Blood Diamond
With Blood Diamond director Edward Zwick has made an old fashioned action/adventure picture with a message.
The action takes place in Sierra Leone in the late 1990s. Solomon Vandy (Djimon Honsou) is a fisherman who lives in a village with his wife and children. He encourages his son to go to school so that he will have better opportunities then his father. But the rebels are at war with the government and before you can blink an eye the family is split up. Solomon winds up as a prisoner working in the diamond fields. The diamonds that he and the others are picking are known as conflict diamonds because they are sold for a lot of money in order to fund the civil war that rocks his country. One day Solomon finds a big pink diamond and manages to bury it in a spot without anyone seeing (or so the thinks).
Enter Danny Archer (Leonardo DiCaprio), a diamond smuggler who lacks morals. While Archer and Solomon are both in prison Archer gets wind that Solomon has found a pink diamond. For reasons that benefit him, Archer makes sure that Solomon is released from jail the same time he is.
The third main character is Maddy Bowen (Jennifer Connelly), an American journalist who specializes in writing about the world's hot spots. She meets Archer at a bar and there is an immediate attraction. She and Solomon help to turn Archer from someone who doesn't care about things to someone with a conscience.
With the help of Archer and Maddy, Solomon locates his wife and two daughters in a refugee camp. But where is his son? The boy has been trained as one of many child soldiers who are ready to shoot to kill. And that is all that I am going to tell you about the plot.
Blood Diamond is a good but flawed film. There are some cliches and also a bit of predictability. Nevertheless, I found myself engrossed in the story. Connelly is fine in her role but it isn't that challenging. DiCaprio's accent is okay and with this film and The Departed he has proven himself to be a really good actor. He has finally shaken that baby face look that he has had in most of his films. But the best one in the film is Honsou. You can really feel his character's pain.
And Eduardo Serra's cinematography of the African landscape is gorgeous.
Blood Diamond has an important message for all of us. Whether it is diamonds, gold or other items we should try to find out how they were obtained/manufactured. Although it is impossible for us to always be vigilant about these things we should do our best. Other people's lives depend on it.
The action takes place in Sierra Leone in the late 1990s. Solomon Vandy (Djimon Honsou) is a fisherman who lives in a village with his wife and children. He encourages his son to go to school so that he will have better opportunities then his father. But the rebels are at war with the government and before you can blink an eye the family is split up. Solomon winds up as a prisoner working in the diamond fields. The diamonds that he and the others are picking are known as conflict diamonds because they are sold for a lot of money in order to fund the civil war that rocks his country. One day Solomon finds a big pink diamond and manages to bury it in a spot without anyone seeing (or so the thinks).
Enter Danny Archer (Leonardo DiCaprio), a diamond smuggler who lacks morals. While Archer and Solomon are both in prison Archer gets wind that Solomon has found a pink diamond. For reasons that benefit him, Archer makes sure that Solomon is released from jail the same time he is.
The third main character is Maddy Bowen (Jennifer Connelly), an American journalist who specializes in writing about the world's hot spots. She meets Archer at a bar and there is an immediate attraction. She and Solomon help to turn Archer from someone who doesn't care about things to someone with a conscience.
With the help of Archer and Maddy, Solomon locates his wife and two daughters in a refugee camp. But where is his son? The boy has been trained as one of many child soldiers who are ready to shoot to kill. And that is all that I am going to tell you about the plot.
Blood Diamond is a good but flawed film. There are some cliches and also a bit of predictability. Nevertheless, I found myself engrossed in the story. Connelly is fine in her role but it isn't that challenging. DiCaprio's accent is okay and with this film and The Departed he has proven himself to be a really good actor. He has finally shaken that baby face look that he has had in most of his films. But the best one in the film is Honsou. You can really feel his character's pain.
And Eduardo Serra's cinematography of the African landscape is gorgeous.
Blood Diamond has an important message for all of us. Whether it is diamonds, gold or other items we should try to find out how they were obtained/manufactured. Although it is impossible for us to always be vigilant about these things we should do our best. Other people's lives depend on it.
posted by Film Fanatic | 7:22 PM
1 Comments:
Hi~ I'm sangho Moon from south Korea. I got to know your blog by chance through surfing. I have read your writings well. By the way, I'm afraid to ask a question. I saw the film 'Hotel Rwanda' last year. but I haven't seen 'Blood Diamond' yet. I wonder what's the different netween two films. Have a nice day!!!
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