Oscar-worthy Performances Saves The Movie

Rating: 9/10 (11 January 2012)

A South African mercenary and a Mende fisherman find their fates forever intertwined as they embark on a quest to obtain a rare and highly coveted pink diamond in director Edward Zwick's frantic adventure drama entitled Blood Diamond.It is a political thriller film co-produced and directed by Zwick that features Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Connelly and Djimon Hounsou. The title refers to blood diamonds, which are diamonds mined in African war zones and sold to finance conflicts, and thereby profit warlords and diamond companies across the world.Set during the Sierra Leone Civil War in 1992-2002, the film shows a country torn apart by the struggle between government soldiers and rebel forces.It also portrays many of the atrocities of that war, including the rebels' amputation of people's hands to discourage them from voting in upcoming elections.
Ripped from his family farm and forced to toil away in the sweltering South African diamond fields, Solomon Vandy discovered an extraordinary rough stone of immeasurable value. Danny Archer is a hired gun who specializes in the sale of so-called "blood diamonds" that are used to finance rebellions and terrorist organizations, and is currently serving time for smuggling. As a bloody civil war rages in Sierra Leone and Archer learns that Vandy has safely hidden the diamond in a place where no one would ever suspect, the pair enlist the aid of disillusioned American journalist Maddy Bowen in recovering the treasure that has the power to save Vandy's family and provide the desperate Archer with a much-needed chance for redemption.The film's ending, in which a conference is held concerning blood diamonds, is in reference to an actual meeting that took place in Kimberley, South Africa in 2000 and led to the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme, which seeks to certify the origin of diamonds in order to curb the trade in conflict diamonds.
The film is redeemed by its solid and Oscar-worthy performances as it overcomes poor storytelling with its biting commentary and fine performances.It was excitingly well made but formulaic.It was unfortunate disappointment due to heavy handed direction by Zwick which dilutes its message.Thanks to Mr. DiCaprio's raffishly dashing soldier of fortune, the movie is worth watching despite of its many negative qualities.Overall,it is still a good view but one should not expect a masterpiece out of it.