Blood Diamond

Went out last night to watch 'Blood Diamond' - a film starring Leo DiCaprio, Jennifer Connelly and Dijmon Hounsou. Not a bad movie - a thrilling action movie of course and lovely camera work and photography. Though a friend and I were trying to figure if the film was largely shot in East Africa rather than West Africa.

No matter, the director (Ed Zwick) does a fine job in pacing the film (mostly), even though it is over two hours long. The subject matter is a good one and but spoilt I think with the romance between Jennifer C and Leo. I mean, his hard-bitten merc should have stayed as is....but near the end he starts to mend his ways and actually is in love? Ok Ok, someone like Jennifer Connelly, intelligent and impossibly beautiful would probably do that to most peeps but I felt it deflated the film in the end.

And the ending...christ, did it go on. It should have finished ten minutes earlier. Zwick wanted a full wrap up and all the loose ends are neatly done. If this film was about dealing with the blood diamonds than the film should have ended with Solomon (played by Dijmon) ecaping with his son....and thats it. No more. Leo in the last scene, staring after the departing plane would have been enough. Alas, no.

Right back to the main body of the film - it was exciting and funny and brutal. Didn't really hold things back and I enjoyed it. Slightly reality jarring seeing a line of kids advancing towards a village with AK 47s and shooting people down...some of the shooters still had their school packs on.

The limb chopping was nasty but there should have been more of it - no really! War is nasty and the Sierra Leone conflict was as nasty as it could get. Leo did well though - his belief and passion for the subject came through and I remember him being interviewed and the lad has grown up and knows his stuff. Probably eyeing up a job with the UN once he is sick of the hollywood rat race....

Anyway, much prefer 'Cry Freetown', a documentary about Sierra Leone. The linky is here: http://www.cryfreetown.org/