Equally loved and hated for his indulgent
stylistics, Quentin Tarantino is the proper definition of an auteur. Often
regarded for classics like Pulp Fiction, Inglourious Basterds, and Reservoir
Dogs, Tarantino specializes in a unique visual identity, and his signature long
conversations that showcase his writing. I can only speak for myself, but no
one writes dialogue better than he does. After flirting with spaghetti western
undertones in Basterds, it seemed only obvious that his next would be a full
on, gritty western. However, the question still remained: Would it translate
well to the screen? Let’s put it this way. If you’re not a fan of his style,
this won’t change your mind. If you are a fan, you’ll probably have a blast
with Django Unchained.
We open in the 1850’s, where German
dentist turned bounty hunter Dr. King Schultz (Christoph Waltz) purchases the
freedom of a slave named Django (Jame Foxx). Schultz teaches Django - the D is
silent – the ways of bounty hunting, and the two ride into various towns
killing wanted criminals. In exchange for helping him with this job, Schultz
offers to help Django find his missing wife Broomhilda (Kerry Washington), who
is currently in the possession of the unpredictable land and slave owner Calvin
Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio).
If you’ve seen any of Tarantino’s other films, you know what you can
expect here. He is very indulgent in his own stylistics, supplying the movie
with over the top humor, anachronistic music, and a slight air of silliness to
it. Needless to say, it’s not perfect... but, that’s why I love it so much. The
movie’s imperfections are its charms, and even if I have a few nit-picks, criticizing
Tarantino for indulgence would be like criticizing the winter for being cold. I
adore the direction he was going for this movie, and the overall tone and
technical prowess offers much to be admired.
As always, Tarantino’s writing is the
highlight. Once again, he uses his extended conversations well, building up the
tension of each one to hold one’s attention. You can never predict when a
character may go flying off the handle, and what that may entail. Tense,
character rich, and gritty, the movie also fully delves into the issues of
racism with uncompromising detail. Tarantino also finds a way to mix in well
placed humor, with an argument over white hoods that made me ache with
laughter. The movie is pretty long, about 2 and three quarter hours, but it’s
surprisingly easy to sit through until it’s over. It’s certainly one of the
most entertaining movies I’ve watched all year.
 |
| Leonardo DiCaprio as a scenery chewing baddie... Need I say more? |
The cast is equally impressive, all selling
the traits and personalities of their characters. Jamie Foxx and Christoph
Waltz are both impressive, cool, and share an easy chemistry, Waltz in
particular selling much needed comic relief. Samuel L. Jackson, a Tarantino
staple, gets to steal the scene as Calvin Candie’s seedy and suspicious right
hand man Stephen. Then we get down to Leonardo DiCaprio. For a long time, DiCaprio has
been an actor who really seemed to take himself too seriously when it came to
roles. Here, he gives probably his best performance since The Aviator. It’s so
much fun seeing him play such a delightfully wicked and viciously comical
villain, providing him with the dramatic break that was perfect for him. He’s
chewing the scenery, and having a blast with it.
Like I said, this is not a perfect film,
but it is pure Tarantino. Those who love that will eat it up, while others may
not get too into it. The fact still remains that Django Unchained is constantly
entertaining, varying on the eye of the beholder, of course. One of the year’s
best. Adult supervision is required...
***** / *****
No comments:
Post a Comment