Diamonds are to die for.
That's so for "blood" or "conflict" diamonds, at least, which are mined from Third World African countries by low or unpaid workers with machine guns to their heads. Blood diamonds are purchased on the sly and mixed in with legitimately obtained rocks, then sold in America, where the lion's share of the demand exists.
This is according to "Blood Diamond," which is not only a compelling chase drama, but also an illuminating message film that looks into the bowels of the corrupt diamond industry. Multibillion-dollar corporations exert strangleholds over developing nations, exploiting slavelike laborers thanks to sweetheart deals with governments and smugglers, while inflating prices by tricking consumers into thinking diamonds are scarce.
Director Edward Zwick ("Legends of the Fall," "The Last Samurai") channels angst into a moving, frantic epic. Zwick and screenwriter Charles Leavitt make some wise choices: for example, avoiding a standard love story between two of the lead characters by keeping their relationship to reasonable nuance and flirtation.
People are also reading…
Some of the action scenes, involving flying bullets and fists in the jungles of Sierra Leone, could be overinflated or even ridiculous in lesser hands, but the action in "Blood Diamond" stretches believability without snapping it.
In a rangy performance that adds fire to an Oscar run stoked by "The Departed," Leonardo DiCaprio plays Danny Archer, a nihilist diamond smuggler who arranges guns-for-diamonds deals with rebel militias. He makes an uneasy alliance with Maddy Bowen (Jennifer Connelly), an American journalist who's trying to tie Sierra Leone's supposedly nonexistent diamond industry with companies that buy the wares under the bullet-riddled table. Danny's got the information that Maddy needs, but he won't give it up without strings.
The third primary character is Solomon Vandy (Djimon Hounsou), a fisherman who finds a 100-carat diamond worth millions while working in a mine operated by a violent militia. Hoping it will be the ticket to his family's escape, Solomon buries the stone in the forest before he's imprisoned.
Danny discovers Solomon's secret and promises to use his contacts to sell the diamond if he'll show him where it's hidden and split the profits. Solomon, who learns his family has been placed in a government internment camp, agrees to go along with Danny's self-serving plan in hopes he'll be able to find his wife, child and son on the way. The three key characters make their way through both a literal and a figurative jungle. The breathless adventure sometimes distracts from the film's core message, but Zwick seems to know exactly how many thrills it takes to leaven the preachiness.
The film glitters like a . . . ruby. Yeah, ruby. Because diamonds are bad.
***1/2
Rated: R for strong violence and language.
Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Djimon Hounsou, Jennifer Connelly, Michael Sheen.
Director: Edward Zwick.
Family call: Adult themes and subject matter.
Running time: 138 minutes.
