Amidst the motley of filmmakers whose films decorate the screens of cinema houses, very few of them are able to capture the zeitgeist that a historical piece demands. Tackling heavy subjects such as racisim and slavery is no easy feat yet one such director handles these topics with ease.
Quentin Tarantino, whose debut film may not have fared well but has since become one of the most celebrated films of his career, has a certain flair for interacting with sensitively charged subjects. One can witness the same in his 2012 film, Django Unchained.
Set before the Civil War, the film follows the story of a black slave Django (Jamie Foxx) who is taken under the wing by a German bounty hunter Dr. Schultz (Christoph Waltz) and his quest to free his wife Broomhilda (Kerry Washington) after she is sold to Calvin J. Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio).
With a background score that transcends time, an amalgamation of contemporary as well as rap and many more interesting tunes, Tarantino is able to flesh out each character's personality. The accompaniment of exaggerated camera angles of zoom ins and outs add to the theatricality that this particular cinematic masterpiece entails.
Tarantino balances out an assortment of harsh realities with the infusion of humour. The introduction of the Ku Klux Klan on screen was complemented with an orchestral piece potentially foreshadowing a great evil that was about to befall Django and Dr Schultz. However the preceding scene which showcased a mindless tiff over the size of the bags that covered their faces aided in diffusing the tension in that specific situation and brought a sense of comedic relief along with it.
Unflinching in its depiction of gore, Django Unchained begins with violence and like a complete circle ends with walls of white being scalded with the throes of death. Unlike its numerous counterparts that delicately dealt with similar themes, the film finds itself offering the viewers a refreshing outlook of the black man being able to take charge of his own narrative early on in his journey.
The ability to impersonate various characters and bring life to all of them is an unmatched skill set that the likes of DiCaprio, Waltz, Foxx, Washington and Samuel L. Jackson possess. The camaraderie between Foxx’s and Waltz’s characters shine through with the bounty hunter always viewing his new found partner as an equal.
People of colour especially the blacks have had a painful past of subjugation and enslavement by the whites. Narrating stories that deal with such concepts has allowed light to be shed on the unsung and forgotten heroes of history.
Such momentous endeavours have been undertaken by filmmakers with most of them rising up to the challenge. But the prowess with which Tarantino deftly broaches these incidents is unlike any other and continues to remain unmatched.
A job very well done, Film Soc <3