Posted at 3 p.m. Sunday, May 24
U.S. Senator Joan Cameron (Judy Davis, left) searches for answers in her daughter's death. ABC photos
DIAMONDS
8 p.m. Sunday and Tuesday, ABC
Tune in or out? 
out of four.
This ambitious two-part film about the seedy blood diamond trade loosely weaves together five stories, which is at least two stories too many.
The always compelling Judy Davis saves the main plot from getting too hysterical. She plays Joan Cameron, a U.S. senator who stomps off to the Congo to find the people who murdered her daughter at a diamond mine.
Cameron meets Piers Denmont (Derek Jacobi), the former CEO of diamond company Denmont, who has been deposed by his son, Lucas (riveting James Purefoy). Unlike his father, Lucas is not burdened by ethics in his business dealings.
The most harrowing story is that of a young orphan (Mbongeni Nhlapo, right) running from diamond lords who want him and his friend dead.
Two other plots, one involving Lucas' model girlfriend and the other about a group of geologists looking for diamonds in the Antarctic, are simply time-wasters.
The movie is wildly uneven. Tuesday's second half moves at a much faster, more suspenseful pace, rewarding viewers who do manage to make it through Sunday's long set-up of all the stories.
Lucas Denmont (James Purefoy) wrestles control of the family business from his father.
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