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Django Unchained (2012)

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Ceetar Dec 05 2012 02:06 PM

The D is silent. Set in the South two years before the Civil War, Django Unchained stars Jamie Foxx as Django, a slave whose brutal history with his former owners lands him face-to-face with German-born bounty hunter Dr. King Schultz (Christoph Waltz). Schultz is on the trail of the murderous Brittle brothers, and only Django can lead him to his bounty. Honing vital hunting skills, Django remains focused on one goal: finding and rescuing Broomhilda (Kerry Washington), the wife he lost to the slave trade long ago. Django and Schultz's search ultimately leads them to Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio), the proprietor of "Candyland," an infamous plantation. Exploring the compound under false pretenses, Django and Schultz arouse the suspicion of Stephen (Samuel L. Jackson), Candie's trusted house slave. -- (C) Weinstein This movie was awesome, while being pretty predictable. I mean, Tarantino writes a western is pretty much exactly what you would expect. Bloodshed, ridiculous situations, fun cinematics, more bloodshed.. and well acted too. The main thing that drives the story is Django's quest to find his wife, who was sold to a different plantation than him. He hooks up with Schultz, the bounty hunter, and you get all sorts of hijinks as they collect on wanted posters and then it almost transitions to a James Bondesque mission to rescue Broomhilda, Django's wife. The only thing I'd say is that while DiCaprio and Jackson do a great job in their roles, both of them are really just incidentals in that except for one snag near the end, neither of their actions really drive the story and I think that takes away from their performance a bit. But the movie was great. really enjoyable. The soundtrack too, also typical Tarantino imo. Probably the best movie I've seen all year.

TransMonk Dec 05 2012 04:30 PM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

I plan on taking this one in...most likely at the theater during Xams week. My better half wants to see the Les Mis movie coming out, so it may be an afternoon where we split up and go to different theaters.

themetfairy Dec 05 2012 04:49 PM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

I love Tarantino - his sense of humor is amazingly warped. Looking forward to seeing this one.

Ceetar Dec 05 2012 04:55 PM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

themetfairy wrote: I love Tarantino - his sense of humor is amazingly warped. Looking forward to seeing this one. oh, very warped, and i love it.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Dec 05 2012 11:55 PM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

SERIOUSLY, go watch Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction over the holidays. You'll thank me. I'll see this then, myself.

Ceetar Dec 06 2012 12:28 AM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

SERIOUSLY, go watch Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction over the holidays. You'll thank me. I'll see this then, myself. downloading inglorious basterds right now. but yeah, I will. edit: I realize now that i downloaded basterds and pulp fiction in blu ray..and my stupid computer has ceased being visible to the Playstation to play them. grr. argh.

Vic Sage Dec 06 2012 02:50 PM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

for discussion of "Basterds": viewtopic.php?f=11&t=12346&hilit=Tarantino I can't believe I've never done a Tarantino filmography.

Vic Sage Dec 06 2012 05:28 PM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

