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"Django Unchained" - Page 2

post #31 of 201
10/16/12 at 7:06am
I agree I'm looking forward to it.
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post #32 of 201
10/16/12 at 9:00am
looks like its a comedy
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post #33 of 201
10/18/12 at 2:18pm
^ I don't see a comedy. I see me laughing at times between intense eyebrow raising moments, but not what I'd call a comedy. Then again, I was wrong once before.
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post #34 of 201
10/18/12 at 2:34pm
IIRC, every movie that Tarantino has directed, there have been moments that make you smile or laugh. Its part of his filmmaking style.
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post #35 of 201
10/19/12 at 12:39am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Aliens View Post

IIRC, every movie that Tarantino has directed, there have been moments that make you smile or laugh. Its part of his filmmaking style.
+1
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post #36 of 201
12/24/12 at 3:53pm
From USA Today:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/movies/2012/12/24/spike-lee-says-hes-boycotting-tarantinos-django/1789611/


Don't look for Spike Lee at a showing of Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained on Tuesday: Lee says he's boycotting the bloody slavery-revenge film because it's an insult to his ancestors.

Speaking to Vibe magazine and tweeting, the maker of Do the Right Thing and He Got Game criticized Tarantino's latest movie, which opens Christmas Day. Lee spoke last week, but TMZ and other entertainment media began reporting it today.

"I can't speak on it 'cause I'm not gonna see it," Lee said. "All I'm going to say is that it's disrespectful to my ancestors. That's just me. ... I'm not speaking on behalf of anybody else."

Later, he tweeted about the film, which stars Jamie Foxx as a slave who kills slave owners in the Deep South while trying to rescue his wife from a brutal plantation owner.

"American Slavery Was Not A Sergio Leone Spaghetti Western. It Was A Holocaust. My Ancestors Are Slaves. Stolen From Africa.I Will Honor Them," Lee tweeted.

Django's violence became a problem last week when the premier was canceled for fear in the wake of the massacre of children and their teachers Dec. 14 in an elementary school in Newtown, Conn.

The movie also is under scrutiny for its frequent use of the N-word — more than 110 times, by one count. Lee has criticized Tarantino before on that, complaining about Tarantino's "excessive" use of the word in his 1997 film Jackie Brown, even though Lee hasn't been shy about using the word in his films.

"I'm not against the word, (though I am) and I use it, but not excessively," Lee told Daily Variety back then. "And some people speak that way. But Quentin is infatuated with that word. What does he want to be made -- an honorary black man?"



Disrespects his ancestors?confused.gif
A movie about wrecking revenge on a brutal slave owner?
Uhhhhh......

Earth to Spike:
Everyone on this planet has ancestors who were slaves.
Slavery has been around since time immemorial, you dumba$$.

And Dude: YOU can use the word, because YOU don't use it "excessively?"
OK, why don't ya just STFU with your racism...mad.gif

Well, I guess Mr. Lee needed some publicity.rolleyes.gif
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post #37 of 201
12/24/12 at 4:23pm
Amen brother. Spike's recent films suck the big Kahoona so he should just zip it. I just hope the others like Sharpton and the Rev Jackson don't do another protest just because it was a movie about blacks that's doesn't have Tyler perry, Hughes Bros or Spike involved.
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post #38 of 201
12/24/12 at 4:43pm
Ohhh, Mr Spike Lee....

My reaction to pretty much anything he says these days:

original?v=mpbl-1&px=-1
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post #39 of 201
12/24/12 at 5:01pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by zoey67 View Post

Amen brother. Spike's recent films suck the big Kahoona so he should just zip it. I just hope the others like Sharpton and the Rev Jackson don't do another protest just because it was a movie about blacks that's doesn't have Tyler perry, Hughes Bros or Spike involved.
I would be interested in what Jamie Foxx's take on Mr. Lee's comments...

Quote:
Originally Posted by Scott Simonian View Post

Ohhh, Mr Spike Lee....
My reaction to pretty much anything he says these days:
original?v=mpbl-1&px=-1
LOL, perfect.smile.gif
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post #40 of 201
12/25/12 at 10:11am
The world is out to offend Spike.

some people are just natural born attention wh%^&res with persecution complexes.And someone has to make Movies to counter your racist agenda diven Movies?, even though this particular Movie doesn`t aim to do that, but only in your mind...Some also get lost in their creative, they fabricate all kinds of nonsense.

