Django Unchained Review

Django Unchained is the story of slavery just before the Civil War. It tracks the story of Django (Jamie Foxx) and Dr. King Schultz (Christoph Waltz) as they track across America’s southwest

as bounty hunters to rescue the love of Django’s life, Broomhilda (Kerry Washington), from the evil Mississippi plantation owner Calvin Candie (played by the versatile Leonardo DiCaprio). The fact that both Christoph Waltz and Quentin Tarantino won the OSCAR’s for Best Supporting Actor and Best Screenplay respectively means it must be a good movie; and it is.

Django and Schultz fight the social norms of a nation split between slaves and their masters in pre-Civil War America. Django Unchained could be seen as the other side of Gone with the Wind era. Django is set around the same time as the beginning of Gone with the Wind. Historically, slavery wasn’t as peachy as it was shown in Gone with the Wind. Tarantino isn’t afraid to show the dark side of slavery, the side where slaves were sold so easily and treated like dirt, he also successfully depicts the internal hierarchy of slaves in the household. The similarities between Gone with the Wind and Django are the time period and clothing style but that’s where the similarities end. Django portrays plantation owners as evil where Gone with the Wind is about the plantation owner and his family.

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie, the backdrops, location shots like the plantation homes and mountain regions are spectacular. These shots were made even better due to the exciting action sequences, strong acting and many memorable quotes, such as “The name’s Django. The D is silent”.

The costuming is very authentic with the time period, with Miss Laura Lee Candie-Fitzwilly’s outfits matching those of Scarlett O’Hara in the extravagance of the design and outfit. Whereas the female slaves are dressed either provocatively like a little French maid or demure wearing simple black designs that didn’t flaunt their bodies, which is standard for the time.

The movie is very Tarantino-esque with exaggerated violence,  but without it, it wouldn’t work any other way. I saw it twice and can’t wait for it to be released on DVD so I can watch it again.

4.5/5