Blood Diamond

[dangermousie]

Just watched Blood Diamond.

Wow.

Wow.

WOW.

Yeah.

That's all I got.

I might meta later, but for now, wow.

Nothing will make me as shaken about the policies in Africa as Hotel Rwanda (in my Top 10 movies) did, but this came close.

It gave me shakes, especially when Solomon is in London and sees the pretty little baubles in jeweler's setting that his whole country is being destroyed for. I also loved that Danny (DiCaprio is amazing, isn't he?) is not a nice guy. He is a mercenary and a bastard, in every sense of the word and his world made him this way, the neverending cycle of violence (loved the scene with his mentioning without any self-pity to Jennifer Connoly's character about his mother being raped and shot and his father hung when he was 9), and there is yet another point about victims becoming perpetrators and making new victims and the cycle continuing (the cycle Solomon's son escapes because of Solomon's devotion and love). He makes the right choice in the end but just barely and only because it's the end of the road for him. You see glimmers of humanity and humaneness but he is probably too far gone to save, just like so many others.

P.S. I really like this director. He did this, he did Glory and he did Last Samurai, and I love all of them, however unfashionable making the last one makes me (but then I like Tom Cruise movies, however nutty he is: TLS, Minority Report, Collateral & TWotW are all very good)

ETA2: (I typed this in response to koalathebear below, but I think it belongs up here). I was incredibly impressed that it wasn't yet another 'epic' about white people discovering themselves in exotic locations. So many of these characters (from child soldiers to the mercenaries) are both perpetrators and victims and just trapped.

Mr. Mousie had a really good point. It's not really about the diamonds. It's about the political situation which creates the rebels (in this case, the then dictator of Liberia tried to destabilize surrounding countries so new regimes will be friendlier to him. He is facing a trial for human rights violations now, about time). The rebels will exploit anything there is. If there is no diamonds or oil, they will turn to other means. In some African country (whose name escapes me) rebels made people die digging for some obscure mineral which is used in cellphones. In Ivory Coast, rebels got into making and selling cocoa (in conditions no better than the ones in this movie).

The region needs political stability and IMO for the world to take responsibility, and I love that the movie makes this point. Of course, that eventually happened somewhat in Sierra Leone, with Tony Blair sending peacekeeping forces (apparently he is very liked there because of it).

But watching this makes me feel ashamed of complaining about things. Compared to that, I am incredibly lucky.

Comments

[koalathebear.livejournal.com]

Oh I enjoyed this movie, too even though I didn't expect to! :) Can't wait to read your thoughts.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

I just edited it a bit to add some thoughts.

I was incredibly impressed that it wasn't yet another 'epic' about white people discovering themselves in exotic locations. So many of these characters (from child soldiers to the mercenaries) are both perpetrators and victims and just trapped.

Mr. Mousie had a really good point. It's not really about the diamonds. It's about the political situation which creates the rebels (in this case, the then dictator of Liberia tried to destabilize surrounding countries so new regimes will be friendlier to him. He is facing a trial for human rights violations now, about time). The rebels will exploit anything there is. If there is no diamonds or oil, they will turn to other means. In some African country (whose name escapes me) rebels made people die digging for some obscure mineral which is used in cellphones. In Ivory Coast, rebels got into making and selling cocoa (in conditions no better than the ones in this movie).

The region needs political stability and IMO for the world to take responsibility, and I love that the movie makes this point. Of course, that eventually happened somewhat in Sierra Leone, with Tony Blair sending peacekeeping forces (apparently he is very revered there because of it).

But watching this makes me feel ashamed of complaining about things. Compared to that, I am incredibly lucky.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

ITA about Tom Cruise and Last Samurai...not wholly accurate, but much more so than most Hollywood attempts at historical epic, but, like Kingdom of Heaven, it was lovely on almost all levels and its heart was very much in the right place. I like Minority Report too, but haven't seen the others(I have seen, and love, Legend, though)

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

I saw LS before I got into anime (I think) and definitely before I got into dramas, but even now, I still love it. It was a rare unpatronizing look at a different culture and it was excellent. Plus, Tom Cruise does messed up angst really well. Oh, and they actually used Japanese actors for all the roles necessary (unlike the atrocious and silly Memoirs of a Geisha).

I saw comparisons between it and Dances with Wolves, but I confess DWW bored me to death.

[meganbmoore.livejournal.com]

I was into anime and mangas when I saw last samurai, but not as much as now. As you said...it was unpatronizing...to BOTH cultures. Both were portrayed harshly and realistically, and they managed to actually make the romance work.

Memoirs...uhm...it was pretty...very pretty...and I like the actresses...but honestly, I'm still to freaked out by the fact that in the OTP, he saw her as a grubby little girl and decided he wanted her as his personal geisha when she grew up(if he'd decided he liked her and wanted to help her fulfill her dreams and then fell in love with her, it'd be one thing, but...) to really have an opinion on it beyond "pretty but...urk..."

I've only seen a few minutes of Dances With Wolves and felt little compulsion to see more.

[janlake83.livejournal.com]

i've seen this movie a few times...

although parts of what is sad about the movie is that child soldiers are still being kidnapped from their parents, every day..... and not just boys but girls as well... used and they're innocents taken away...

all because of something that is considered more precious than people... and it happens everyday... people are not commodities that can be used and traded as if they were nothing... diamonds, cocoa beans, oil, etc are not worth more than a person's life... what is more abonimable are children are being sold to slavery by their own parents...

and i highly apologize mousie for my rant * i wrote a paper on political upheaval in lesser developed nations and child soldiers being used in africa and other parts of the world*

political stability however is hard to come by when your country's average is less than 600 a year.... doing the math that is less than a dollar a day... the focus of a country is better when the needs of people are being met and illegal goings on are not being exploited by companies / developed countries that could benefit...

[ladysaotome.livejournal.com]

I loved LS - for many of the same reasons you did. I watched it with trepidation as I was really not expecting to like it at all - but I think they gave a lot of respect to the differing cultures, showing what was good & bad in each without judging, & I loved it.

The only thing I laugh at from the movie is during the BTS, they kept going on & on about how Tom Cruise learned Japanese for the movie & then the reporter on the red carpet asked him, "ogenki desu ka?" & Tom didn't know what he was saying.

(Memoirs was...wierd. I read the book then saw the movie then researched a little online & have very mixed feelings over it. The book gives the impression of knowing so much about that world & yet there has been so much controversy over it that I feel I can't trust anything in it.)

[partypaprika.livejournal.com]

I have yet to see Blood Diamond, but everything I've heard about it makes me want to see it more and more. Except that when I do see it, I know that it will be a painful process because this is not a happy movie. But it's one that explores and forces people to realize what's going on in the world for things that people take for granted. Or assume just never happen.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Exactly. It's a great movie though.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Don't apologize for the rant, I agree with every word!

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

ogenki desu ka?" & Tom didn't know what he was saying

ROFL.

Hmmm, now I want to rewatch the movie.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

The Memoirs thing was creepy but I would have overlooked it if it wasn't so damn boring.

[catdecember.livejournal.com]

Blood Diamond really left so much impact on me, that i've now hesitated buying diamond earrings (not that i can right now, but it was one of my dreams). also, leonardo was amazing here!

Hotel Rwanda and Last King of Scotland are also in my list of movies that left me severly disturbed (in a good way).

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

You should totally get the earrings if you get the chance. Just make sure the diamonds come from Siberia, or India, or Brazil or somewhere not in Africa :)