Yeah, Spike bothers me in case you can`t tell.
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post #41 of 201
12/25/12 at 2:08pm
After watching that absolute MESS of a Hobbit movie that completely left me hanging at the end and feeling robbed, I was very hesitant to return to the theater for THIS movie biggrin.gif! It had me so paranoid now! I reluctantly did it and...
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
SAMUEL L. JACKSON! SAMUEL L. JACKSON biggrin.gif!! He STEALS the movie as the "house" slave biggrin.gif! He has an "Uncle Drew" makeup job biggrin.gif...I never laughed so hard at the theater! Leonardo was kinda mis cast. He a northern italian guy expected to do a deep southern accent convincingly, and he doesnt.

Most importantly though, considering I was given half a movie in the Hobbit, Tarrantino gives me a story with a protagonist of THIS 2 hours, their goal for THIS 2 hours, the antagonists of THIS 2 hours, and a conclusion to THIS 2 hours that I'm sitting here TODAY smile.gif.

Maybe he has sequels or continuations of the survivi g protagonist's story...but what he seemed to focus on TODAY was putting a period on what you paid for RIGHT NOW biggrin.gif!

I was so paranoid after getting cheated at Hobbit that I was having flashbacks throughout this movie biggrin.gif! As the protagonists are riding towards the slavehouse of the GOAL of THIS 2 hours, I'm having flashbacks of the credits popping up, the theater lights turning on, and the usher wishing me a nice day biggrin.gif!!

Luckily, Tarrantino is not this foolish, the film continues to the goal that HE laid out for me over the course of the last 2 hours, and knows I'm expecting some kind of climax to TODAY biggrin.gif!

Leonardo's southern accent doesnt work (Don Johnson's does, because I believe he's actually southern), but other than that Jackson's performance steals the movie. Fox has some great lines as well. Violent biggrin.gif...turns into a 19th century undercover operation for a stretch smile.gif...then returns to piling up bodies biggrin.gif. It has an ENDING too! So unlike Hobbit, I can, with good conscience, suggest you spend money on this at the theater.

I cannot promise you that this film or some of the language in it is your cup of tea...but what I CAN promise you is an ENDING biggrin.gif! Even if its just to bring THIS 2 hours to a proper close!
Edited by AndreHD - 12/25/12 at 5:04pm
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post #42 of 201
12/25/12 at 8:28pm
Spike Lee is being misguidedly "holier than thou" on this issue/movie. His "American Slavery Was Not A Sergio Leone Spaghetti Western. It Was A Holocaust. My Ancestors Are Slaves. Stolen From Africa. I Will Honor Them" tweet may be correct, but it misrepresents the movie. Not having seen it, he doesn't know what he's tweeting about or tweeting against. His outrage is greatly misplaced or misdirected.

I thought Django Unchained was good, but not great. It seemed overlong and I don't think the dialogue and the long dialogue scenes were as good as Inglourious Basterds. I suspect the absence (due to death) of Tarantino's longtime editor, Sally Menke, on the film affected the quality of the final product.

Some of the locale shots were gorgeous. I thought Foxx did well; I didn't think Django was turned into a secondary character in comparison to Schultz (Waltz) and Candie (DiCaprio), as some reviewers have said. Samuel L. Jackson may indeed have stolen the show. I thought Tarantino did a good job in his on-screen part, better than any other I've seen him do (but he's put on weight, though I think he has lost some of it since his scenes were shot).
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
Tarantino's death/exit was great!

I didn't find Waltz' character and dialogue, at least at the beginning, to be as believable or effective as in Inglourious Basterds, but after awhile I warmed up to it.

I didn't find the Klan scene (before the wagon exploded) that some reviewers seem to love to be funny, but rather hokey, like something from The Beverly Hillbillies or Blazing Saddles. While that may have been Tarantino's intent, for me it was lame slapstick and totally out of place in this movie.

The elements of the dining room scene reminded me in some ways of the underground bar scene in Inglourious Basterds.