Quentin Tarantino, the ultimate indie-hyphenate (as an actor/writer/director/producer), is the preeminent pop poet and violence aesthete of his generation. Growing up in working class LA, dropping out of HS and going to work at a video store while taking acting classes, Tarantino lived on the fringes of the industry until he sold the screenplay for TRUE ROMANCE (later directed by Tony Scott). This gave him enough money and connections to write and direct RESERVOIR DOGS, which launched his career at the Sundance Festival. A success de' estime, DOGS set the stage for what was to come... Reservoir Dogs (1992) - A heist film with no heist, an action film propelled by dialogue, a dynamic and intensely kinetic film that takes place primarily in a single set (an empty warehouse), a sympathetic portrait of unsympathetic characters, these contradictions make for fascinating drama. Great performances, too, particularly Michael Madsen as the most feral of the canines. True Romance (1993) (screenplay) - It's the only Tony Scott film worth seeing, with Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette as the most adorable killer/drug dealer couple on the run that you ever wanted to just hug. Natural Born Killers (1994) (story) - Oliver Stone rewrote (and destroyed) QT's screenplay to such an extent he lost his screenplay credit, which he was probably happy about considering how the film turned out. Pulp Fiction (1994) - QT's career exploded with his first huge hit, a blackly comic neo-noir that won him an Oscar for his screenplay and a nomination for his direction. It also featured great performances, including the Oscar-nominated comeback of John Travolta and a star turn by Samuel L. Jackson. PULP's nonlinear, fractured structure with interweaving narratives, was fascinating storytelling. And with its pop cultural references and pastiche, and it's self-aware and highly stylized form, it became an iconic representation of post-modernist film-making, but without ever losing itself in pretension or losing sight of itself as entertainment. It is the quintessence of Quentin. Four Rooms (1995) ("The Man From Hollywood" segment) - QT wrote and directed 1 of 4 separate stories in this flop comedy. Didn't see it; don't want to. From Dusk Till Dawn (1996) (screenplay) - he chose not to direct this one, turning it over to his buddy Robert Rodriguez, so he could focus on his performance and the script. Which was too bad, since this comic horror homage to the blood and gore screamers of his youth probably could have used a more interesting directorial flourish, and it certainly would have benefited from less of him in front of the camera. As good a filmmaker as he is, QT is a very annoying actor. If only he had Hitchcock's restraint to limit himself to the briefest of cameos. Still, this is a fun movie, well worth seeing. Jackie Brown (1997) - QT's tribute to the "blaxploitation" cinema of the 70s is a rambling, overlong, unfocused and largely unsuccessful adaptation of an Elmore Leonard story. With this film, he tried to revive the career of blaxploitation queen Pam Greer, as he had earlier done for Travolta, but it didn't quite work out that way. Still, it did boost the career of veteran actor Robert Forster, earning him an academy award nomination, and Samuel L. Jackson was his usual menacing self. This is lesser Tarantino. Kill Bill: Vol. 1, 2 (2003-,2004) - QT returned to glory with this film, split into 2 volumes for distribution but originally shot as a single work. KB is an epic pop cultural melange on `roids, mixing Hong Kong martial arts films, with Japanese samurai melodramas and anime, spaghetti westerns, revenge thrillers and 70s crime actioners, into a unique concoction too overwhelming for a single sitting. Uma Thurman, whom I've never had much use for except in QT's films, is used to absolute perfection as the vengeance-seeking samurai assassin searching for her stolen child. The other performances are consistently good as well. The films both unfold obliquely, with digressions, and novelistic chapter headings to guide us from one set piece to another. While some folks prefer the more action-oriented Vol.1 to the more contemplative Vol.2, i found V2 to be the more satisfying work. Overall, I'd rate the KBs as my single favorite work of his, with its epic scale dwarfing the otherwise fabulous but smaller scale PULP FICTION. Grindhouse ("Death Proof" segment) - A double feature of 60s-70s era low-budget exploitation films he made with Robert Rodriguez, this is one of QT's least interesting works. A sort of slasher film on wheels turns into a deadly femme revenge flick halfway through, it resolves anticlimactically, with the chicks simply standing around beating up the bad guy, played by Kurt Russell in an apparent parody of his Snake Plisskin character. It's especially unsatisfying compared with Rodriguez's "Planet Terror" horror/sci-fi segment, which is a disgusting blast of fun. Although, to be fair, its been reported that Quentin co-directed PLANET TERROR, too. Inglourious Basterds (2009) - QT's alternate history of WWII is a "bunch a guys with a mission" type war movie, ala DIRTY DOZEN, etc., with a title based on a 70s low budget Italian war film, but it is uniquely Tarantino nonetheless. With 8 Oscar nominations (including an Oscar to supporting actor Christoph Waltz), it's also his highest grossing film to date. Its intertwining, episodic parallel story threads works as a structure, but fails to allow the Basterds themselves to get developed as characters we should care about, especially Brad Pitt, who is funny but 1-dimensional and cartoonish. Still, the opening sequence, with its Morricone music, shot compositions, themes and even the narrative itself, is a remake of the opening of ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST, and if QT had been able to maintain that sensibility, it would've been an amazing film. However, the subsequent sequences vary greatly in tone and style, so the whole thing feels more like a mishmash than a coherently articulated concept. Still, it works on many levels and, as a seminal part of his oeuvre, is not to be missed. Django Unchained (2012) - I'm looking forward to his spaghetti western. Its been in development for quite a while. My Top 5 (in order): KILL BILL 1,2 PULP FICTION RESERVOIR DOGS TRUE ROMANCE INGLORIOUS BASTERDS (though i suspect DJANGO will knock it off my list, once i've seen it)

John Cougar Lunchbucket Dec 06 2012 05:37 PM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

Maybe there's a special thread just to say this, but I never saw Kill Bill 1 or 2. I remember coming home from the theater completely blown away by PULP FICTION. I don't recall knowing anything of QT or a review, or much about movies, when I saw it and so was not nearly prepared for it to be as ambitious as it was, and the effect made for probably the best moviegoing experience of my life.

