2. That is the grand total number of reviews I did for the entirety of the 2012 calender year. It wasn't for lack of watching movies, I did see five in the theatre:Chronicle, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance. The Avengers, and The Campaign, with Django Unchained barely squeaking in with a New Year's Eve viewing. That there was a viewing at all was kind of unexpected, as I really didn't have this one on my "need to see" list, and would have been comfortable watching it on DVD at a later date. But, as luck would have it, my roommate was itching to go to the movies, and this is the one she really wanted to see. We almost missed out, as the first theatre was sold out, but we got in to another screening at a different location, although I was almost secretly hoping that we got shut out again and would have to settle for The Hobbit.
Quentin Tarantino returns to the screen with his slave-era epic Django Unchained, his latest "period" piece since 2009's Inglourious Basterds. The film stars Jamie Foxx (Collateral, Ray) as the titular Django, who, as the film opens, is quite obviously a slave. He is being marched, chained to some fellow slaves, to a destination unknown, through all manner of weather and conditions. His back, also like his fellow slaves, is a cross-hatch of scars from whippings past. While they are on their journey, they are encountered by Dr. King Schultz, played by Christoph Waltz (The Green Hornet, Inglourious Basterds), a dentist who expresses his desire to purchase Django from the slavers. The slavers refuse, but the good doctor is not much for negotiations. After securing Django's services, Schultz describes why he sought Django out in the first place. Schultz is actually a bounty hunter, and needs Django to lead him to the Brittle Brothers, and in doing so he will reward him with a portion of the bounty and declare him a free man. Django, however, has a counter-offer, that being he needs the help of Schultz in locating and rescuing his wife, Broomhilda, played by Kerry Washington (Lakeview Terrace, The Last King of Scotland). The two form a partnership, and eventually a bond, and finally do locate Broomhilda, and learn she is owned by one Calvin Candie, played by Leonardo DiCaprio (The Basketball Diaries, Shutter Island), who is a plantation owner and slave trader, who also trains and forces the slaves into fights to the death. At his right hand is his man-servant Steven, played by Samuel L. Jackson (The Other Guys, Unthinkable), who appears to be just as racist as his owner.
This is the last time I saw a black guy as racist as Jackson's character.
Let me state upfront that although I have seen all of Tarantino's films, I am not his biggest fan. Sure, his films are good enough for repeat viewing, the best being Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, but I don't go out of my way to watch them or get excited to learn he has a new film in the pipeline. Like I stated previously, it was only sort of by accident that I saw this one as soon as I did. That being said, I did enjoy this movie, but for only one reason: Dr. King Schultz. Christoph Waltz was deviously brilliant as super-villain Hans Landa in Inglourious Basterds, easily the best role in that film, and he is just as enjoyable here as the almost whimsical Schultz. He is a hoot to watch the entire time he is on the screen, whether it be in his negotiation skills, the mentoring wisdom he imparts on Django, or the gun-slinging skills he possesses and uses in his bounty hunting. Were it not for this character, I might not have had a good time with this film, or perhaps if it were someone else playing the role. I feel that although it is set two years before the Civil War, and it was a VERY racist time in the Southern United States, Tarantino's rampant use of one forbidden word that begins with an "N" and rhymes with "trigger" was too much. It seemed like he found every possible way to use that word in every possible context, and even invented a few along the way. He probably could have done without a couple dozen uses of it, although he does redeem himself a bit with a scene mocking the KKK midway through that makes them look like the total buffoons they are.
You're already a buffoon if you have to hide under your mother's linens.
Django Unchained is an extremely long movie, clocking in at 165 minutes, but it didn't feel that way. It was evenly paced, the action made up for the exposition, and despite one huge plot hole late in the movie, I enjoyed it over-all. I would definitely pay to see Waltz again in anything, and if he was to pop up in something else as Schultz, even better. Knowing Tarantino's propensity to tie his movies together, that's not that far of a stretch. Foxx is good as Django, and Jackson is better as the despicable Steven, but DiCaprio is the slimiest as Candie, a villain you truly despise. With some interesting cameos sprinkled in as well, Django Unchained is not Tarantino's best work, but even non-fans will enjoy it, and may win some converts along the way.
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