2012
Directed by Quentin Tarantino
I apologize for taking so long to get back here. It's strange; when I had about twenty reviews to write I was much more motivated to work. Now that I only have to write one every once and awhile it's much easier to put off. However, I have fought against my own lethargy and have emerged victorious. Does that make me a hero? I suppose that is up to you.
In 1858, Dr. King Schultz, a German dentist turned bounty hunter, buys Django, a slave who was recently sold off and separated from his wife. Schultz wants Django to help him find the Brittle Brothers, a group of wanted outlaws who used to work as overseers on the plantation where Django was enslaved. Schultz offers Django his freedom in exchange for his assistance in tracking down the Brittles. Schultz and Django quickly form a true partnership and their respect for each other grows. Schultz wants to help Django find and free his enslaved wife, Broomhilda. This goal becomes a tad more complicated when they discover that Broomhilda's new owner is Calvin Candie, a sadistic plantation owner who forces slaves to fight to the death for his own entertainment.
Well, if you enjoyed Inglourious Basterds it is almost impossible to not like this. Once again, we have a righteous tale of revenge with a great (and, in this case, hunky) villain. It is arguably even more satisfying than IB, as the brilliant Christoph Waltz plays a good guy, while retaining the characteristics that made him such a fascinating person in IB. I am trying to get "IB" started, although come to think of it, I think that abbreviation is already taken...
Overall, I think this is Tarantino at his best. The action is well paced and the acting is fantastic. I also liked that Tarantino used comedy to make the racist characters look ridiculous. Highly recommended.
RATING: *****
Interesting Facts:
Leonardo DiCaprio accidentally crushed a glass in his hand during the dinner scene, but stayed in character and finished the scene. He did, however, halt filming during another dinner scene, as he felt uncomfortable using so many racial slurs. Could this man be any sexier?
Django and Broomhilda are meant to be the great great great grandparents of Shaft.
Is this one of those films (see also: The Green Mile) which has an entirely unnecessary 20-minute sequence tacked on to the end? In this case the stuff in which Tarantino himself appears.
ReplyDeleteUgh I couldn't stand the Green Mile. I wasn't particularly annoyed with the Tarantino sequence in this one. But I was just telling Ray how annoying and unnecessary the opening to Hateful Eight was.
DeleteI found Django rather disappoining. The first half is okay, but then Tarantino goes into this Kill Bill exagerated gore fest and it looses all connection with credibility. Is it supposed to be fun? or some kind of super hero thing? I cannot tell. Mostly I found it revolting, but then I am also mostly watching 60 years old movies these days.
ReplyDeleteThe first section where they meet, go around as a duo etc was pretty entertaining. Then there's the tension and the (justifiably, to my mind) awfulness of going to Candyland and the characters they encounter.
ReplyDeleteYou're waiting for the inevitable moment it all kicks off. But when it does, like you say, is it supposed to be fun? Cool? A super hero thing? I too couldn't tell, but it brought back uncomfortable memories of Inglorious Basterds except that this time it wasn't 'my' history so I could let someone else take responsibility for judging it.