BV Movie Blog

The illicit diamond industry has fueled corruption, greed and war across the continent of Africa for far too long. Any success in interrupting the flow of death and destruction should be hailed as nothing less than a miracle.

In a recent BV interview, Djimon Hounsou shares his experience in filming 'Blood Diamond,' and how his role as Solomon Vandy speaks to the struggles of many Africans today.

"The thing that was so beautiful in 'Blood Diamond' is that it also envelopes so many other issues ...child soldiers ...the displacement of millions of people throughout neighboring countries." Hounsou, originally from a small village in the West African nation of Benin, relocated to France to pursue education, and later to the U.S. to pursue his career in entertainment.

"The level of corruption throughout the continent [of Africa] is unbelievable," says Hounsou with a somber sigh. He compares his role in 'Diamond' to his work in the 1997 Steven Spielberg film, 'Amistad' stating, "The civil war, and this exact story took place in Sierra Leone."

Hoping that the spread of 'Diamond' will challenge the integrity of the diamond industry, Hounsou believes that the impact of an American film could easily ignite change. "The awareness can really drive people to demand more of these diamond companies, certainly in the West, to really do what is right. To this day I have yet to see where the benefit [of mining diamonds] is for those countries in Africa, and certainly the African people."

"We know that when some of those businesses settled somewhere in the West here, the better the infrastructure is in those places," states Hounsou. "Why is it they can't do that in Africa?"

Though it would appear that playing his role in 'Blood Diamond' required an insurmountable burst of emotional energy, Hounsou's relation to his country's pain was, sadly, effortless. "I didn't have to struggle to get connected for those scenes."

Posted by celiaherrera00

More on 'Blood Diamond'

BV Exclusive Interview:  Djimon Hounsou

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• #2 Comment from chocolatemw 
  5/30/07 6:30 PM | Permalink

  This was remarkable! It brought the death and corruption  to life...all over diamonds. If I didn't own them before this movie, I wouldn't own any at all. To hear about it is one thing and say it doesn't have anything to with me is a lie.
• #1 Comment from tammiem5 
  1/4/07 5:42 PM | Permalink

  awesome!!!