TransMonk Dec 06 2012 05:58 PM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: I remember coming home from the theater completely blown away by PULP FICTION. I don't recall knowing anything of QT or a review, or much about movies, when I saw it and so was not nearly prepared for it to be as ambitious as it was, and the effect made for probably the best moviegoing experience of my life. Same here. I would recommend the Kill Bills and agree with Vic that it is Tarantino at his best.

Vic Sage Dec 06 2012 06:00 PM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

i think most folks would rate PULP FICTION first among his films, and KILL BILL 2nd or even lower, preferring RESERVOIR DOGS or even BASTERDS (maybe even DJANGO now). It's just my take on it. KB is epic in a way none of his other films are; its scale and aspirations are grander. I like that. I like that alot.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Dec 06 2012 07:14 PM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

If you're talking about its length, yeah, it's epic. But what about the actual scale makes KB epic for you? It's a straightforward, straightmoving revenge flick with a handful of temporal digressions to flesh out secondary characters. The actors do good work, but the characters are pretty damn flat/small. Hell, even the majority of the battles-- Crazy 88s aside-- are small. I go: 1) PF 2) RD 3) KB 4) IB 5) Jackie Brown And scriptwise, it's his... but "True Romance" isn't entirely a Tarantino film, is it? (I'd slot it at 2.5 if it were.)

Mets Willets Point Dec 06 2012 07:36 PM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

I've only seen Jackie Brown which I thought was okay mainly because Pam Greer put in a great performance. I've avoided seeing Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction because I'm overly sensitive to violence (one scene in Pulp Fiction I've heard described would probably give me nightmares for week).

themetfairy Dec 06 2012 07:40 PM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

I have to tell you, I'm generally averse to violent films as well. But I love Tarantino's films - they have a warped perverseness that somehow accentuates their cartoon character. Only Tarantino can take a line like, "Luckily for her he was a pedophile" and make it work.

Vic Sage Dec 07 2012 04:25 PM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

If you're talking about its length, yeah, it's epic. But what about the actual scale makes KB epic for you? It's a straightforward, straightmoving revenge flick with a handful of temporal digressions to flesh out secondary characters. The actors do good work, but the characters are pretty damn flat/small. Hell, even the majority of the battles-- Crazy 88s aside-- are small. I go: 1) PF 2) RD 3) KB 4) IB 5) Jackie Brown And scriptwise, it's his... but "True Romance" isn't entirely a Tarantino film, is it? (I'd slot it at 2.5 if it were.) I have no quarrel with your ranking; it's your ranking, and it seems entirely reasonable to me. As for TRUE ROMANCE, no it's not entirely a Tarantino film, but it is SO like the rest of his films, and so UNLIKE the entirety of Tony Scott's career, that I've necessarily included it within TQ's canon. And of course you can like, love or hate KILL BILL as you choose, and i won't say "boo" about it. But please don't tell me what it is or isn't. My reading of KB reveals a mythopoetic tale of archtypal characters out of legend. It's not epic? It's fucking biblical. A pregnant bride and all who care about her are slaughtered at a wedding by her former lover and fellow assassins (who all go by code names). Years later, she rises from death as a white spirit of vengeance (so nameless as to have her named bleeped when spoken aloud). She obtains a weapon of great significance which is crafted especially for her vengeance quest... a quest which takes her around the world, to overcome overwhelming odds, then to confront a woman of such power and evil that her motivations can only be described through animation (realism isnt' adequate). The confrontation is a quiet samurai battle in the snow, it's whiteness defiled by blood. There, the Bride learns that her quest will lead her to a daughter she thought murdered. She is now a warrior/earth mother questing not only for vengeance but for her own child. She returns to her home in pursuit, killing off her own fellow assassins along the way. One catches her and imprisons her in a coffin beneath the earth. In a "temporal digression to flesh out a secondary character", we learn of her prior life and her training by a Chinese Master, the archtypal wiseman/shaman whose death she must also avenge, and whose training allows her to emerge from the trap. Crawling out of the earth as if reborn, covered in blood and earth (blood of the warrior, earth of the mother), she is a twice-killed twice risen figure out of myth. Ultimately, she must use the secret teachings of her dead master (the exploding heart technique) to defeat her enemy and reclaim her child and her soul. It's Joseph Campbell and LADY SNOWBIRD; it's the Bible and asian cinema, It's BEOWULF and FISTFUL OF DOLLARS. It's everything QT has ever loved or thought about films packed into 4 funny, violent, poignant hours. Does it have thousands of Romans attacking the Gauls? No. And if that's your definition of "epic", then i guess its not. But i think that's too narrow a construction of the term. KB 1+2 is epic in its themes, in its scope, in its aspiration. That's enough for me.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Dec 07 2012 05:30 PM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

