There are quite a few cogs to this complex wheel.  DiCaprio plays Archer, a conniving diamond smuggler in South Africa who will seemingly stop at nothing to secure a rumored 100ct diamond found, and hidden, by a native slave worker.

That man is Solomon Vandy (Hounsou).  He has been forcibly removed from his family and sent to do slave labor in the diamond industry.  One day, while working in the river, he stumbles across a massive uncut stone.  He does not hand it in to his bosses.

Maddy Bowen (Connelly) is a reporter.  She is tired of writing fluff pieces about individual tragedies.  She feels compelled to go after the cause of the problem in Africa... the diamond merchants who secretively use slave labor and support mass murder by the purchase of these "conflict diamonds".  She needs a BIG story -- and she finds one in Danny Archer.

The three of them use one another to achieve their goals.  Archer uses Solomon to get the diamond.  Solomon uses Maddy to find his family.  Maddy uses Archer to get her story.

It is a terrific set up and the first half of the film is simply brilliant.

Unfortunately, the film seems to get a little lost after the pieces are placed on the board.  The film stumbles around, occasionally delivering something worthwhile, but eventually heads toward a stalemate.

Don't get this critic wrong -- "Blood Diamond" is a quality film that deserves to be seen.  I loved the performances.  DiCaprio would probably get an Oscar nod for this film were it not for the fact that he will get one for "The Departed" instead.  He really has had a magnificent year.  Djimon Hounsou is tremendously powerful here as a desperate father who will do anything to get his son back.  And Connelly is the emotional anchor this film needs.  She is a feminine respite to all the bloodshed and anger.  She gives the film its heart.

I just wish that they could have forgone the ever-so-staged romance in the film between Archer and Maddy.  It is utterly unnecessary to the success of the screenplay.  After all, this is not a film about individuals as much as it is about a tragedy, a war, a corrupt trade, and an abused continent.  It feels unnatural to have Maddy and Archer making eyes at one another -- having one of those late night confessional talks for expositional sympathy.  It just doesn't fit well.

Nevertheless, this is an exciting movie, full of energy and important things to say.  It drags just a little in the middle third of the running time, but picks up for a rousing, if somewhat clichéd, conclusion.  "Blood Diamond" is a very good effort that will appeal to those who appreciated 2005's "The Constant Gardener".