This review's opening paragraph nails it (and I pretty much agree with the rest of the review, too): With “Django Unchained,” writer/director Quentin Tarantino manufactures his most unsatisfying film since bursting onto the scene with 1992’s “Reservoir Dogs.” Not that “Unchained” is a disaster, far from it at times, actually, but there’s a lethargy here that’s disconcerting, blocking a lovely view of all the cinematic tributes and screen artistry that typically resides in Tarantinoland. A violent, winded take on spaghetti westerns, “Django Unchained” features all the helmer’s trademarks and casting appetites, locked into an overlong event that’s sporadically enchanting and daring, lacking the fresh pace and series of bruising confrontations that helped Tarantino’s last effort, 2009’s “Inglourious Basterds,” to soar.

http://www.blu-ray.com/Django-Unchained/63700/?show=preview
Edited by eweiss - 12/26/12 at 1:31pm
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post #43 of 201
12/25/12 at 9:55pm
Yeah, noticed Quinten's weight gain. It COULDA been Hollywood padding work so he looked more in character, but his face looked blown up too. They coulda used fancy makeup work there as well but appeared to be his real unaltered face smile.gif. Depression over the loss of the production partner?

The real weight story here is Jonah Hill smile.gif! Look at him in The Watch. He was HALF the man he is here and his upcoming apocalyptic movie! What's he eating, a horse?!
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post #44 of 201
12/26/12 at 12:25pm
Saw Django Unchained and really liked it. It is vintage Tarantino, brutal and bloody as hell, but funny and weirdly thoughtful. Christoph Waltz may be the most improbable movie star in the history of film. His performance as Dr. King Schultz, dentist and bounty hunter, was a hoot. To say that Waltz is charismatic is to understate the case. I also loved Leonardo DiCaprio as an evil slave owning plantation owner, think of him as a tall blond and handsome Simon Legree. I also enjoyed Jamie Foxx as a cool black bounty hunter (no kidding) who is Dr. Schultz's partner. Like Tarantino's examination of the Holocaust in Inglourious Basterds, Django Unchained takes the same kind of funny but weirdly disturbing look at Antebellum slavery and dresses it up as a spaghetti western. All in all, Django Unchained was a deeply satisfying film and its two hours and forty-five minutes passed in the blinking of an eye. Highly recommended!
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post #45 of 201
12/26/12 at 12:30pm
Was Leos accent as bad as the Russian Pilot in 2012?
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post #46 of 201
12/26/12 at 1:22pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by bigrushhead View Post

Was Leos accent as bad as the Russian Pilot in 2012?

I thought DiCaprio's performance was brilliant. It was just uptight and over the top enough to help convey Tarantino's patented combination of humor and horror. DiCaprio does good work, I think.

I should add something that I failed to say in my last post. The sound design was spectacular and Tarantino's choice of music was, as usual, wonderful. Pay particular attention to Jim Croce's performance of his I Got a Name. I also loved Jim Ross's 100 Black Coffins, some of the lyrics of which were included in the screenplay.
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post #47 of 201
12/26/12 at 4:54pm
Props for using the theme song to Trinity(Terence Hill) as your closing credits QT...

I enjoyed the movie, but I am really still digesting it mentally. not quite the pure morality play I was expecting.
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post #48 of 201
12/27/12 at 8:22am
Saw this yesterday. Liked the film, but it did drag in a few places. The Dr and Mr. Jackson's characters stole the show for me. There were two scenes I could have done without, but I know why they were there, just didn't like them. The scene with the dogs and the two slaves fighting.

I was entertained to say the least, I absolutely loved the Dr. Great character!!!
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post #49 of 201
12/27/12 at 9:12am
Quote:
Originally Posted by rhett7660 View Post

Saw this yesterday. Liked the film, but it did drag in a few places. The Dr and Mr. Jackson's characters stole the show for me. There were two scenes I could have done without, but I know why they were there, just didn't like them. The scene with the dogs and the two slaves fighting.
I was entertained to say the least, I absolutely loved the Dr. Great character!!!

I agree that Christoph Waltz and Samuel L. Jackson were both wonderful. As for the two scenes that you mentioned, I read an interview of Tarantino yesterday in which he said that those scenes were originally much more graphic than they ended up being in the film. Tarantino said he did that because the reaction of the test crowds at the early screenings was one of horror, so he softened both.
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post #50 of 201
12/27/12 at 9:24am
Quote:
Originally Posted by gwsat View Post

I agree that Christoph Waltz and Samuel L. Jackson were both wonderful. As for the two scenes that you mentioned, I read an interview of Tarantino yesterday in which he said that those scenes were originally much more graphic than they ended up being in the film. Tarantino said he did that because the reaction of the test crowds at the early screenings was one of horror, so he softened both.

