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Review #333 of 365
Movie Review of Blood Diamond (2006) [R] 138 minutes
WIP™ Scale: $14.50
Where Viewed: AMC Westminster Promenade 24, Westminster, CO
When 1st Seen: 10 December 2006
Time: 10:15 p.m.
Film's Official Website
DVD Release Date: unscheduled
Directed by: Edward Zwick (The Last Samurai)
Screenplay by: Charles Leavitt (K-PAX)
Story by: Charles Leavitt and C. Gaby Mitchell
Featured Cast (Where You Might Remember Him/Her From):
Leonardo DiCaprio (The Departed) • Djimon Hounsou (The Island) • Jennifer Connelly (Dark Water)
Soundtrack: order the CD below
Click for 'Review Lite' [a 150-word or less review of this film]
Edward Zwick's previous film, The Last Samurai, was met with similarly with controversy as his new film, Blood Diamond. You cannot blame a guy for trying, however, to make incredible films which tell stories where the character of a man is smelted from the molten metal in his veins and choices will determine if, in the end, he is brilliant, malleable, and regal like gold or brittle and bitter like aged tin. Blame him to a degree for stunt casting with Tom Cruise and Leonardo DiCaprio or extol his virtues for constructing the mill where they both have achieved a new depth of understanding of their own capacities as actors. Rail on accents rightly or wrongly while missing completely other more important virtues unveiled. All of this is my polite way of requesting critics, or worse pre-critics (people who criticize a film without having even scene it basing judgment on previews or the previous work of the artists involved in the film's creation), to take a step back and really admire this project and the film that resulted from their efforts.
Having just witnessed the aftermath of the imperial coffee plantations as they still to this day devastate the economy and life blood of Ethiopia in the documentary, Black Gold, it was all the more impacting to see a contrasting film which, in far more brutal fashion, dramatizes the results of the European demand for another of Africa's abundant resources, diamonds. In this case, the political and economic turmoil caused by the still small percentage of diamonds mined in Africa by forced labor to fund the wars of dictators—therefore called either blood diamonds or conflict diamonds—was stupefying. The raw brutality was brought to light with multiple ethical problems probed simultaneously: child soldiers, the purchase of conflict diamonds, the protection of the diamond market by limiting supply, the legacy of white rule in many African nations, and the smuggling of national resources into other nations for export. From a political activist's point of view, this film literally is a diamond mine. These issues, especially but not limited to examples of the horrific atrocities that have been dramatized here, provoke the conscience. How can anyone sit back and watch a brutal militia quite literally enter a small village and machine-gun everyone in the village to death and depart with the former homes ablaze? In front of eyes of fans of epic journeys of a man's soul, the film satisfies as diamond smuggler Danny Archer (Leonardo DiCaprio), son of parents murdered when the whites were forced from former Rhodesia to flee to South Africa for asylum, must reconcile a life of revenge on a continent that has offered him nothing but bloodshed and tears with a new-found purpose in re-uniting a father and son. Which route will he choose? Will he steal one of the largest pink diamonds discovered in decades and free himself at last from Africa, or will he give it up to serve a more noble purpose and cause? Will he become the aforementioned honorable gold or the powered tin? Can a human being overcome that which our environment carved for us?
Having just witnessed the aftermath of the imperial coffee plantations as they still to this day devastate the economy and life blood of Ethiopia in the documentary, Black Gold, it was all the more impacting to see a contrasting film which, in far more brutal fashion, dramatizes the results of the European demand for another of Africa's abundant resources, diamonds. In this case, the political and economic turmoil caused by the still small percentage of diamonds mined in Africa by forced labor to fund the wars of dictators—therefore called either blood diamonds or conflict diamonds—was stupefying. The raw brutality was brought to light with multiple ethical problems probed simultaneously: child soldiers, the purchase of conflict diamonds, the protection of the diamond market by limiting supply, the legacy of white rule in many African nations, and the smuggling of national resources into other nations for export. From a political activist's point of view, this film literally is a diamond mine. These issues, especially but not limited to examples of the horrific atrocities that have been dramatized here, provoke the conscience. How can anyone sit back and watch a brutal militia quite literally enter a small village and machine-gun everyone in the village to death and depart with the former homes ablaze? In front of eyes of fans of epic journeys of a man's soul, the film satisfies as diamond smuggler Danny Archer (Leonardo DiCaprio), son of parents murdered when the whites were forced from former Rhodesia to flee to South Africa for asylum, must reconcile a life of revenge on a continent that has offered him nothing but bloodshed and tears with a new-found purpose in re-uniting a father and son. Which route will he choose? Will he steal one of the largest pink diamonds discovered in decades and free himself at last from Africa, or will he give it up to serve a more noble purpose and cause? Will he become the aforementioned honorable gold or the powered tin? Can a human being overcome that which our environment carved for us?
