a brutal, violent, yet fun vengeance western that fits perfectly into the Tarantino collection

Rating: 9/10 (26 December 2012)

When you go to see a Tarantino film, there is plenty to expect and prepare yourself for. From unique film angles and stylistic choices to interesting song selections to the ultra violence that may make your stomach turn, Tarantino has basically created a genre of his own over the years that only his films occupy. And it is very easy to include Django Unchained into this list of films as a movie that is nothing short of what we would expect from writer/director Quentin Tarantino.
With films like Pulp Fiction, Inglorious Basterds, and the Kill Bill pair under his belt, Tarantino takes to a whole new genre and world in his newest film, Django Unchained. A vengeance film set as a western, Tarantino takes us to pre-Civil War America and deep into the south where slavery is at its height. The story follows Dr. King Schultz (Christoph Waltz) a German bounty hunter who seeks the help of a slave named Django (Jamie Foxx) to find his latest bounty. But upon partnering up with the slave, he finds that the man is a natural in the killing business and may come in handy as a partner.
Granting Django his freedom, Schultz realizes there is a greater desire driving his new friend: the search to find Django's wife, Broomhilda (Kerry Washington). Split up when his previous master sold the couple separately, Django seeks the new owner of his wife and is out to get his lady back. Finding that their partnership has grown into a greater friendship, Schultz partners up with Django on the journey that leads them to the plantation of Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio), a violent slave owner who is only drawn to the men due to their proposition of buying a fighting slave from him for an over-the-top amount of money.
What unfolds is a violent, fun, explosive, and highly entertaining tale that we could only come to expect from Quentin Tarantino. It is an extremely complete film. From the writing and directing of Tarantino to the acting of the entire cast, to the lighting, costumes, and sets, Django Unchained is a really solid piece of filmmaking that reminds us why we get excited for Tarantino films. A film that will make you laugh, but also make your heart pound and put you on the edge of your seat, Django is a very fitting follow up to Inglorious Basterds and fits the Tarantino collection nicely.
It starts very early on with a sequence in a small town in Texas. The slightly flamboyant, bold, and proper Schultz comes to life through the experienced acting of Christoph Waltz who (with his second collaboration with Tarantino) may be the best actor to pair with the director ever. Waltz is wonderful in Django Unchained and, maybe even more importantly, he is a good guy in this film that we can cheer along with, unlike Hans Landa in Inglorious Basterds. Dr. King Schultz is an extremely fun character and Waltz brings him to such exuberant life that it makes the entire film that much more enjoyable. Likewise, Jamie Foxx is fantastic as Django. With a strong, Shaft-like demeanor that Django needs and a set of action skills that make him the hero he becomes, Foxx was perfect for the role.
To read the rest of the review (IMDb form too short) visit: http://custodianfilmcritic.com/django-unchained/