This film is the story of two mercenaries- Captain Curry and his counterpart Ruffo- an American educated Congolese- as they set out on a mission to save $50 million worth of diamonds...and a few people's lives. The whole story takes place in UN occupied, wartorn Congo. The government forces are fighting against a rebel group called Simba, who control a large part of the territory by force, while the rest of the country is under protection by UN peacekeepers. The two men gather a group of mercenaries including a Nazi war criminal, an alcoholic doctor and the leader of a squad from the Congolese army with troops. Curry is paid $50000 dollars (seems like a pretty good deal for the Congolese President!!) to go behind enemy lines and bring back the diamonds, the superintendent responsible for overseeing the operation of the mine, and his beautiful daughter.
There is a lot of racial tension in this film. Especially between Curry and Ruffo, as Curry- at the beginning of the film at least- considers Ruffo his inferior based solely on his race. There are also a lot of racially tense moments involving Nazi war criminal turned mercenary, Heinlein, and pretty much everyone that isn't white. Curry always attempts to demean Ruffo , but Ruffo's positive outlook on life allows him to take the blows without being terribly bothered. In the long run though, Curry will realize that he is not giving Ruffo as much credit as he deserves. The two men were there for very different reasons- Curry to make money, and Ruffo to help the people suffering from the Simbanese oppression. Curry's ignorance wears off as the film progresses and he becomes closer to Ruffo, though these tensions do lead to the film's climax.
The film is set-up similar to Buster Keaton's "The General"- only more serious and less comedic in its form. But similarly, they acquire a mission, begin on their journey by train dealing with a few obstacles before reaching their destination, meeting some tense moments before escape, and the chase and conflict involved with making it back to safety. A very classically organized film, but one so absorbed with action and politics, that it makes for one helluva spectacular film. There are a lot of awesome action sequences.
This is a great politically oriented actioner, worth checking out. 7.5 out of 10.
There is a lot of racial tension in this film. Especially between Curry and Ruffo, as Curry- at the beginning of the film at least- considers Ruffo his inferior based solely on his race. There are also a lot of racially tense moments involving Nazi war criminal turned mercenary, Heinlein, and pretty much everyone that isn't white. Curry always attempts to demean Ruffo , but Ruffo's positive outlook on life allows him to take the blows without being terribly bothered. In the long run though, Curry will realize that he is not giving Ruffo as much credit as he deserves. The two men were there for very different reasons- Curry to make money, and Ruffo to help the people suffering from the Simbanese oppression. Curry's ignorance wears off as the film progresses and he becomes closer to Ruffo, though these tensions do lead to the film's climax.
The film is set-up similar to Buster Keaton's "The General"- only more serious and less comedic in its form. But similarly, they acquire a mission, begin on their journey by train dealing with a few obstacles before reaching their destination, meeting some tense moments before escape, and the chase and conflict involved with making it back to safety. A very classically organized film, but one so absorbed with action and politics, that it makes for one helluva spectacular film. There are a lot of awesome action sequences.
This is a great politically oriented actioner, worth checking out. 7.5 out of 10.