Thanks. That explains why the Mandingo fight wasn't as brutal as I was expecting. The dog attack was fine, too - otherwise, it could have bordered on a From Dusk Till Dawn scene. eek.gif
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post #51 of 201
12/27/12 at 6:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by eweiss View Post

Thanks. That explains why the Mandingo fight wasn't as brutal as I was expecting. The dog attack was fine, too - otherwise, it could have bordered on a From Dusk Till Dawn scene. eek.gif

Tarantino takes a childlike joy from shocking us but has the wit to understand that he doesn't want to shock us so much we are taken out of his film. I think his sensitivity to the wants and needs of his audience is a major reason why his work has always (well, mostly always, think Death Proof) been well received by both critics and the public at large.
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post #52 of 201
12/28/12 at 4:37pm
Went "to the movies" to see this today...

I am shocked to discover Tarantino is a mere mortal!
The Django Unchained I saw this afternoon does NOT work.

The Good:
Leo is terrific, as is CW.
Fine ensemble acting too.
Tarantino's signature choice of music.
The most realistic, horrific, and damning portrayal of Black Slavery in America ever put to screen.

The Bad:
Mostly everything else.

In the past, we have seen QT mish-mash different genres and miraculously make it work.
Unfortunately, even magicians make mistakes.

The first 3/4 of the movie is a harrowing story of the dehumanizing of a captive people.
Never seen it done grittier or more honestly.
And I'll say right here: ANYONE who says this film is racist is a complete a$$hole or hasn't seen the movie.
As a matter of fact, it is the very opposite of the term "racism."

The final 1/4 of the film suddenly, out of left field, becomes a tribute to spaghetti westerns.
I almost yelled out "WTF!!!"
Essentially, he tacked on this "tribute" to a story that had ALREADY concluded...there was nothing left to tell (other than riding into the sunset). Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
The bad guy is dead and the good guy won


Another problem is, for the first time in his career, there is almost NO Tarantino black humor at all...it's played straight up.

IF the last 1/4 of the film is deleted, this is a fine, slow-burn of a drama.
However, it still would be the least of his creations.
Many good directors could have done this story well, but QT isn't just a "good" director....he does things others can't do.

Either make a gut-wrenching, eye-opening condemnation of slavery or a make a loving salute to Sergio Leone.
He couldn't do both with Django.
Oh well, I guess he couldn't help himself...rolleyes.gif

If I must point fingers it would be at the Weinsteins....
Their arm-twisting of QT to make TWO Kill Bills, instead of his original vision of just one, may have set a precedent or given a green light for Tarantino to bloat his story.
At least, that's my theory....wink.gif
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post #53 of 201
12/28/12 at 7:47pm
oink -- You really surprised me with your, mostly, negative review of Django Unchained. I agree that it's possible to have some reservations about the film but I have to agree with the 89 percent majority of the Rotten Tomatoes critics whose reviews were favorable and the 95 percent of audiences who liked it. Hell, even the notoriously unappeasable Stephanie Zacharek loved it. This just goes to show, of course, that even those with reputations for good taste don't always get it right. Of course, the decision whether it is you or I who didn't get it right must be left to others.smile.gif

More seriously, I agree with you that the third act of Django Unchained wasn't in a class with the Big Finish of either Reservoir Dogs or Inglourious Basterds but I still liked it. I thought the final two scenes in which Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
Django disabled the execrable head houseman, Stephen, and imaginatively blew up Candie's house, followed by the celebratory prancing of his horse as he rode out of town with his lady love
were vintage Tarantino and a whole lot of fun.
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post #54 of 201
12/28/12 at 8:47pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by oink View Post