After seeing it again last night-- albeit in Bravo-bowdlerized fashion-- and reading your explanation, Vic... I stand corrected, and convinced.

A Boy Named Seo Dec 08 2012 01:49 AM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

Vic Sage wrote: I can't believe I've never done a Tarantino filmography. Me neither. I searched the CPF for this like a week ago. Had to settle for IMDB.

metirish Dec 12 2012 04:18 PM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

A five star review http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2012/dec ... ook-review

sharpie Dec 26 2012 03:05 AM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

Not 5 star, but a solid 4. A bit long, a bit predictable at points and Tarantino's acting is pitiable but otherwise quite enjoyable with terrific performances by many. The klan scene is a classic.

themetfairy Dec 26 2012 03:34 AM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

I saw it this evening - awesomely entertaining! Just a lot of fun. Yes about the Klan scene - "I was just ASKING!"

El Segundo Escupidor Dec 26 2012 11:19 AM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

I want to see this bad -- so bad in fact that I'm prepared to donate parts of my anatomy to Lance Armstrong. I'll have to endure another month before this hits the cinemas (film releases at this time of year lag significantly compared to the US). Actually thought the non-Grindhouse version of Deathproof was quite decent. It's about 15 minutes longer and makes more sense. The idea was that QT wanted to edit the Grindhouse version in a shit way to try and fit in with the genre. But for me Reservoir Dogs was masterpiece. Easily in my Top 10 all-time. 1. RD 2. JB 3. PF 4. Kill Frayed Knot 5. DP

Vic Sage Jan 02 2013 07:53 PM Re: Django Unchained (2012) Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Mar 20 2013 05:57 PM

finally saw it and liked it alot. Christoph Waltz is once again terrific and hilarious, with just a hint of poignant humanity, and Jamie Foxx is suitably iconic as he grows in power and stature throughout the story. QT again gets great little cameos from pop culture figures of the past (Franco Nero, Don Johnson, Michael "Billy Jack" Parks, Bruce Dern, James Remar, Tom Wopat, Dennis "Breaking Away" Christopher, Russ Tamblyn, Don Stroud, Robert Carradine, etc), and QT's customary cameo is satisfactorily short and he has the good taste to blow himself to bits. The film's action is silly, funny, cartoonish and over-the-top, even as its themes are intensely serious. Fat Jonah Hill co-stars with Don Johnson in the "Klansman" scene, which is absolutely hilarious. The problem is not just length, but pacing. I don't mind a long movie, if it has an arc that keeps you interested and pacing that suits the story. But here the story feels like a sequence of set pieces, one after another. We're supposed to care about Django finding his wife (which is the story's "through line"), but we've seen almost nothing of their relationship, nor much about who each of them is individually, so the "quest" is more an intellectual conceit than the emotional core of the story that the movie demands. Also, the movie introduces major characters and new conflicts about 1/2 way through, without ever establishing them in the first place, so it just feels like another chapter. The ending is then attenuated, going on about 1/2 hour longer than it should. Still, overall, an entertaining film. My Top 5 films written AND directed by Tarantino (in order): 1- KILL BILL 1,2 2- PULP FICTION 3- RESERVOIR DOGS 4- DJANGO UNCHAINED 5- INGLORIOUS BASTERDS

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jan 09 2013 04:26 AM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

Vic Sage wrote: The problem is not just length, but pacing. I don't mind a long movie, if it has an arc that keeps you interested and pacing that suits the story. But here the story feels like a sequence of set pieces, one after another. We're supposed to care about Django finding his wife (which is the story's "through line"), but we've seen almost nothing of their relationship, nor much about who each of them is individually, so the "quest" is more an intellectual conceit than the emotional core of the story that the movie demands. Also, the movie introduces major characters and new conflicts about 1/2 way through, without ever establishing them in the first place, so it just feels like another chapter. The ending is then attenuated, going on about 1/2 hour longer than it should. "Basterds" had the same problems, only with a couple more missteps. (I'm thinking that QT needs to lessen the weed intake JUST a smidge.) Also, Kerry Washington can do a LOT more than look terrified, but you couldn't tell it from this 'un. Came here excited to post after seeing this today... only to find that Vic and I agree almost entirely. My revised five: 1) PULP* 2) KB 1, 2* 3) RESERVOIR 4) DJANGO 5) BASTERDS *While Vic convinced me earlier about Kill Bill, I still prefer Pulp's slightly-smaller-scale-but-pitch-perfect-execution.