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Roughly, the story begins with simultaneous threads playing out. Danny Archer is working to smuggle a brutal general's diamonds from Sierra Leone into Liberia where they will be sold and resold and resold and mixed in with other diamonds from India eventually to end up in the hands of a fictional diamond conglomerate in the UK which buys and hoardes diamonds to drive up price and reduce supply. Meanwhile, the simple fisherman, Solomon Vandy (Djimon Hounsou) works so hard to keep his small family with wife and three children healthy and happy with a dream, someday, of his young son becoming a doctor. He would do anything to protect the future of his son. Unfortunately, the conflicts between a brutal general and the government of Sierra Leone is worsening as the general's supply of weapons due to the sales of the diamonds is growing more rapidly than that of the government's troops. The war, as it were, is being won by the rebels funded by the immoral, if not illegal, diamond trade. In a moment that will change his life forever, Solomon's family is splintered as the rebels attack his village, kidnap his wife and children, and abduct him to become a forced laborer in the general's diamond mine. It is there that he finds, quite by accident, the giant pink diamond, hundreds of carets in weight. He hides it and buries it, but not before one of the general's men realizes what has happened. Government troops attack the mine just in time to prevent the general from getting his hands on the diamond. Unfortunately, they cannot distinguish rebels from their forced laborers and all are put in prison. This is where Danny Archer, who's been arrested for smuggling, first meets Solomon and hears the wild story of the huge pink diamond.
"Leonardo DiCaprio and Djimon Hounsou are incredible…exceptionally moving and powerful"
The thought of recovering the diamond becomes his obsession, motivating him to get out of prison himself and then to help Solomon get out. What he doesn't expect is that a chance meeting with an American journalist, Maddy Bowen (Jennifer Connelly) will provide him the cover he needs to build false trust with Solomon as he can use Maddy's credentials to help located Solomon's missing family members and, eventually, use this trust to get Solomon to give him or lead him to the diamond. The resulting film then becomes one of on-going struggle as the trio faces insurmountable odds to find Solomon's family and recover the diamond. A journey of incredible passion, the depth of Solomon's commitment is remarkable as is his unrelenting determination. Maddy, also, works to uncover the evidence of the blood diamond trade in Africa to bring international awareness to the plight of the people who are slaughtered using weapons purchased with funds made readily available by hungry diamond buyers throughout the world.
Click Still Photo to Purchase
Both Leonardo DiCaprio and Djimon Hounsou are incredible in this film. Say what you will about Mr. DiCaprio's accents but (a) know that he uses several as his character is fully capable of speaking the languages and lingo of various nations and tribes, and (b) give him some slack for it is proper to criticize accents if they detract from the film, and here his does not. It is easy to tell that he is working very hard to sound as authentic as possible without overdoing it—not and easy thing to do. But, rather than focusing on his accent, focus on the development of his character. Has he done what it takes to given the choices of his character authenticity? Think about him as an actor and the incredible journey he has made. His face propelled the Titanic to the biggest box-office numbers of a generation as much as James Cameron's special effects get all the credit. Probably few would have imagined that he would go on to be capable of the performances he's given in his last three films. He had to overcome the stereotypes and stigma associated with his early success in order to reach a certain credibility. Let this performance serve as the threshold whereby he can finally shed the labels and move forward as one of the truly remarkable actors of his generation. Like it or not, and too many people have been hoping his performances were accidentally good, because they cannot fathom a kid growing up a teen idol becoming a legitimately great actor. As for Djimon Hounsou, his performance absolutely shimmers as his face reflects the honor of his character and his absolute resolve to reunite his family. He is absolutely worthy of consideration for acting nominations this year. He is so natural in his role that not a single moment passes where one doubts his is Solomon Vandy.
Edward Zwick deserved immeasurable credit for taking on this incredibly complex, politically unpopular topic with a rich and powerful industry scrambling to ensure they are not negatively impacted by the film's release. There would be no reason for them to worry if the Kimberly Process which etches all legally-produced diamonds with a traceable signature to prevent the sale of conflict diamonds works, and the diamond industry claims it does. But, again, while it would be sad and terrible to see the diamond industry lose money due to the harsh realities presented in the film to exemplify the issues, it is far worse that incredible atrocities would be committed in order to control the supplies or using funds from the sales of diamonds. Everyone involved in the making of the film deserves credit for producing an exceptionally moving and powerful film.
Edward Zwick deserved immeasurable credit for taking on this incredibly complex, politically unpopular topic with a rich and powerful industry scrambling to ensure they are not negatively impacted by the film's release. There would be no reason for them to worry if the Kimberly Process which etches all legally-produced diamonds with a traceable signature to prevent the sale of conflict diamonds works, and the diamond industry claims it does. But, again, while it would be sad and terrible to see the diamond industry lose money due to the harsh realities presented in the film to exemplify the issues, it is far worse that incredible atrocities would be committed in order to control the supplies or using funds from the sales of diamonds. Everyone involved in the making of the film deserves credit for producing an exceptionally moving and powerful film.
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Click for 'Review Lite' [a 150-word review of this film]
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Other Projects Featuring Blood Diamond (2006)
Cast Members
Leonardo DiCaprio
• Djimon Hounsou • Jennifer ConnellyDirector
Edward Zwick
Screen Writer
Charles Leavitt
| CD Soundtrack | DVD | VHS |
Blood Diamond (2006) Review-lite [150-word cap]
Edward Zwick's controversial new film Blood Diamond, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Djimon Hounsou brings to light in a raw and horrifying way the underbelly of the blood diamond trade in Sierra Leone during a time of civil war. The film is really about the character of a man being smelted from the molten metal in his veins and choices that will determine if, in the end, he is brilliant, malleable, and regal like gold or brittle and bitter like aged tin. Both DiCaprio and Hounsou are incredible. Give Zwick immeasurable credit for taking on this incredibly complex, politically unpopular topic with a rich and powerful industry scrambling to ensure they are not negatively impacted by the film's release and producing an exceptionally moving and powerful film.
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