Went "to the movies" to see this today...
I am shocked to discover Tarantino is a mere mortal!
The Django Unchained I saw this afternoon does NOT work.
The Good:
Leo is terrific, as is CW.
Fine ensemble acting too.
Tarantino's signature choice of music.
The most realistic, horrific, and damning portrayal of Black Slavery in America ever put to screen.
The Bad:
Mostly everything else.
In the past, we have seen QT mish-mash different genres and miraculously make it work.
Unfortunately, even magicians make mistakes.
The first 3/4 of the movie is a harrowing story of the dehumanizing of a captive people.
Never seen it done grittier or more honestly.
And I'll say right here: ANYONE who says this film is racist is a complete a$$hole or hasn't seen the movie.
As a matter of fact, it is the very opposite of the term "racism."
The final 1/4 of the film suddenly, out of left field, becomes a tribute to spaghetti westerns.
I almost yelled out "WTF!!!"
Essentially, he tacked on this "tribute" to a story that had ALREADY concluded...there was nothing left to tell (other than riding into the sunset). Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
The bad guy is dead and the good guy won
Another problem is, for the first time in his career, there is almost NO Tarantino black humor at all...it's played straight up.
IF the last 1/4 of the film is deleted, this is a fine, slow-burn of a drama.
However, it still would be the least of his creations.
Many good directors could have done this story well, but QT isn't just a "good" director....he does things others can't do.
Either make a gut-wrenching, eye-opening condemnation of slavery or a make a loving salute to Sergio Leone.
He couldn't do both with Django.
Oh well, I guess he couldn't help himself...rolleyes.gif
If I must point fingers it would be at the Weinsteins....
Their arm-twisting of QT to make TWO Kill Bills, instead of his original vision of just one, may have set a precedent or given a green light for Tarantino to bloat his story.
At least, that's my theory....wink.gif

Thanks for your review oink, will still see it when it hits blu ray.
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post #55 of 201
12/28/12 at 9:10pm
Interesting review oink. Most of the online "reviewers" I follow loved it but a couple of friends saw it and are more in line with your comments. I'm tempted to just wait for a rental but now I'm too curious.
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post #56 of 201
12/29/12 at 12:37am
Quote:
Originally Posted by gwsat View Post

oink -- You really surprised me with your, mostly, negative review of Django Unchained. I agree that it's possible to have some reservations about the film but I have to agree with the 89 percent majority of the Rotten Tomatoes critics whose reviews were favorable and the 95 percent of audiences who liked it. Hell, even the notoriously unappeasable Stephanie Zacharek loved it. This just goes to show, of course, that even those with reputations for good taste don't always get it right. Of course, the decision whether it is you or I who didn't get it right must be left to others.smile.gif
I can only relate MY take on Django.
What the opinions of others might be, I have no control over...
As always, ALL of my posts come with: YMMV.wink.gif

Quote:
More seriously, I agree with you that the third act of Django Unchained wasn't in a class with the Big Finish of either Reservoir Dogs or Inglourious Basterds but I still liked it. I thought the final two scenes in which Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
Django disabled the execrable head houseman, Stephen, and imaginatively blew up Candie's house, followed by the celebratory prancing of his horse as he rode out of town with his lady love
were vintage Tarantino and a whole lot of fun.
Did you feel you have seen all of this before?
Did you sense Django was bloated?
Did you feel the scene of the Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
demise of Leo
needed anything additional?

How did the spaghetti western stuff ADD TO this movie?

Quote:
Originally Posted by wizzack View Post

Interesting review oink. Most of the online "reviewers" I follow loved it but a couple of friends saw it and are more in line with your comments. I'm tempted to just wait for a rental but now I'm too curious.
It is up to you, as to HOW you want to experience Django....
FWIW, it is worth seeing on one's own and to make an opinion either way.

All I can say is QT is certifiably human....much to my amazement...wink.gif
Edited by oink - 12/29/12 at 1:11am
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post #57 of 201
12/29/12 at 9:33pm
I watched this today. Loved every second. Laughed, cringed, and nearly cried as well as shared some awkward silences with the audience. As a Tarantino fan, Inglorious Basterds dethroned Pulp Fiction as my favorite from him and it may slip yet again after Django.

Cristoph Waltz is amazing and Foxx did just fine.

DiCaprio plays the greasiest piece of s**t ever put on film followed by Samuel L. Jackson playing the second greasiest piece. Lively debate in the lobby of the theater drove home that some of these people portrayed are still around.
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post #58 of 201
12/29/12 at 10:01pm
Hey oink,

What was your take on inglorious bastards?

I thought it was a cut below most Tarantino films.
Was your take on Durango kind of the same?
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post #59 of 201
12/29/12 at 10:01pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by wizzack View Post

Interesting review oink. Most of the online "reviewers" I follow loved it but a couple of friends saw it and are more in line with your comments. I'm tempted to just wait for a rental but now I'm too curious.
He's being honest in what he saw but I didn't have those issues with the stuff.
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post #60 of 201
12/29/12 at 11:01pm
Internet points for the answers to a question and an observation I thought was off the chain:
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
Foxx's taint?

and

DiCaprio bleeding with the skull.


Edited by darthrsg - 12/29/12 at 11:43pm
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