"Blood Diamond" (2006)

Set in Sierra Leone during the civil war and chaos of 1990, Blood Diamond tells the story of Danny Archer (played by Leonardo DiCaprio), an ex mercenary from Zimbabwe, and Solomon Vandy (played by Djimon Hounsou), a fisherman. Both men aer African but their backgrounds are as different as you could get, until their fates join in a common quest to recover a rare pink diamond. Solomon was taken from his family and forced to work in diamond fields, and while in prison for smuggling, Danny Archer learns that he has hidden the stone. With the help of Maddy Bowen (played by Jennifer Connolly), an American journalist, the two men embark on a trek through rebel territory to acquire the stone and save Solomon’s family.

This is a good film. Leonardo DiCaprio is brilliant in this actually, but as usual, was ignored by Oscar voters. He plays Danny Archer in such a way that the audience might not necessarily like the character, but you still care about him. He comes across as a bit stuck up, self-important, but underneath this he does have a likable quality.

Djimon Hounsou is incredible in this film. A great actor. I mean, you can talk about Leonardo DiCaprio not getting an Oscar, but it has to be said that Djimon Hounsou really deserved one for his role in this. There is a scene in which Solomon’s son is pointing a gun at him, under the influence of those who have captured him. He’s been brainwashed so doesn’t know what he’s doing. It’s really sad and kind of tense because you’re wondering whether or not he’d actually pull the trigger. The dialogue that Solomon has here when he’s telling his son who he is and what he likes “You’re a good boy who likes soccer” is kind of heartbreaking. I think what makes this scene more touching is the fact their father/son relationship was established as being quite close in the beginning already, and now it’s come to this. But Djimon Hounsou is incredible.

This film is kind of sad. The scene when the little boys are being recruited and trained to murder people is just horrible. I think I came away from this film slightly traumatized in a sense. Oh I’ll never forget the scene towards the beginning when Solomon’s village was raided and people were attacked and captured. One person in particular was brought up in front of everyone and one of the raiders states “...The future lies in your hands. We now the future. So we take your hands.” - down comes an ax and off go their hands. That’s just barbaric and frightening and that whole scene is just horrible. This film is quite violent, an aspect which I did not care for.

In any case, this is still a good film. It’s got loads of action and a compelling story. I think it's actually quite underrated. I would recommend giving it a go. 

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