"Diamond" in the rough

Rating: 10/10 (8 December 2006)

The second-best Leonardo DiCaprio movie in which the search for a diamond drives the plot, "Blood Diamond" should not be written off as an 'old-fashioned adventure movie', or, for that matter, just another Leonardo DiCaprio movie..although, in all honesty, if it starred anyone else, I probably would not have seen it this morning.
Leo plays Danny Archer, diamond smuggler and part-time jerk. He lands in prison for smuggling and overhears an accusation that Solomon Vandy (Djimon Hounsou) has unearthed a pink diamond so huge it could accommodate a hockey team (preferably the New Jersey Devils) skating on it. Danny arranges for Solomon to get bailed out and strikes up a deal with him - Danny gets the rock, Solomon gets his family back (they'd been taken hostage earlier) and that's how the two start their reluctant relationship. Meanwhile Danny has struck up a another friendship with Maddy Bowen (Jennifer Connelly), who wants the truth behind the civil wars ravaging the country; she knows the international diamond trade is behind it and she also knows Danny is involved with that. She needs facts to write the story that has to be written in order to shine a light on this tragedy, all the whole acknowledging that "Americans might see sixty seconds of this between sports and the weather on CNN." None of the plot is far-fetched, unfortunately, and none of the action, either, most unfortunately. There is a huge body count of innocent people, women and children included, and children are additionally seen being recruited to join the rebels, so it makes the movie less than enjoyable, if you're just looking for escapism. I found it very well done and painfully realistic. If you have even the slightest bit of conscience in your head, you will be effected by the movie. You might not run home and throw all your jewelry in the garbage, but as the movie suggests, you might want to inquire before your next purchase.
The three leads are all terrific. Leonardo is incapable of delivering a bad performance. Here he is as good as he's ever been. If he's not, the movie fails, and he also wisely realizes that he's not the emotional centerpiece of the movie. He allows Hounsou to occupy that space. Djimon is one of those actors whose soul is apparent on the screen and he can and does communicate without saying anything - my favorite type of actor. Connelly is not just 'the girl' or just around to look pretty - she has a lot to offer on screen and also never phones it in.
In the useless trivia department - all three have co-starred with Russell Crowe - Leo in "The Quick and the Dead", Djimon in "Gladiator" and Connelly in "A Beautiful Mind", and Djimon just won the National Board of Review Best Supporting Actor award, which Leo won for "What's Eating Gilbert Grape." As I mentioned, I respect the movie and am glad that it got made as it may change some grievous wrongs that have occurred, but with so much killing and violence, its impossible for me to say I 'like' it, although that does not mean that I 'dislike' it either. Its a helluva journey, with all that that entails. 10/10.