Edward Zwick’s Blood Diamond is a subcutaneous look at the controversy that has surrounded the diamond mining industry in Africa for decades and, on a grander scale, a touch on Africa’s condition and politics and how they relate to the rest of the world.
Blood Diamond stars Leonardo DiCaprio as crafty diamond smuggler Danny Archer. DiCaprio is a fine actor who develops the character believably and completely. His performance is the stand out of the movie. The rest of the film is not quite a diamond in the rough.
Action scenes are the frosting on the cake of Blood Diamond but the frosting is a little too thick and the cake that makes up the plot a trifle thin. After about the third rebel massacre and round of atrocities the audience pretty much understood that bad things happen in Africa sometimes. In case you didn’t get the point though, Zwick decided to drive it home with about another half dozen scenes of mayhem. That part of the movie gets old- that is saying a lot coming from a fan of shoot-em-ups like me.
Blood Diamond does feature some marvelous landscapes and good photography and paints an understandable if not summarized version of the challenges that face Africa and one of the many ways the region has been exploited.
A remaining bright spot on Blood Diamond is Djimon Hounsou’s performance as Solomon Vandy. His portrayal is a little corny but he is cast well and generally does a nice job with the script and character so he carries the part.
I liked Blood Diamond but wanted to love it and it could have been a real gem (sorry) but it was a little rough in terms of execution. It is certainly worth a look and scores some points for originality.
I give Blood Diamond two and half of five stars: **1/2.
Well I can only tell you based on the following experience:
In 2001 I was in Jordan and teamed up with a fellow from South Africa. His initials were A.W.B. Seems Mister B was, among other things, his nation’s largest producer and importer of soft-core adult oriented films. He and I were doing an ultra-distance running race across the desert. He recounted endless outrageous tales that were quite amusing and only appropriate for the desert in half way between Iraq and Jordan on what felt like the eve of WWIII.
Based on my experience with Mr. B’s accent I would suggest that Leonardo’s accent is reasonably authentic, or authentic enough to fool a guy like me…
I work almost daily with a fellow of South African heritage. I’d say from the commercials that Leo’s accent is “close enough, if perhaps a bit exaggerated.”
I agree with Tom about the accent. I think the movie is outstanding and about as good as one could expect from Hollywood in dealing with the subject but still making a very Hollywood-y film.
Having spent 3 years in Mozambique and many months in SA and Zim, I have to say Leo got it as right as he could have: His character became more and more believable, in my opinion. Same for the actor who played Solomon, his counterpart. Jennifer Connelly, lovely as ever, was pretty lame in this one, though: Her charater was the least believable part, IMHO.
My friend who I watched it with spent 1 year in Sierra Leone in 91-92 and he was impressed with the movie. I have some more to add but I am at work and will contribute more later: Most things are accurate, some are not.
Leo’s South African / Zim accent comes off pretty good. Leo’s character becomes more and more believable as the movie wears on, no easy feat … Whoever wrote the SA dialogue did their homework: He says stuff like “Magic” and “Hold up, my bru” and call black “munts” … crap I heard time and again when I was in SA. Works for me. I would guess most of the whites they hired were from SA as well: There’s one old hippy chainsmoking camerman who is perfect … The the colonel, (who played the Mummy in “The Mummy”) is a famous actor from SA: He is quite a badass in this movie. And one more vote for the accent and the movie: I ran about half of the Tucson marathon yesterday with a woman from LA who grew up in joberg: She said Leo did a “great job.”
Other tidbits: My buddy was a Sierra Leone Peace Corps volunteer until he was evacuated in 1992. He liked the movie and said lots of it appeared to be filmed in Freetown and other parts of the country. He said the African language and the pidgeon English they use was darn good as well.
Nitpicking: My buddy said Freetown is even filthier than in the movie … He said its smaller too (they do some ariel views which he doubted) and there’s no nice hotel where the foreigners stayed … And the kamerja militia, which play a cameo role, were not quite as bad the RUF, but he said they were as brutal as anyone. In the movie they are portrayed as pretty quaint … We also doubted there were a lot of whites and foreigners chilling in Freetown the day it fell (Most left the days before) … He said the wildlife and landscape is nearly perfect except one brief shot of some elephant, which numbered less than 200 in 1992, so were likley all gone by 1999 … And Solomon (the guy who plays him) doesn’t look Sierra Leonian, but whatever, he is from West Africa (Ivory Coast I think) so close enough …
Sorry if this is tedious … Just my day to be a Know-it-All I guess …
Anyway, I thought the movie was a blast and excellent: A must see on the big screen as well. After embarrassing crap like “Tears of the Sun” I am glad to see some decent mainstream movies about Africa such as “The Constant Gardener” and “Blood Diamond”
I appreciate the insights- your perspective is more close up and informed than mine. My only exposure to South African culture is through a soft-core porn producer in the middle of the desert at night…
he sounded like a very bad brit.
but i love Leo D. so will see it.
