Django Unchained: "Django. The D Is Silent"

Director: Quentin Tarantino
Writer:    Quentin Tarantino
Starring: Jamie Foxx
               Christoph Waltz
               Leonardo Dicaprio
               Kerry Washington
               Samuel L. Jackson
               Walton Goggins
               Dennis Christopher
               James Remar
               Laura Cayouette
               Don Johnson
               Jonah Hill
Rating:    ****

Release Date: Out Now

Once again a film by Quentin Tarantino has been shrouded in controversy, disbelief and negative press; something I have never understood. When watching a Tarantino film (which I am a huge fan of), you know the content you are going to be seeing; there will be violence, adult language, and some sort of exploitation. If you do not like these things, do not watch his films, and then you won't have to be subjected to them.

Samuel L. Jackson & Leonardo DiCaprio

Django (Foxx) is a slave who was separated from his wife, Broomhilda (Washington) at an auction. As he is taken away from the woman he loves, he is left wondering if he will ever see her again, and what his life will become from now on. With all hope lost, Django is ready to give up; when a glimmer of light appears in the form of Dr Schultz (Waltz). He is a bounty hunter that doesn't particularly like slavery, and buys Django to help him find his latest catch; and in return will free him. 

As they complete their mission, they begin to grow closer, and when Schultz finds out about Django;s story, he vows to help him find his wife. After some investigation they discover she has been bought by a maniacal plantation owner, Calvin Candie (Dicaprio), they travel to the plantation to save her, but when their plan is revealed by Candie's head butler Stephen (Jackson) it becomes a fight to the death and only a few will survive.

Jamie Foxx & Kerry Washington

It really is a fantastic film, and Tarantino has done a superb job at turning such a dark subject matter into a western; a western filled with tongue in cheek humour, gore and surprisingly alot of heart. The relationship between Schultz and Django is very sweet, and Waltz and Foxx portray it wonderfully, as two men who are lost and looking for their path. Dicaprio and Jackson are brilliant villains, the kind you love to hate; but it is Jackson's Stephen you hate most. He is fighting against his people, and in such a desperate time it is a hateful move for a character to make. Alot of the emotion though comes from distraught slave Broomhilda, who Washington play with a rawness and heart, and she really will shock you with her performance.

There are the odd plot holes and historical inaccuracies in the script, and it could do with being about 45 minutes shorter, but I am such a fan of Tarantino's work that I can't really complain to much. The script is sharp, and it has everything you would expect and want, as a fan, from a Tarantino film, the final battle being particularly gory and shocking, but its shot in such a bizarrely beautiful way that you become entranced by it. That basically sums up all of Tarantino's films,;stunningly gory, that put you in a trance.



Django Unchained - Trailer