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elewis05
Reviews
Blood Diamond (2006)
This movie moved me to the core
This is hands-down the most moving, mind-opening, and nerve-tingling movie I have ever seen. My only regret is that I didn't know more about the history of diamond trade before seeing this movie- but my-God, I will certainly try to learn more now. What I liked most about this film- more than the incredible acting be EVERYONE in it- was that at its core was the message that consumer choices we make in western (Global North/first world) nations are directly related to the decolonized and economically enslaved nations that are tied to us (like those in Africa) that have such a small voice in the world. The diamond trade is just one example. Yet it also demonstrates the burden of knowledge, and how simply knowing- as consumers, governments, media, etc...- the facts about goods produced through the blood of others can create a moral obligation that forces all of us to make choices about the kind of legacy that we, as the economic (but certainly not moral) leaders and dictators of the world, want to leave for future generations. I'm sorry this post wasn't more specific- just please go and see this movie, and it will fill in the graphic, heart-breaking, and brutally honest details.
-this is truly why movies should be made- amazing!
One: The Movie (2005)
It could have been so much more.
This movie tried to explore the meaning of life- not just with ordinary citizens, but with some of the most influential and most brilliant minds on the planet. I would have much preferred to have seen experienced filmmakers asking these people that they interviewed questions so that they didn't make them look like idiots; example: "act-out the condition of the world without making any sounds." The problem was that in the beginning, these documentarians were talking about how great it was that they were doing this great project, and in the middle and end of it, they were still talking about what a great project it was, and how they got such great people to talk about so many great things- then why didn't they share all of these great things with us???!!! I left the film feeling less enchanted. I wasn't looking for answers, just some new perspectives about the human condition, about compassion, about where we all fit within this mass of humanity, and it could have really opened up some great avenues of discussion. But no, it ended with a conclusion that "we must be one with everything around us" and "we are all one." There were the expected characters- the homeless people, the atheists, the Buddhists, the fundamentalist Christians, the people who can channel spirits, ditsy teenage girls on the street, and tourists- all allowed numerous blips and shots to give their short little answers to what they thought about God and life- but everything was so edited, and so cut-down, and so....overly artistic (like this depressed guy filmed in black and white that they keep going back to throughout the movie who was supposed to represent the topic being discussed at that moment- he was really distracting and corny and....pointless to the film). I do not think this film respected the people in it- people who should have been given more time to reflect on one question, rather than being forced to answer 20 that put them on the spot. Anyway, I could go on, but basically, I was disappointed by this film and I would not recommend it. It wasn't awful, but it really did not do any justice to the importance of our eternal search for meaning- so I for "One", want my nine dollars back.