Leo was the absolute best in Gilbert Grape. He should have won some kind of award for his role in that one. I hate to typecast people but Leo will always be little Arnie to me.
everybody is different but this movie deserves much more than ** and a half* IMO. As far as I’m concerned, this is the best movie of the year. If not for the last 3 years.
i FINALLY saw this movie last night, and LOVED IT bevause it revealed a story that few know about, or refuse to acknowledge.
as many of you have heard before, i’ve been on the anti-diamond tip forever, it is a subject that gets me hot, and one i deeply believe in. But, outside of myself, i really hope this film enables more people to see the reality of this wicked trade and how manipulative and sickening the diamond business is.
so, i loved the story and applaude it. i wonder if it will cause anyone to second guess their diamond lust…(hopefully so).
leo was great, he is one of my favorite actors. jennifer c. is beautiful and i felt her best moments were in the end of the film. she had a background role, and filled it just fine.
“After about the third rebel massacre and round of atrocities the audience pretty much understood that bad things happen in Africa sometimes.”
Sometimes? You should see a triple feature of “Blood Diamond,” “Last King Of Scotland,” and “The Constant Gardener.” Then throw in “Hotel Rwanda,” and your despair will be complete.
I appreciate the insights- your perspective is more close up and informed than mine. My only exposure to South African culture is through a soft-core porn producer in the middle of the desert at night…
Whoa whoa, don’t ask…don’t tell, remember?
I thought the movie was pretty good at making the statement(s) it tried to. Reminded me of a PBS documentary from several years ago that covered the diamond industry, debeers in particular, and showed a very ugly side to the international control of resource and manipulation of the consumer base. That is where I feel the movie was weak, there should have been a short factual summary of the diamond industry as it continues to exist, rather than the “Sierra Leone has been at peace since 2000” or whatever the end screen showed. I also agree that DiCaprio got better as the movie wore on. All in all, a serious subject, and not a movie we’ll see heralded as “the feel good movie of the summer!”.
Is it violent? I can’t watch violent films anymore. To watch violence for entertainment is far more obscene in my view than watching soft core porn. Even if the violence is there to provide some moral edification, I just can’t watch it. But seeing as you have seen it, do you think people should refuse to buy diamonds, because of the violence, bloodshed and exploitation involved?
as for the engagement ring, there are a plethora of other stone choices…but i encourage you to research about Canadian diamonds so you can make the most informed decision possible.
here is some other information about laws (the Kimberely Process) set forth from 2003. You’ll see that while it’s a good initiative, it really lacks the ability to guarantee anything.
By 2003, more than 50 nations had agreed to the so-called “Kimberley Process,” a system of import/export inspection and certification of conflict-free diamonds. The U.S. government later turned those rules into law. In the wake of these changes, the jewelry industry now estimates that the availability of smuggled conflict diamonds has been reduced to under 1 percent of all rough diamonds from about 4 percent.
Human rights groups acknowledge that the Kimberley Process represents a positive step, and point to diamond retailing giants like Tiffany & Co. as adhering to strict criteria for selecting “bloodless” suppliers. But representatives of Global Witness maintain that because the Kimberley Process calls only for voluntary self-regulation by the diamond industry, monitoring remains a problem, especially in countries like the Ivory Coast, where they say diamonds are helping to fund a rebel group controlling the northern part of the country. So Global Witness contends there is no way to guarantee a diamond is 100 percent conflict-free.
turn a rock into a ‘must have’ for most women. m’lady is aware of the issues around diamonds in general, and yet she’s still drawn to them (I must admit I’m getting sucked into using the lingo and looking at them through the magnifying glass,etc.).
i assure you, take her to see blood diamond, and the next time you see a rock, you will be revolted at the mere sight of the things. and you’ll save a few thousand dollars and many lives in the process. what a deal …
personally, i would rate the film an easy 5 stars out of 5 stars. i am no particular fan of dicaprio, but he does a superb job and he’s really learning how to stick his neck on the line in powerful and disturbing films.
the most important points the film tries to show about these insane diamonds: there is absolutely no way to know where the money you spend on diamonds goes (and i mean any kind of diamonds, certified, uncertified, it simply does not matter). most likely your hard-earned cash goes to incredibly vicious and corrupt folks who buy bullets for killing, kidnapping, and raping; machetes for dismembering limbs; and/or to buy luxuries for themselves while their people live all around them in desperate poverty, hunger, and filth.
so, tom, has your opinion of diamond ownerhip changed ?
In the wake of these changes, the jewelry industry now estimates that the availability of smuggled conflict diamonds has been reduced to under 1 percent of all rough diamonds from about 4 percent.
Let me get this straight. ‘‘Blood Diamonds’’ represent between 1 and 4 percend of all rough diamonds and because of this, you and others are boycotting the entire Diamond Industry? That seems a little extreme to me.
