Django Unchained

Quentin Tarantino's new offering, Django Unchained is an ode to the old west, continuing his efforts to wreck cinematic revenge on history's wrongs by pitting an ex-slave gunslinger against a racist plantation owner.

What’s the deal?

Django (Jamie Foxx) is a slave sold to a chain gang after an escape attempt with wife Broomhilda (Kerry Washington). German dentist/bounty hunter Dr King Schultz (Christoph Waltz) buys Django to initially help track down and kill the men who sold he and Broomhilda; however, it turns out Django is a natural gunslinger, so Schultz gives Django both his freedom and a partnership in his bounty hunting operation. Django’s main aim as a freeman is to find Broomhilda, currently residing in Candyland, the plantation owned by the sadistic Calvin Candie (Leonard DiCaprio).

It’s good!

I’m not a fan of Westerns, but I enjoyed this a hellava lot more than I expected. The visuals are stunning – from the opening scene of the scarred slaves marching across the hilly deserts, to the silhouetted funereal procession back to the plantation house at the film’s climactic end. QT has always been about visuals – from the look of his characters, the detail of mise en scene in relation to that which it pays homage to, to the capture of some truly artistic on-screen moments – and Django Unchained definitely delivers on that count. It does have its gore – the blood splatter is absolutely ridiculous – but the most effective moments of tension was during the negotiation scene. QT loves his big monologues and is a master of the verbal standoff – the negotiation scene, I thought, was more chilling than the entire Crazy 88 fight scene in Kill Bill 1. The casting is genius. Jamie Foxx is just a massive pimp in this movie. He has the charisma to pull off a guy who remains cool when literally the whole world is against him. Leo DiCaprio as Calvin Candie and QT favourite Samuel L. Jackson as behind-the-scenes Candyland 2IC are just an unbelievably brilliant evil duo. From the moment Jackson appears on-screen, he is a pure malevolent tour de force.

What’s wrong with you?

I know QT has copped criticism in the past for relying too much on editing tricks. In terms of narrative, Django Unchained is a lot more straightforward than previous offerings. The plot is linear and shown from only one point of view, which is a refreshing change. If there is one criticism, it is that the KKK scene comes off a little too Blazing Saddles for my liking, but that could've been the point.

Neo-Maxi Zoom Dweeb-ery

Tarantino is fast becoming a real auteur, if he isn’t already classed as such. Like the great Hitchcock, writer/director/producer QT has broken new ground in film editing techniques and narrative; similarly, both have made appearances in every film they’ve directed. They both, like director Tim Burton, also have a preferred ensemble of actors to work with.The last four films QT has written and directed have had an extremely distinctive style. They are all genre homages centred around revenge, starting with 2003/4’s kung fu eastern-influenced Kill Bill 1 & 2; 2007’s seedy seventies exploitation romp Death Proof (part of the Grindhouse project); 2009’s fantastical and wholly inaccurate war-themed Inglorious Basterds; now the black slavery spaghetti western of Django Unchained. All main characters are criminal outlaws of some sort – predominantly hit men of various kinds, at the very least vigilantes - exacting a revenge on an individual or a society at large.

Truth?

Another great addition to the QT catalogue. If you love the revenge genre – and I do – you’ll love this.

Bender Fist Pumps

4/5

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