Very little about the Jamaican culture of reggae music and Rastafarianism- which can be called politics, religion or mysticism, depending on who is doing the calling- has reached American screens. WORD SOUND AND POWER is a documentary about the Soul Syndicate, Jamaicas finest group of reggae instrumentalists (they have provided backing for records by Bob Marley and The Wailers, Toots and The Maytals, The Heptones, Burning Spear, Jimmy Cliff, and many others) and the film is unique in its blend of tension and relaxation, movement between city and the country, in its mix of good talk and good music. It is the closest American film audiences are likely to get to modern Jamaican music and to the ideas, experiences and emotions behind that music.