FilmReviews: Django Unchained

Life,Liberty and the Pursuit of Vengeance.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Django's here to save the day! Not in a superhero style but in a bloody brutal fashion by using big-ass guns.Finally watched Django Unchained and it was bloody entertaining and all the way great.Before digging into my insights,let me give you brief details about the film.Django Unchained is the 8th feature-length film directed by Quentin Tarantino (Pulp Fiction/Inglorious Basterds) and stars a wonderful cast that includes Jamie Foxx (Ray/Dreamgirls),Christoph Waltz (Inglorious Basterds/The Green Hornet),Leonardo DiCaprio (The Departed/Inception),Kerry Washington (Mr & Mrs Smith/TV's Scandal) and Samuel L.Jackson (Pulp Fiction).



Story:

Django Unchained's story is set in 1858 and tells about Django,a slave set free by a German bounty hunter and with the help of his German friend,King Schultz,he sets out to rescue his wife from a brutal Mississippi plantation owner.Django Unchained's story is compelling due to the revenge theme and I found it even better than Basterds' plotline since it is interesting to watch a Tarantino movie set in the western 1800s.About the film's story quality,it is quite competitive.That's one of the reasons why I loved this more than Basterds upon seeing it.If Basterds had Nazi-killing,then well,Django had a bad-ass nigger,bodies blowing up bloodily and the Wild Wild West.And that's a wide variety that Django Unchained has to offer.But one of the best things about the film's story is that as it progresses,the storytelling just gets better and better as it reaches its' end.Out of anything,I didn't find any flaws/problems about the film's plot whatsoever.It is an action packed movie with smart storytelling after all.Plus,it's Tarantino,so I had no doubt the storytelling would be great and well-told.It's just no wonder it got an Oscar for best writing/original screenplay credits to the legendary Quentin Tarantino.

Acting/Performances:

Director Quentin Tarantino is always chooses  wonderful ensembles for the movies he make,and in Django Unchained,you won't be disappointed about the cast.'Cause here,you got Oscar winners Jamie Foxx & Christoph Waltz,Good ol' Leo DiCaprio,the beautiful talented Kerry Washington and the always bad-ass Samuel L.Jackson.First things first,Jamie Foxx was excellent as Django.He fit the role perfectly and he was born to play the role of Django in this Tarantino film.His lines were well-delivered and his one-liners are just damn awesome.Christoph Waltz on the other hand served as a nice partner for Django,their chemistry onscreen was charming,his character Dr.King Schultz was the smart-ass while Django is the bad-ass.His acting here is better than it was in Basterds,and here he is given a bigger role as he plays the hero's second-in command.As he is always,Leo DiCaprio's acting was wonderful as he played the film's maniacal antagonist Calvin J.Candie.I thought that Leo was brilliant here,I loved how he spoke his lines and you just gotta love his evil flair.Kerry Washington's acting in the film was good,but not great.But one thing I loved in her performance here though is you can somehow be able to feel her emotions specially during the flashback whipping scene.Now,for Samuel L.Jackson,his onscreen presence was still enjoyable depsite the fact that he doesn't shoot a gun's trigger in the film.Not even once.In replacement for his trademark violent onscreen action was enjoyable dialogue delivered by him.It still would've been better though if they let him hand a gun,at least once.To top it all off,Django Unchained's amazing cast aren't disappointing,the performances are all top-notch and just enjoyable.

Visuals/Music/Miscellaneous:

If you missed Tarantino's trademark over-the-top violence in Inglorious Basterds,then you'll be relieved to see it again in here.Django Unchained is filled with stylishness and violence,If you're a sucker for bloody fights,then Mr.Tarantino's got you covered.The shootouts in the film sure are bloodily brutal,but at the same time just pure awesomely entertaining and jaw-dropping.Specially the shootout in the Big House.The film balances masterful storytelling with stunning,bad-ass action and it all works perfectly.Since one of Tarantino's trademarks is blending action with a little comedy and Django Unchained uses this quite effectively.It is perhaps funnier than Inglorious Basterds and a little charming too.Specially with Jamie Foxx's performance and the "KKK masks scene".For the run time,some may complain that it was too prolonged,but for me I had no problems with it.In fact,I have more fun watching a film when it is a little prolonged 'cause that way,the story becomes better.For the music,a Western needs to have music that are made by banjo strumming,well in Django,it still had that type of music,but mixed with modernism.By modernism,I mean today's music.The film had the music of Rick Ross,2Pac & James Brown,John Legend and many more.At most times,the use of hip-hop music in the movie was sometimes cool and sometimes out of place.But mostly cool.But aside from the modern music in the film,it had the western styled score.And it was amazing,particularly Django's theme that is played throughout the film's opening credits.For the film's pacing,it may be a little slow paced,but once it hits the middle part of the film,it builds its momentum that leads up to a slam-bang finale.To put it all in a nutshell,the film had great bloody visuals that are cool as always and the cinematography/camera work was just majestic as well.The music was mixed from a range of banjo strumming to hip-hop,some would love it but some would be feel a little awkward.But for me,I loved it.I thought it made the film more awesome.Specially John Legend and 2Pac's song used in the film.The run time didn't bother me at all,so it was definitely no fuss.The movie itself has a sort of black comedy all the way through,but once it reaches the climax,shit happens and the film's atmosphere goes from darkly comedic to utterly serious.But still,the ending made me cheer and you might too.

Direction/Director's Effort:

For Quentin Tarantino's directorial effort on this film,I definitely loved it.He became capable to make a modern era Western great and it homages the old Western shows/movies perfectly.To some,it might give slight nostalgia even.What I loved even more about Tarantino's directorial effort here is that he really tried his best to outdo his last film,Inglorious Basterds.Inglorious Basterds was thoroughly entertaining,but I felt that it lacked a little action.As for Django Unchained,he balanced the action and talking just right.And the action was satisfyingly bloody.So,for Tarantino,I would love to give him two thumbs up for delivering me a Western unlike anything I've seen before.

Overall:

Django Unchained is a bloody feast of entertainment filled with laughs,gruesome action and star-powered performances from an electrifying cast,therefore it may be one of the best Westerns you'll ever see.Django Unchained becomes one of Tarantino's masterpieces in his long career and probably his best yet in his later years of filmmaking.It is entertaining,it is darkly funny and it is just great despite its' offensiveness and controversy towards the movie.

The D Is Silent.Django Unchained gets 8.6 stars over 10.It is definitely one of Tarantino's finest works and a true must-see for this year.



*Looking for more Westerns? Try Clint Eastwood's Unforgiven,True Grit (1969 & 2010 Versions) and Sergio Leone's Dollars Trilogy (A Fistful of Dollars,For A Few Dollars More and The Good,The Bad and The Ugly).Available to own on DVD distributed by Magnavision Home Video.
**Looking for more Tarantino films? Check out Inglorious Basterds (2009).Available to own on DVD distributed by Magnavision Home Video.

For the meantime,check out this 60-Second clip of the film:



(C) 2013 Sony Pictures Entertainment/The Weinstein Company.