Django Unchained (Quentin Tarantino, 2013): A Gore Ridden Western
- Katherine Goodyear
- May 20, 2017
- 2 min read
Tarantino certainly makes some graphic films, but he does it right. Other films that he has directed such as Kill Bill; Pulp Fiction and Inglorious Basterds which contain a whole variety of lengths of dialogue, cinematography and slow or fast paced editing which makes every Tarantino text well balanced, are known for their multi-stranded narratives and pop culture references, but Tarantino diverts that from Django Unchained, . Of course Tarantino is a controversial director, however, it must be said that this westernised racial culture text both enhances and plays on the historical background of slavery, with some comedic value to it that aids the text of course. This film was nominated for several film industry awards, including five academy awards. Christoph Waltz also won several awards for his performance, among them was best supporting actor at the Golden Globes, BAFTA's and even the Academy Awards. This film was Tarantino's highest grossing theatrical release, which is very impressive.
Jamie Foxx plays the resilient and notorious Django. His given performance throughout the whole film was truly mesmerising and definitely made him a lot more popular. Being Dr. King Schultz's (Christoph Waltz) partner, as they travel all around the country, hunting criminals and taking rewards, but it's when Django sets out to find his wife, and the two are met by the charming but narcissistic Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio) who we want to love, since DiCaprio is such a lovable individual, and his performance does make him seem to be 'the nice guy' but once we see the more aggressive side of him, we can't help but feel despair. Foxx's characterisation isn't of a relatable one, but we can definitely admire the determination he shows, especially in the showdown sequence, which was just a bloodbath to say the least. And the juxtaposition between the scene and the non-diegetic sound brings humour to it, making it a lot more striking.
The techniques that Tarantino uses are immersive to the spectator, depending on preferences. The contrast of humour and violence is like a harmony, almost perfect. Now I say almost because as much as I do love a Tarantino film, I think that he could have made some minor changes: more involvement with the character Hildi (Kerry Washington) could have been applied, or even changes to the colour palette in certain sequences could have helped aid mise-en-scene and cinematography. The performance of characters and editing techniques helped as a ploy to entice audience, with the western genre making a comeback, but with a whole new twist on it, making it more appealing to the younger audience, which was unlikely beforehand with old western films. More films like Django Unchained are being produced, and even television series are being made (Westworld, an American western sci-fi thriller) which proves that western texts are becoming more and more popular in a more conventional way. Does this suggest that every director could make a good western? Not necessarily, directors like Tarantino can morph their perception and their original 'style' to cater for other types of audience, but still having their own spin on the genre.
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