Movie Review: Django Unchained

One thing is for certain, Quentin Taratino's newest movie Django Unchained is anything but your typical run-of-the-mill slave flick.

I have to admit that it's been a while since I've seen a movie at the theater that didn't leave me feeling cheated by the time the final credits started rolling, but this one was definitely worth the ticket plus over-priced popcorn. (Yes, I'm a cheapskate...don't judge me.)

Django is the tale of a slave, branded as a runaway, who happens to fall upon the unbelievable fortune of meeting Dr. King Schultz (Christoph Waltz), a German bounty hunter, who in his quest for his latest conquest buys him and then makes him an offer that he can't refuse: Help him find and capture his marks in exchange for his freedom. And as an added bonus, he promises to help Django (Jamie Foxx) find his wife and buy her freedom. From that point on the dust starts to fly and the guns get to blazing.

Enter Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio), a blood-thirsty plantation owner who just happens to be the current owner of Django's beloved wife Broomhilda (Kerry Washington), and his ever faithful house slave Stephen (Samuel L. Jackson) for a non-stop chain of events that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

In true Tarantino fashion, blood, guts and satirical humor are never lacking but in the midst of it all there is a story that will strike a chord with viewers of every race, creed and color. While slavery and all of its historical accounts and visuals never cease to be a touchy subject, Tarantino puts an interesting spin on it with this tale of revenge and retribution.

Foxx, Waltz, DiCaprio, Washington and Jackson are great mix of chemistry and talent as the cast of this project, with special appearances by Don Johnson (oldie but goodie) and Quentin Tarantino himself. 

Django Unchained was definitely a worthy cause for making a trip to the movie theater in what I like to call hibernation weather, and if you're "frugal" like me, catching the matinee will be an added bonus.  So all in all this one gets 10 spirit-fingers.

Did you see Django Unchained? Let me know what you thought.

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Inception Review

Inception...where do I begin?

I'll start off by saying that Leonardo Dicaprio did a great job in this movie, but the problem is I still don't know whether to make heads or tales of the film itself. The best way to describe this film is complex.

Inception is essentially about a band of thieves who possess a very special skill: They can go into people's dreams and steal their ideas. Dom Cobb (played by Dicaprio) is the leader of the pack, and he is on the run from the U.S. government for murder and is desperately trying to find a way to get back home to his two children.

In the midst of being a fugitive, Cobb takes on various corporate espionage jobs with his partner Arthur (played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt) to keep his head above water. But after a job gone bad due to the fact that Cobb's deranged late wife likes to randomly show up and blow his cover, unable to continue on business-as-usual for fear that his disgruntled employers will end his life, Cobb is given an offer that he can't refuse by the man that he failed to steal the idea from.

The offer: Use Inception to plant an idea into the competitions mind. The reward: Criminal record disappears and Cobb gets to go home to his family.

It seems simple enough, but we all know that making it that simple would make for a very boring movie. Needless to say, the crew takes the job and everything that can go wrong does and the audience is left on the edge of their seats waiting to see if the hero will save the day.

I applaud this film for the creativity that went into the storyline and the artistry behind the cinematography, but at the end of the day this movie was very cerebral. There was very in depth talk about the subconscious mind, it's various levels and how traumatic occurrences in dreams can affect the brain in real life, along with a lot of other psychiatric mambo jumbo.  Not only was there the talk, but as a viewer you actually have to pay attention to it if you truly expect to understand what's going on in the movie. So, this is definitely not a film to go see while you're drunk or high.

Overall, Inception was a pretty good movie. For those who thrive on explosions, high speed car chases and highly choreographed fight scenes, there was plenty of that, but make no mistake- you're going to have to use your brain for this one.

So at the end of the day, I give this movie a solid B+. If you like going to the movies for mindless entertainment this is not the movie for you to spend theater money on. Wait until it comes out on DVD. But if you enjoy a good mind-boggler, then by all means knock yourself out with this one.