blood diamond- a blend of fact and fiction.
civil war. terror. bloodshed.
for school, my assessment task was to write a speech for module C, which deals with the ways composers represent real events through the influence of their social and historical context.
we had to choose and analyse a film and compare it with United 93, and evaluate the veracity (truthfulness) and techniques used by the composers in filming their version of historical events.
it may be a bit tacky and unstructured, however,
this is my version;
‘’The world wants what we have and we- have it cheap’’
In the film, Blood Diamond, directed by Edward Zwick, the title and quote refers to blood diamonds mined in African war zones and sold to finance insurgency and thereby profit diamond companies across the world.
The movie is inspired by the true story of how the illegal sale of smuggled diamonds helped fuel the civil war in Sierra Leone. In contrast, United 93 is inspired by the September 11th attacks focusing on that specific event and its timeframe of nearly two hours, as opposed to Blood diamond’s more fictitious plot of a few weeks.
The film contains many references to bloodshed in the manner of quotes, disturbing visuals and the motif of bloodstained diamonds to demonstrate how the world is corrupt and interconnected, assisting in the exploitation of developing countries and human labour, “they're not financing the war, but they're providing a means to keep it going”. These references provide veracity of the harsh conditions and a sad visual essay of suffering.
By casting well known actors such as Djimon Hounsou, Jennifer Connelly and Leonardo Di Caprio, who plays the lead role as Danny Archer, the director has sensationalised the movie for it to appeal to a wider audience adding to the film's entertainment value. By filming on location, the attention to detail used to for the plot and characters, assists in developing the verisimilitude. Language and military jargon in both films such as the native African language and the military jargon in the control centres contribute to the veracity.
The actors cast in 'Blood Diamond' contrast to those in 'United 93', as Zwick cast award-winning actors to ensure the quality, whereas Paul Greengrass used unknown actors to portray the passengers, to establish authenticity and to emphasise that the heroic acts were done by ordinary people, keeping the focus on the actions rather than the actors. This is a more realistic approach to the event allowing the emotional connection between the characters and the audience to escalate.
Solomon, played by Djimon, is a fisherman who is enslaved by the RUF (revolutionary united front). His family is torn from him and Dia, his son, is taken as a child soldier. The issues of poverty, refugee camps and child soldiers are addressed very clearly through the events surrounding his family.
The RUF prefer children because it is so much simpler than indoctrinating grown men who have a strong hold on what is right and wrong. Through an emotionally deprived environment and the use of hard drugs and alcohol, children are tricked into thinking it is right to murder their own people. As a result, they are dehumanized. Subsequently Dia yells 'Enemy, enemy!' at the sight of his father. Although their father-son relationship is re-established, in reality, it is not as easy to overcome such brainwashing.
Various camera techniques and angles are used to present the fictional account of the historical event. The scene where Danny and Solomon are fleeing an attacked village, is filmed using tracking shots to follow the pair's critical and chaotic escape. Non-diagetic music is used to cultivate suspense and serve the movies purpose as a political thriller. It is during the numerous war scenes that African tribal music is included, normally consisting of deep, low drums accompanying images of people fleeing as RUF trucks head towards villages to destroy them. Danny and Solomon escape onto a barren road with the government troops on one side and the RUF on the other.
This represents the battle between 'good and evil', and how the people of Sierra Leone are caught directly in the middle, the ones who ultimately suffer the consequences. This idea is similarly captured in the United 93 flight scenes. Danny and Solomon flee but it is amidst all the smoke from the bombs and gun powder that a mid long shot shows the silhouettes of the government soldiers kneeling and raising their hands in surrender.
A similar scene is portrayed in 'United 93' when the terrorists first attack and announce their presence. A second skin camera placement is used to effectively show the chaos. Tilt shots help to create a sense of panic and terror. Unlike 'Blood Diamond', the majority of 'United 93' is filmed from one location; the plane. This adds to the verisimilitude by attempting to appropriately recreate the events which occurred on the flight. The passengers are confined and trapped within the aircraft, unable to escape the acts of terrorism, which is juxtaposed to the war zones that Danny and Solomon escape from.
Blood Diamond successfully achieves a fictional account, rather than a broad true story or a documentary. The film is focused on one victim, one diamond smuggler, one journalist and one child soldier. By deriving from the truth and emphasizing on one adventure it parallels to United 93, which focuses on one event. Blood diamond’s reference to America, shows its cultural differences as do the opening scenes of United 93, establishing American culture and the cultural gap.
‘’In America, it's bling bling. But out here it's bling- bang.’’
