Take it for a grain salt folks, it's a movie...and a fun one

Rating: 9/10 (3 January 2013)

Set in 1858, a slave named Django (Jamie Fox) is freed by Dr. King Shultz (Christoph Waltz), a bounty hunter who is after a gang of brothers. Taken under Shultz's wing, Django learns the trade of "killing white folk and getting paid for it." Things take a turn when Shultz vows to help Django free his wife (Kerry Washington) from a ruthless plantation owner named Calvin Candie (Leonardo Dicaprio)—a very sweet sounding name. Rescuing her though proves much harder than it seems.
Breaking away from Quentin Tarantino's normal form of storytelling, "Django Unchained" is broken up into 3 main acts. The first is the relationship between Django and Shultz, and their adventures. The second is about the Candie plantation and the mission to rescue Django's wife. The third act is the final conclusion. Tarantino does a masterwork with the first two acts. But by the last 40 minutes, the final act drags on much longer than necessary for Tarantino gives us 2 bloody shootouts vs. the typical one.
The ending result is obvious. The extended ending and extra carnage is pointless to the overall story. 30 minutes could have been cut from the time length. No doubt Tarantino did this on purpose since he felt his audience had not seen enough death and destruction. When people die in this film, they not only bleed, they spray out gallons of blood and scream as loud as possible. While over the top, it borders on unwatchable. Shootings, beatings, whippings, torture —every thing but rape is present in this movie. If it weren't for Quentin Tarantino's name, this film would have probably garnered an NC-17. Tarantino does make up with witty conversations and comical situations that poke fun of the South as a means to lesser the sadistic, violent load. What works exceedingly well in this movie is Tarantino's choice of actors, especially Christoph Waltz, who practically steals the show. In comparison to his Oscar-winning work for Inglourious Basterds, Waltz gives us a surprisingly likable character that has a moral compass—unlike most Tarantino characters. He is a man to admire and his mannerisms as well as the witty script makes him deliver a wonderful performance. Leo Dicaprio's portrayal of Calvin Candie, however, is the polar opposite to Waltz's. One minute he is charming and the next he explodes like dynamite. Dicaprio has truly broken his norm of playing good guys and he does so with panache.
Jamie Fox seemed a little apathetic in the start of the film, but as the plot progresses, his character flourishes and his anger becomes more and more understandable—and we root for him as he takes on the racist southerners. Samuel L. Jackson makes a surprise appearance as Candie's adviser Stephen. It is more than obvious that he is just having fun with his role; he incorporates as many black stereotypes as he can. The only downer is Kerry Washington. 90% of the time she either looks terrified or screams. No doubt, much of this is to blame on her poorly developed character—she's just a victim, nothing more. After while though, her ear-piercing shrieks of pain grow very nauseating.
Much of Quentin Tarantino's visual works well for this film—especially him hiring Robert Richardson as the director of photography. Richardson's use of natural lighting, slow motion, and unique camera angles is something to admire. I particularly like the fast zooms on actor's faces during scenes of tension and quick cuts to reveal flashbacks and violent action. Other trademarks of Tarantino though do not work so well. Blaring hip hop/rap music and pop culture references may work for films like "Pulp Fiction" and the "Kill Bill's," but it feels a bit out of place with a film about the south prior to the Civil War.
There are a lot of ways people may interpret this movie. Many will see it as a controversy to due to its graphic violence and depiction of racism. Lesser mind people may see this film as offensive and deems all southerners as evil individuals. Others will see this as another, mindless gore fest. Some may even see it as a satire of slavery, plantation owners, and the South in general. For me, I see it as another fun movie by Quentin Tarantino. So, bashers and offended persons, take this movie as it is, a movie. Unfortunately, his usual trademarks and references are hit and miss, and his story drags unnecessarily long towards the end. "Django Unchained" is far from a masterpiece, but I appreciate that Tarantino has made another movie.