Django Unchained

Revenge isn't clean but it sure does look and sound good. Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained came out in the UK at the weekend and I have finally watched it after the agonising wait, during which it got great reviews from the its release in the USA. I am a big fan of Tarantino, everything he does looks amazing and the man writes dialogue that is so intelligent and witty, it is out of this world. Django Unchained is not an exception in his great line of work and may just be one of his films since Pulp Fiction.

Once you get into Django Unchained you are in for a ride, a very long ride. But it will be worth it. The plot goes like this 'Former dentist, Dr. King Schultz, buys the freedom of a slave, Django, and trains him with the intent to make him his deputy bounty hunter. Instead, he is led to the site of Django's wife who is under the hands of Calvin Candie, a ruthless plantation owner.' It's a crazy film that won't be for everyone but if you are a fan of Tarantino then, like me you will come out of the cinema a very happy person. The film is full of great moments, my particular favourite being a scene where members of the KKK are moaning about the masks they have to wear, the scene is comedy gold.

After a few small roles over the last few years it feels good to see Jamie Foxx back and being in the main role as Django and doing a mighty fine job of it as well may I add. Other additions to the cast include Christoph Waltz who is just as good as he was in Inglorious Basterds maybe even better. Leonardo DiCaprio plays the evil plantation owner and he plays evil so well and still manages to make you laugh along the way, he surely is one of the best actors of our generation and Tarantino's dialogue just helps to make this performance extra special. Kerry Washington puts on her best performance of her career as Django's wife, whilst Samuel L Jackson is no longer that cool dude you want to be friends with, this time he just plain evil and also gives off an incredible performance. The only exception of great performances is Quentin Tarantino's cameo, usually I don't mind his place in his films but this time it didn't seem right. Apart from that though it is a pretty amazing cast! The first half of the film does seem as if it belongs to Christoph Waltz, with Jamie Foxx playing second fiddle but by the second act you will know why this film is called Django Unchained!

Be warned this film is very violent, but you probably already knew that. Tarantino does not hold back in trying to show us how bad it was for black people during this era in the United States. This may be controversial but it sure does help make you feel for the characters in this brutal world that once was ours. In some scenes it literally looks as if it is raining blood with the amount spilt on camera. I am usually good with violence on film but even I had to avert my eyes in places, especially in scene which contained 'mandingo fighting'.

The film looks great and Tarantino proves that he is not playing safe when it comes to working the camera. The camera moves around the place in ways that are rarely seen on film anymore, he isn't afraid to experiment and the film gives off the fun pulpy style that the rest of Tarantino's work has. The guy pulls of several crash zooms that are just really enjoyable to watch. 

One of my favourite things about this film though was the soundtrack. It was different and all over the place but it worked! Tarantino really knows how to pick the right songs for his work, I doubt anyone else could fit a 2Pac song into Western/Southern movie. It makes the whole experience a lot more enjoyable and I found myself smiling away at the back of the screening.

Another thing that made me smile was the dialogue. Yet again Tarantino has a his way with words and creates some brilliant speeches and one liners that are interesting and funny at the same time. Thank god he was able to casta ctors who were able to get the timings perfectly and create some really great moments in the film.

There are not many flaws in this film apart from the cameo from Tarantino himself. If I was to be picky I would say that the film went a bit 'Peter Jackson' at the end and had a few too many places where the movie could end. But apart from that I loved this film! That is why I am rating Django Unchained, 5/5.

What did you think of Django Unchained? Please comment below.

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Easter Reviews Part 1

So over the Easter holidays so far, I have watched a lot of films and I am most likely to watch a lot more! So for this post I am going to write short reviews for all of the films I have seen so far. Then next week I will review the rest of the films I am most likely to watch in the coming days. So please enjoy!

Paranormal Activity 3
I was a big fan of the documentary Catfish which the directors of this film previously worked on. So I was hoping that they would do this franchise some good. I liked the first film, due to its originality in the horror genre, but I wasn't a big fan of the second as its seems they just copied what had happened in the previous instalment. The third, although having the same sort of rhythm to it, was actually my personal favourite of the series! I thought that it pushed the boundaries of the previous film and delivered some pretty creative scares. If you were put off by the second film then don't turn this one down as it might regain your faith. But I must ask how much life the series has left in it?

Martha Marcy May Marlene
I reviewed this in previous post but I thought I would still give a short verdict; If you are a fan of films which have interesting plots but don't actually go anywhere with it, then this is the film for you. Unfortunately this is not the film for me.

Sunshine
Danny Boyle has no boundaries! He can take any genre and make his own brilliant film within it. Sunshine is a great film and stars some great actors including the new Captain America. A great film that felt almost like a new take on the Alien films. Some great story telling done here and it was actually quite scary in places. My only criticism is that the ending was a little bit crazy and a points I was unsure as to what was actually happening.

Reservoir Dogs
This is the first time I have seen this Tarantino masterpiece. It was a great film which had me glued to my seat throughout. A proper classic and if you haven't seen it, you need too! This really is Tarantino at his best and I don't think I have seen a bad film from the director yet. I cannot wait for Django Unchained!

We Need To Talk About Kevin
I really enjoyed this film and thought that the subject area of which it is based on was handled well. My only problem with this film is that they try to hard. They try to establish this bad relationship between a mother and her soon to be mass killer son. The director obviously wanted the audience to question whether his actions could have been prevented by better parenting. The director also wanted us to think whether the mother is just as bad as her son. The only problem is, is that they focus to hard on making the character of Kevin come across as an evil delusional child. He needed therapy and he needed to be told off by his mum every once and a while for his terrible behaviour! A good film but it could be better.

Red State
This film has been heavily slated by audiences and critics. So I didn't watch this film expecting anything special. But actually it was a good fun watch and I enjoyed it very much. It is sold as a horror but actually isn't that scary. It's more of a fun thriller that makes fun of 'America's Most Hated Family' the Phelps family. The OTT Christians that goes to soldiers funerals with banners saying 'God Hates Fags'. Great way of spreading Gods love?? The family in the film now actually catch these sinners and kill them. The whole film turns into a massive shoot up between them and the police. John Goodman steals the show as usual but Michael Parks was not far behind. Some great acting and a good film which unlike many, i recommend.

Thanks for reading!