Blood Diamond raises questions

Rating: 8/10 (26 March 2014)

Movie Review "Blood Diamond" a film filed with drama and adventure that shows just how many different forces are involved in Africa's armed conflicts and suggests how people can take action in preventing it. Premiering in early December of 2006 the film gave audiences something to look into, besides the seriousness of South African poverty. Edward Zwick, the director has set the stage for leading actors Leonardo DiCaprio, Djimon Hounsou, Jennifer Connelly on a mission to understand the immensity of this armed conflict through finding Honsou's family, but more importantly what everyone wants, the blood diamond. The film brings clarity to the conflict in Sierra Leone during the 1990s, the civil war that caused immense suffering and destruction to Africa. Leonardo DiCaprio, a lead actor, plays a South African mercenary and his current job in which the movie shows that he is a diamond smuggler. His merges with Djimon Hounsou as a fisherman who is separated from his family and enslaved to become a part of the rebels in their search for diamonds. That is where he finds an immensely large pink diamond which ties everyone together the rest of the movie. The two run into each other in a jail cell when a rebel commander interrogates him about the diamonds location, sparking the interest of DiCaprio. Hounosu agrees that in order to get his family back he must go with DiCaprio to find this Diamond, and bring an end to the search. The plot mostly consists of the journey to finding this diamond along with some action points along the way to keep you interested in following the storyline. However, there is also a sub-plot that takes place and that's where Connelly comes into play. A journalist from the states trying to discover the means behind the conflict of the diamond smuggling and bring interest from people in the United States to take action against this behind closed door trade. She agrees to help DiCaprio in the interest of finding out the truth behind this diamond trade, and they help each other towards both their goals. The movie also sheds light on the brutally of the civil war at the time showing young children firing automatic weapons at income people, brainwashed by the rebels, they do exactly as told. There is a lot going on through which the main plot carries the movie, and raises awareness to both issues in Africa and issues throughout trade in the world today. Apart from the main plot, it is important to not overlook the subtleties that the movie adds in while it explains the conflict during this harsh time in Africa. There are so many different angles to look at in this movies it's hard not to miss them all, and it's important to understand that what fuels conflicts in these types of environments is not just the people that live there. Raising awareness to the diamond trade that European and American countries are through other means, supplying these rebel groups brings up a great dispute. Especially when these diamonds aren't even being used do to keep people paying top dollar, when in fact slaves are digging them up from the ground. IN my opinion "Blood Diamond" is defiantly a movie to watch if you haven't seen it already, or possibly to watch again in case you missed some of the minor details when you were watching the bullets fly across the screen. As far as age group I would defiantly give it an R, just due to the brutal scenes that the movie depicts, and defiantly not a good movie to watch if you're in a bad mood. I rather enjoyed it because although I have a trust for action it also gave a little more plot than most action movies have. I also really enjoyed how the movie was presented; leading you into it step by step pulling you further in as the movie unfolds. I would give it a sold 8/10.