Blood Diamond

Bloody bling
Review by Vives Anunciacion

Directed by Edward Zwick
Written by Charles Leavitt
Starring Leonardo Di Caprio, Djimon Hounsou, Jennifer Connelly
R13/ 138 minutes
Warner Brothers
*** (3 stars)

In the 1990s, rebels in the African country of Sierra Leone illegally mined and traded diamonds to finance their war against their government. In Blood Diamond, Leo DiCaprio plays a gem smuggler engaged in the trade and Djimon Hounsou plays one of the rebels’ mining slaves who discovers a rare pink diamond. Both actors deliver brilliant performances, even if the movie’s storytelling requires some polishing of its own.

Against a backdrop of poverty and Africa’s beautiful landscapes (captured in beautiful cinematography), Director Edward Zwick melodramatizes (quite commonly with his message films like Glory, Courage Under Fire and Last Samurai) the issue of “conflict diamonds” – diamonds mined in war zones then sold illegally to finance and sustain the insurgency.

DiCaprio plays Danny Archer, a former soldier of Rhodesia (now known as Zimbabwe) who engages smuggling in, at that time, war-torn Africa. Danny is caught smuggling conflict diamonds across the border and is sent to prison, where he meets Solomon Vandy (Hounsou), a farmer captured by the local revolutionary army (Revolutionary United Front) and forced into slavery as diamond miners. The illegal mine site is raided by the government and the slaves are sent to prison along with the rebels.

Danny promises to help Solomon find his family if Solomon will tell Danny where he hid the pink diamond. Half action movie and half human drama, Blood Diamond highlights the conflicting interests of a smuggler separated from society and a slave separated from his family.
Between them is a rare diamond worth the price of their freedom, and an idealistic journalist (Jennifer Connelly) who can actually change their lives.

At more than two hours the “action” movie runs slow and the message over-dramatized. Connelly’s morally-inclined role is the spirit of the movie, but her romantic role is unnecessary in the scheme of things. Despite the real issues and the intense performances, Blood Diamond is an artificial gem that put more carats in its bling than actual storytelling.