An average movie with an important message

Rating: 8/10 (23 January 2007)

I'm a black south-African and it was good to hear familiar accents("Afrikaner folks were laughing throughout the movie...guess it was nice to 4 them to hear their language and see their typical mannerisms, swear words & slang in the movie...& THE ACCENT FACTOR...a bit inconsistent...but Leo kinda nailed it to the end...but it was the typical south African white boy mannerisms that he did PERFECTLY!") & to see Africa's breathtaking beauty...anyway the movie...in a Hollywood sense was average...with a mini-series...documentary feel...but on a serious note...as a black south African it touched me deeply...kinda reminded me of massive problems we face here @ home("crime, poverty & corruption") & the rest of Africa. The visuals of massacre reminded me of what was going on here in south Africa in the 70's("1976...apartheid police shooting harmless protesting young school kids"), late 80's and early 90's("State of emergency & the violence in the townships...I was old enough to experience that!") and to think that our country could have easily ended up like most war-torn countries in Africa...thanks to Madiba! We live in an amazing country with lots of potential("We come from different ethnic backgrounds...but we are united & working hard to make this country work!") south Africa is on its way to becoming a first-world country... Africa's beacon of hope...lol...we must have hope!...for Africa's sake!...back 2 da movie...Djimon Hounsou did it for me("he deserves an Oscar for that performance!")...his character showed raw emotions and he did it in a splendid, convincing way...he wasn't acting, but WAS the character. Leonardo's acting was brilliant apart from the inconsistent accent & Jennifer Connelly...oh my word!...so radiant, beautiful and absolutely stunning...she did a good job also...It was good to see Arnold Vosloo & all the other south African OKES doin' their thing...especially Kagiso Kuypers("DIA")...a job well done...definitely a bright future for him. All in all...a good educational movie to American and European audiences...just for them to see and the harsh realities of living in Africa("Europeans colonized and ripped mineral resources on our soils...and oppressed our forefathers...but it is our responsibility as black africans to take care of ourselves("Stopping xenophobia, incompetent governance, corruption & tribalism"),taking care of our lands & getting educated("I plan to be a leader in the south African corporate world...I know it will make a difference!") to heal ourselves...the struggle continues...there's hope!