"T-I-A"

Blood Diamond. I gave the guy the opportunity to pick whatever movie he wanted for a Christmas present. He picked this movie and I was glad. The movie tells the story of a few characters during a civil war in Sierra Lionne. One of these people was Denny Archer, a white African diamond smuggler. I can't believe I'm typing this but Leonardo Dicaprio did a very good job in this role. He was simultaneously greedy, selfish, ambivalent and caring. Basically, he was great at portraying a conflicted human being. The real star though, in my opinion, was Djimon Hounsou, as Solomon Vendy. His character was that of a dedicated family man who is kidnapped by rebels and forced to work in the diamond mines. He finds a large diamond and hides it. He and Denny join forces after Denny learns he has the diamond. Denny makes the promise of helping Solomon find his family. He does this with the help of an American journalist, Maddy Bowen, played by Jennifer Connelly. A lot of ads are describing this as "a movie with a huge heart" and I believe that's completely accurate. Of course, there are problems. I for one am sick of the 'white hero' and 'naive/ignorant black' roles. They exist in this movie though not to complete extremes. The love story also struck me as far less than believable. All in all, it's a touching movie and is truly about determination. I also found it a sort of endearing look at Africa in general. Granted, I havent' been there but everything I've read about it was depicted in the film. I don't know about the Oscar nominations it's supposed to garner but I do hope a lot of people see it. A-.