Django (Jamie Foxx) is freed during transport when a German dentist, Dr. King Schultz (Christoph Waltz), whom in actuality is a bounty hunter, saves him from the two men who are transporting the slaves by killing one and leaving the other to be killed by the remaining, now free, slaves. Schultz informs Django that he has sought him out to identify the Brittle brothers. In exchange for his help, Schultz will give him his freedom, some cash, and a horse to help him get back on his feet.
Christoph Waltz and Jamie Foxx. Source: Business Insider
Soon after, the good doctor and Django come to an agreement to continue seeking out bounties. Although at first a bit uneasy, Django learns that he has a natural talent for killing white men for money. Go figure. As winter nears it end, both bounty hunters go in search of finding Django's wife, Broomhilda (Kerry Washington) learn that Broomhilda is working for Monsieur Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio) at his plantation, Candyland.
Django and Schultz create a ploy to try and rescue Broomhilda by explaining to Candie that they would like to purchase one of his Mandigo slaves that have been trained to fight to the death. Candie, feeling extremely generous since the hunters have offered him $12,000 for his slave, also agrees to sell Broomhilda to Schultz since he enjoys speaking his mother tongue of German with her.
Django and Broomhilda's interactions raises suspicions from Candie's head slave, Stephen (Samuel L. Jackson) who quickly informs Candie that he has been tricked. Candie, outraged, threatens to kill Broomhilda unless they pay the amount originally intended for the Mandingo. Schultz feeling humiliated, kills Candie after the paperwork has been finalized for Broomhilda's freedom. Pandemonium ensues. Django manages to kill off a good handful, but gives himself up in order to protect Broomhilda.
Django is sent to work in a coal mile, but he convinces the slave drivers that he is a bounty hunter and will show them where a gang of wanted men are. The slave drivers are keen to Django's idea of splitting the bounty with them, but before they can get another word out, Django kills them and sets off to find Broomhilda.
Back at the plantation, he saves Broomhilda and plants dynamite to blow up the mansion, but not before he sets the black slaves, minus Stephen, free. Django and Broomhilda ride off together while watching their past blow up behind them.
Walking into this film I already had high expectations, and Tarantino did a great job. My favourite parts of his films, though, are ones that are not even key to the progression of the film. The comedic sketches intertwined with the rest of the film are always the best part. And lets not forget the music. The mix of Western nuances with modern day rap really is something else. Tarantino is a magician when it comes to melding two styles together, and at first you think that it'll never work, but it always does.
And of course we can't ignore the frequent Tarantino collaborators. Samuel L. Jackson probably always feels at home on set with Tarantino because he can swear freely. The profanities are not lacking in this movie. Some might say that it was excessive, but remember that in that time, it was the norm to speak like that. N-bombs everywhere. Tarantino, on many occasions, has stood behind the use of the word in his films.
Aside from Jackson being a frequent face, Waltz is also a repeat actor, having previously been in Inglorious Basterds for which he won an Academy Award. With that in mind, it's no surprise that he was absolutely flawless in this film. But for me, it was DiCaprio that stole the show. The man wants his Oscar bad. And someone should just give it to him.
As much as the film was about the title character Django, Foxx just couldn't stand up to the likes of Waltz and DiCaprio. Simply put, Foxx was outshined. And sadly, Kerry Washington did nothing for me. The only part where I felt anything for her character was when they dragged her out of the hot box. But other than that, she could have just stood there and not said anything and it would have been the same movie experience to me. It's safe to say that the actors are what made this film so great. The plot is relatively simple, with not much growth. Not saying it was a bad story line, because it wasn't, but it wasn't a great story line. Just goes to show how much the right cast, director, and cinematography can do for a film.
Rating: 8.5/10
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