Blood Diamond

GRITTY socio-political thrillers based on real world events seem to be the latest phase in modern motion picture history these days.
And if films like The Last King of Scotland and Blood Diamond are anything to go by, we can all look forward to some deeply thought provoking cinema in the months to come.
But that's assuming this is to your taste because Blood Diamond is an extremely violent and provocative experience and hardly the material for a lazy Sunday afternoon.
The film chronicles, albeit in a slightly sensationalised manner, the civil war that engulfed Sierra Leone in the 1990s.
No holds barred, director Edward Zwick reveals the true devastation of the conflict.
A country torn apart, marauding rebels indiscriminately murder anyone who stands in their way and much of the population are forced to become refugees.
What's even more shocking is the recruitment of children to fight the war and this subtle portrayal of innocence lost is stunning.
Amid the conflict, a South African mercenary, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, a Mende fisherman, Djimon Hounsou, and an American journalist, Jennifer Connelly, are drawn together to recover a rare pink diamond.
Danny is motivated by money, the diamond is Solomon's ticket to rescue his family and Maddy wants to break the story that could end the conflict - diamond corruption.
It really is a film that makes you think and it is also very easy to sympathise with the struggling journalist who is trying to change the world for the better.
Although it could have been shorter - and DiCaprio's accent was a bit dodgy - Blood Diamond is a bold movie with an important message about war, greed and corruption.

Babel

EVERY so often a film comes along that shakes you to the core, transcending its cinematic format to say something brutally honest about the human condition.
The third instalment in a vague trilogy by director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarittu, Babel is the first movie in quite some time to come within a cat's whisker of such a feat.
Babel is the far-flung story of a poor Moroccan man who buys a rifle to protect his goats.
Entrusting the weapon to his sons, tragedy soon strikes when the reckless boys start taking pot shots at a passing coach.
Unaware of the danger, an American tourist is in the unintentional firing line and is hit by a stray bullet.
This accident has consequences throughout the globe and propels a group of people into a sequence of tragic events, which also gives the audience a unique insight into each of their lives.

The troubled American couple must take refuge in a dangerous Moroccan village and suffer the selfish whims of the other tourists who want to get back to their hotel.
Meanwhile, a nanny is crushed between her obligations to look after the couple's children for one more day as well as attending her son's wedding in Mexico.
On the other side of the globe, a Japanese man struggling to connect with his deaf-mute daughter is quizzed about his link with the gun used in Morocco.
This arc of the story has been criticised for only holding a tenuous link with the core plot and perhaps this holds some weight.
But this becomes irrelevant when the film is able to portray so excellently the frustrations, loneliness and isolation a deaf person could feel.
This is a hard-hitting film that will stay with you long after you leave the cinema and the last scene is absolutely haunting.

Smokin' Aces

IT'S 15 years since Tarantino burst onto the silver screen yet his indelible mark on modern cinema is still making its impact today.
Smokin' Aces is just one in a long series of copycat films that try to replicate the Tarantino formula but fall down flat.
The movie is about a Las Vegas performer-turned-snitch called Buddy Israel (Jeremy Piven) who decides to testify against the mob.
It then becomes a race against time as FBI agents try to protect their key witness while various assassins attempt to kill the snitch for a hefty sum.
Expect a gang of neo nazis, a pair of black hit-women and a master of disguise among many others who all face off against each other to get to the hit and the ensuing carnage is definitely the film's highlight.

Come the final half hour, the movie builds into its inevitable crescendo and, as the bullets start to fly, the death count starts to rise in some scenes, which are a little reminiscent of True Romance's epic and classic shootout.
In fact, it is fair to say that Smokin' Aces has some nice touches but it quickly becomes apparent that stylisation, clever editing, sharp dialogue and a star-studded cast have all taken precedence over a clear and coherent plot.
Put simply, writer-director Joe Carnahan was trying too hard and was not quite ready to graduate from the school of Tarantino.
Better luck next time.

Rocky Balboa

PAYING good money to watch a 60-year-old get pummelled by a man half his age just doesn't seem right does it?
It's all too easy to have this misconception of Rocky's final bout on the silver screen and admittedly those were my feelings when a friend dragged me along to the cinema.
Because, however unlikely it sounds, boxing plays second fiddle to the characterization in this sixth instalment of the Rocky opus.
Much time has passed since Rocky last left the ring and the retired champion now runs a popular restaurant.
However, Rocky's mind still lingers in the past and accompanied by his brother-in-law Paulie he drives around all the hotspots that used to mean so much to him.
Following the death of his wife, his dwindled boxing career and his troubled relationship with his son, the ex-champion feels washed out and some scenes have a convincing air of gloom to them.

When Rocky sees his opportunity to have another shot at the big time he is initially reluctant but eventually views it as something he has to do to redeem himself in his own eyes.
What's great about this film is that it works well when, by rights, it really shouldn't. Sequels like this are often little more than commercial venture to cash in on a popular franchise.
But in this case, Stallone has never been on better acting form and lends Rocky an effortless grace.
And, although perhaps predictable, the ending is a satisfying finale to a slice of Hollywood history.