Vic Sage Jan 09 2013 03:21 PM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

what i'd like to know is who gave it 1 star? and why? I'm not being critical, i'm just interested in hearing the rationale. Yes, Kerry Washington was definitely underutilized. I would've liked to see a parallel story thread going on with her where, as Django learns to be a bounty hunter, she is trying to survive on DiCaprio's plantation (similar to the structure of EMPIRE STRIKES BACK). That way, you introduce the plantation characters early on, and you develop the relationship between Django and his wife throughout the film, so when they all meet up in the last 3rd of the movie, the stage has been set, the conflict heightened by anticipation, and the audience in invested in the resolution. It doesn't all just happen out of nowhere.

El Segundo Escupidor Mar 04 2013 11:04 AM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

Brilliant in every conceivable way. Second only to RD on my Q-list.

Frayed Knot Mar 20 2013 02:32 AM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

Has all the QT Checklist points most notably the graphic, cartoonish violence along with a warped humor accompanying all the blood-letting. But then he doesn't know when to rein it in and the ending goes on at least 20 minutes too long so I find myself saying, 'look, I know you're going to kill every single person on the screen so just do it and wrap things up, OK?' oe: one thing I did like was how, intentionally or not, the 'Mandingo Fighting' scene worked as a parody of MMA fighting, right down to the part where DiCaprio tells the one guy that his fighting style isn't exciting enough even though he wins his fights.

John Cougar Lunchbucket May 26 2013 01:28 AM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

Liked it more than Inglorius Basterds, but would agree with above remarks concerning the pace and length. It was fun. Waltz was great. That the shot guys kept catching painful crossfire was hilarious at first but tiresome by the end.

Vic Sage Jan 20 2016 06:39 PM Re: Django Unchained (2012)

Update: HATEFUL 8 Tarantino is carrying on the themes of America's history of racial conflict from DJANGO, this time implying a more hopeful (if ultimately futile) cooperation between the races by the end. And there is a certain Aristotilian unity of time and place, super-imposed on white, mountainous landscapes of snow and cold, with the crucified Christ looking down on the goings on. And there is some darkly funny and truly horrific stuff, with the last half-hour an orgy of blood and guts. And there is his typical use of great 70s-80s era actors (Bruce Dern, Kurt Russell, Lee Horsley) and members of his stock company (Sam Jackson, Michael Madson, Tim Roth), accompanied by another great Morricone score. But i didn't love it. Unlike DJANGO, there is absolutely nobody to root for here, and its slow pace doesn't build in intensity; it's just blah blah blah until... [SPOILERS] everybody dies [END SPOILERS]. If the excessive violence had been spread out more, it could've built from 1 killing to the next, but this is like... well, have you ever been nauseated after a night of heavy drinking, and you're just sort of lingering like that for hours, and then you burp, but your burp picks up a hitchhiker and you end up projectile vomiting and shitting yourself all at once? It's sort of like that. And where the fuck did that Tarantino narration come from? It's never established as a storytelling device... it just shows up halfway through the movie, then disappears. wtf? If you want to see a great film in which a bunch of bad guys are stuck in a room before ultimately tearing themselves apart, see the infinitely superior RESERVOIR DOGS. I'm glad i saw H8, and middling Tarantino is better than alot of other stuff, but this one isn't even in Quentin's top 5. Here is my current ranking of all Tarantino-related films: KILL BILL [1 & 2] PULP FICTION RESERVOIR DOGS TRUE ROMANCE * DJANGO UNCHAINED INGLORIOUS BASTERDS HATEFUL 8 JACKIE BROWN FROM DUSK TIL DAWN * GRINDHOUSE (DEATH PROOF segment) ** NATURAL BORN KILLERS * FOUR ROOMS ** * = Story and/or screenplay only ** = Segment only