If you haven't seen Blacks on Blondes Vol. 6-28... Collector's Edition .. then you'll never understand the power a black lead actor can have. Spoiler
Just saw it tonight. As someone else noted, it appears Sam Jackson's character was just based on Uncle Ruckus from The Boondocks so hopefully Aaron McGruder got payed! I was wary about the length of the movie prior to seeing it but the almost 3 hr length of it was not a problem in my book. I thought it went along smoothly and quickly. I doubt people in the cinema were checking their watches. I'm a fan of Pulp Fiction, haven't seen Ing.Basterds yet but I think this just might be my favourite Tarantino movie. Did a good job conveying the gravity of slavery while making it funny enough and with the usual Tarantino graphicness(sometimes a bit too graphic but whatever). I think it's pointless to even praise Leo because Leo is Leo-one of the finest actors of the generation and he did what Leo does. Christopher W was tremendous and Jamie Foxx was equally tremendous. Kerry W and Sam Jax did great work and special plaudits to Don Johnson. He was hilarious. Brilliant movie in my book and I'd pay straight cash (homie) to see it again tomorrow.
sensationalistic and spectacular Tarantino Spaghetti Western. I was bit annoyed by the "every young black man should see this as a rite of passage" hype that Jamie Foxx presented, and I could understand why a guy like Spike Lee would be offended enough to not even see it. sure, it touched upon the taboo and it portrayed slavery in all its brutality, including whipping scenes and a man getting mauled apart by a dog, but in between that was the snappy Tarantino dialogue that you only see in the universe that he creates on screen so masterfully... I'm curious to read others opinions on that matter.
Spike Lee's just mad that Tarantino can do more for black history in one movie than he can do in his whole career. Everyone was awesome in this movie. The build up was good but everything after they meet Candy is just straight gold. The tension created in some of those scenes is amazing. Inglorious Basterds was great in itself, I felt like this one was a bit harder to take and Tarantino's depiction of slavery is much rougher than what his take was on Nazi occupied France.
what do you think Django Unchained will do for Black History? this movie will be viewed and celebrated mostly by white audiences. also, did anyone else feel the scene with Jonah Hill and the bags over their heads seemed out of place?
I assume this is part of your shtick, or at least hope so.... <a target='_blank' title='ImageShack - Image And Video Hosting' href='http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/690/bxk21147rosa800.jpg/'><img src='http://img690.imageshack.us/img690/853/bxk21147rosa800.jpg' border='0'/></a><br> <a target='_blank' title='ImageShack - Image And Video Hosting' href='http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/812/parksz.jpg/'><img src='http://img812.imageshack.us/img812/1474/parksz.jpg' border='0'/></a><br>
It's a mainstream, available portrayal of the brutality of slavery. Not soft, not watered down. How many directors can do that? Spike can't. My theatre (Memorial) was probably 50% black.
I thought the scene with Jonah and the lynch mob was hilarious. And this movie will do for black history what Inglorious Bastards did for Jewish history. Nothing.
One thing that did annoy me was something that happened in the audience and not the movie itself. Every time Django killed a white guy there was this lady in front of me who would clap and cheer. I just wanted to yell stfu. Anyone else have reactions like this in their theatre?
If this film contributes anything, I think it is breaking the taboo and showing slavery as the brutal thing it was. When I have taught the subject of American slavery in college history courses, students are shocked to learn of both the brutality of it all but also the paternalism, the social structures amongst slaves, and the various torture/punishment devices commonly used on slaves. Of course pictures of whipped backs often horrify them. In the classroom, it is tough to balance trying to get across the severity of the experience without the discussion devolving into a p*rnography of pain. I think Tarantino got across as much in his film as I and colleagues often do in a 2-hour lecture/discussion. At the very least, there will be a lot of people far more receptive to learning the history of American slavery. I think Tarantino is far more effective in exposing viewers to his viewpoint than Spike Lee has every been. I think Lee's faked consternation is just because a white director is kicking his ass at dealing with black issues on film. Social commentary doesn't have to be preachy. Don Johnson's scenes are a perfect example of that.
Not exactly that, but Spoiler there was a woman who shouted "But she didn't do anything!" when Django killed Miss Laura.
