All glistens in Blood Diamond

Blood Diamond

Director: Edward Zwick

Cast: Leonardo Di Caprio, Djimon Hounsou, Jennifer Connolly, Arnold Vosloo

Cert: 15

Zwick tries to disguise this tale of greed and desire – for a fabulous chuck of rock – as a serious condemnation of the exploitation of Africa’s riches. He succeeds only partially.

Hounsou plays a fisherman kidnapped during civil unrest in Sierra Leone and made to work in a diamond mine. There he finds a magnificent rough diamond which he hides … and which everybody else, including Di Caprio’s smuggler, wants.

The two team up against everybody else in what really ought to have been a sharper, better observed drama. Di Caprio continues to enhance his reputation as a talented actor but Zwick is at fault for not, somehow, giving the story more heart and depth.

Star Rating: 3/5