From May ’07 Spotlight: A few days before the theatrical release of his second film Glory in December 1989, director Edward Zwick came to town to headline a benefit screening at the Chicago Historical Society. Bounding up to the stage as the final credits rolled, the Winnetka native said: “I feel like I’m back at my bar mitzvah!” A fanatical fan of his TV series thirtysomething, I applauded with enthusiasm. Therefore it gives me great pleasure to report that after five more feature films and several very successful television projects, Zwick’s social consciousness is very much intact. Blood Diamond, the recipient of five Oscar nominations in January and newly released on DVD, is Zwick’s his best work to date.
Blood Diamond is set in the 1990’s, when civil war raged in Sierra Leone, but wide-spread tribal and ethnic conflicts are just as real today. The mishpokhe has every right to be proud: behind this action/adventure movie beats the heart of a man who has learned how to make commercially-successful films in the service of tikkun olam.
For more information, visit http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0450259.
