Big Ruby ?

This is from the movie "The Dark Knight", a huge blockbuster in 2008 summer.


- Low Resolution Video Clip -



- High Resolution Video Clip -

On DVD, this scene is at a few seconds after the beginning of the chapter 14, around 53min 23secs. The dialogue goes like this -


Alfred Pennyworth (Michael Caine):
A long time ago, I was in Burma, my friends and I were working for the local government. They were trying to buy the loyalty of tribal leaders by bribing them with precious stones. But their caravans were being raided in a forest north of Rangoon by a bandit. So we went looking for the stones. But in six months, we never found anyone who traded with him. One day I saw a child playing with a ruby the size of a tangerine. The bandit had been throwing them away.

Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) :
Then why steal them?

Alfred Pennyworth (Michael Caine):
Because he thought it was good sport. Because some men aren't looking for anything logical, like money. They can't be bought, bullied, reasoned or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn.


The first time I heard the line, I laughed.
And then I think, the script writer got the stories about Burma all mixed up.
May be, the kid playing with big buby is a grandson of one of those generals.

One thing is right though - there are men in Burma who just want to watch the rest of the country burn or drown as long as they can hold on to the power.