevin O'Brien Chang, Wayne Chen, Reggae Routes: The Story of Jamaican Music, 1998, p. 216: "'The Harder They Come' collected some of the cream of reggae's golden years from 1967 to 1971 with only the title track being a new song. 'Dancehall Queen' mixed some recent hits with songs created for the movie. ...Still 'Dancehall Queen' was the biggest song of 1997, heading the Star Top 40 for nine weeks."