Blood DiamondMovie Reviews

Poster art for "Blood Diamond."

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Avg. Critic Score: 64 out of 100 Generally favorable reviews Metascore® based on all critic reviews
Information for Parents:
15 Iffy for 15+
Read Common Sense Media review

Critic scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

  • 88
    USA Today | Claudia Puig

    Blood Diamond is a gem in a season with lots of worthy movies. Read full review

  • 80
    Washington Post | Ann Hornaday

    For its flaws, Blood Diamond is a gem, if only for being an unusually smart, engaged popcorn flick. Read full review

  • 70
    Los Angeles Times | Kenneth Turan

    Blood Diamond attempts to be an action thriller with serious political overtones, to be as much position paper as "Zulu Dawn." Read full review

  • 70
    The Hollywood Reporter | Sheri Linden

    To the unlikely role of a Bogart-esque reluctant hero, Leonardo DiCaprio brings an intensity that compels even when the script falters. Read full review

  • 60
    Variety | Brian Lowry

    Africa's enduring sorrow is ripe for drama, but Blood Diamond is, finally, a fitting metaphor for the gems: Potentially brilliant from a distance, but upon closer inspection, one likely will see the flaws. Read full review

  • 60
    Wall Street Journal | Joe Morgenstern

    Thanks to the redundancy, though, Blood Diamond is dramatically diffuse, and at least 30 minutes too long. Thanks to Mr. DiCaprio's raffishly dashing soldier of fortune, the movie is worth watching all the same. Read full review

  • 58
    Entertainment Weekly | Lisa Schwarzbaum

    There is every reason to learn about the link between jewels and death, by all means, but no reason to try to disguise a term paper as entertainment. Read full review

  • 50
    Rolling Stone | Peter Travers

    DiCaprio is terrific, but he can't save this lecture from the shame of using Africa as a vehicle for another white man's redemption. Read full review

  • 50
    The New York Times | Manohla Dargis

    While Mr. DiCaprio turns out to be an ideal fit for Blood Diamond, there's an insolvable disconnect between this serious story and the frivolous way it has been told. There is no reason to doubt the filmmakers' sincerity; only their filmmaking. Read full review

  • 25
    San Francisco Chronicle | Mick LaSalle

    Director Edward Zwick tried to make a great movie, but somewhere in the process he forgot to make a good one. Read full review

View more reviews for Blood Diamond on Metacritic

Information for Parents
Common Sense Media says Iffy for 15+ Extremely violent melodrama is not for kids.
What Parents Need to Know Parents need to know that this mature action-drama isn't for young kids (even though Leo lovers may want to see it). It's extremely violent, with frequent scenes of war and abusive labor practices (villagers' hands are chopped off and mineworkers are shot dead for disobeying orders). Weapons include guns, machetes, knives, grenades, missiles, Molotov cocktails, and AK-47s. Most upsetting: Young boys are kidnapped from their families and trained to kill, chanting "Shed their blood." The children also smoke cigarettes and drink. Displays of anger lead to arguments and fistfights. During a massacre scene, a body is thrown from a balcony, bodies spurt blood, and buildings explode. Characters drink frequently and smoke lots of cigarettes. Language includes many uses of "f--k" and one pronounced use of the African racist term "kaffir."
  • Families can talk about the issue of "conflict diamonds." How is this problem similar to other ways in which people are exploited for resources, labor, or land?
  • How do Danny's morals change as he learns from the other main characters?
The good stuff
  • message true0 Positive messages: The movie offers strong messages about the consequences of the "conflict diamond" trade, but they're somewhat overshadowed by the characters' flaws and the constant peril and violence.
  • rolemodels true0 Positive role models: The hero starts out as a smuggler and killer and learns to be a good man, but the movie uses a too-famliar structure -- in which the white hero (African-born in this case, though played by U.S. star), retrieves his moral compass from, then saves, a dedicated black African father.
What to watch for
  • violence false4 Violence: Constant stream of grenades, explosions, shooting, missile fire, whacking with machetes; frequent bloody bodies visible; children who have been kidnapped and conscripted as "soldiers" shoot and are shot; dismemberment (arm chopped off explicitly); prisoners in rough cages; militia members ride through towns in Jeeps, shooting at everyone in sight; children frightened and appalled by sight of dead parents; Dia (Solomon's son) is traumatized and trained to kill on command; goat's neck cut open, with diamonds hidden inside (bloody); massacre scene leaves many bloody bodies in street; Danny pulls a cap off a corpse to use as a disguise, then reveals he's a stone-cold assassin, killing several men efficiently.
  • sex false2 Sex: Villain reads Hustler; Solomon strips naked to show he's not carrying the diamond (his torso remains in shadow); mild flirting between leads and a moment of close dancing; mention of Bill Clinton's 1999 impeachment (as "blowjobs-gate"); some shots show cleavage.
  • language false4 Language: Frequent use of "f--k," one powerful use of "kaffir" (African equivalent of the "N" word), plus other language, such as "s--t" and "ass."
  • consumerism false1 Consumerism: Young African soldier wears a Snoop Dogg T-shirt; mention of Baywatch (as sign of American freedom) and National Geographic.
  • drugsalcoholtobacco false3 Drinking, drugs and smoking: Frequent cigarette smoking; several scenes in bars or showing social and hard drinking; during a long hike, Danny says he needs to "quit smoking."
An independent nonprofit dedicated to providing families the information they need to help kids thrive in a world of media and technology. © Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.

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Dave White

3.0

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… few exciting suspense moments. Read full review See Dave White's on MOVIENAME on Movies.com

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