Django Unchained

release year: 2012
genre: western
viewing setting: home Bluray 4/27/13

synopsis: Freed slave Django is going to get his wife back, no matter what it takes and how many people he has to kill.

impressions: This is Quentin Tarantino's take on the western, and it's quite entertaining. The copious violence is mixed in with some witty dialogue and genuinely funny moments. Be warned: this movie is not for racially sensitive people; it's likely a pretty realistic portrayal of how things were in the 1850s south. Then again, it's just a movie, so any individual has the choice to watch it or not. In any case, it's powerful and tells a good story.

body count: 50 individually, plus however many unfortunates were too close to the exploding wagon

acting: Chistoph Waltz is great as a German who's taken up bounty hunting in America and doesn't agree with slavery. Jamie Foxx is the strong, silent type as Django, though he does show some emotions (love and anger) a few times. Leonardo DiCaprio is a villainous southern plantation owner. Samuel Jackson is his head slave, a truly despicable schemer and hypocrite. Kerry Washington is Django's wife who he tracks down. There are a lot of lesser roles, including Franco Nero as a foreigner who breeds and fights slaves.

final word: Strong, controversial western with a raw portrayal of slavery.

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