Django Unchained & The Hype: A ShakaRaView

So I watched “Django Unchained”. I always knew that I was going to watch it, it’s what I do – watch films and analyse them. I saw no reason why this one should be different.

Before watching the film, various aspects of the hysteria surrounding it intrigued me. I am skeptical of any European deciding to take on the task of dealing with the history of Afrikan people – and for good reason. White people telling a Black story usually results in revisionism and omission at best; a tool which often feeds a bigger agenda of deceit & miseducation. So really I expect little more than this from them, even with the best of intentions.

Tarantino himself has demonstrated a “Blaxploitation” like obsession with Black people through out the entirety of his career, garnished with strange fetish for the word “nigger” (Black people please stop saying “The N Word” – its grossly infantile. The Word is “NIGGER”.). I had no reason to expect anything more than this in his portrayal of slavery for the sake of this film. He had not earned the benefit of the doubt and I was not prepared, nor did I feel compelled to give it to him.

I quickly began to realise that I was one of a few in this regard. It seems the marketing for this film, heavily driven by Jamie Foxx’s “I get to kill all the White people” skit had captured the imagination of Black people. So much so that when long standing Black director, Spike Lee said “The history of my people is not a spaghetti western, it would be an insult to my ancestors if I watch this movie – My ancestors were slaves stolen from Afrika I will honour them” – he was met with not only disagreement, but absolute intolerance, ridicule & damn near condemnation, from Black people in public & private.

It seemed that Tarantino’s self proclaimed intention to “Explore the history of Slavery & GIVE Black people a western hero” had become sacred cinematic territory, that was beyond even personal critique. Spike Lee made his decision after reading the script. He was derided for judging the film before he had seen it. The fact that many of those who derided him for his statement had neither seen the film nor read the script is an irony that many seemed to miss.

Even more interesting was the absolute readiness with which Black people (including notable figures like Dick Gregory) were willing to throw a Black director of such high esteem, completely under the bus. Whatever critiques we may have of Spike Lee, he has attempted to served the Black community for decades. Tarantino can only claim to have featured some “niggers” in some films – yet Black people seem to feel compelled to defend him.

This is really a sanctioning of the arrogance that made Tarantino feel that Black people wanted or needed him to GIVE us a star in the classic filmatic domain of the American white man – “A Western”. Evidently many have forgotten “The Posse”  by Melvin Van Peebles, but hey- lets move on.

It also interested me that one of the main selling points for the movie was the fact that Django kills all the White people. Really? Black people, who spend a lot of time trying to “move on and forget about slavery” and imploring each other to “not do to them what they have done to us” suddenly find killing white people a matter for celebration. Black people who distanced themselves from the radicalism of people like Khalid Muhammed, suddenly run to see a Black man bare arms and rebel against slavery? As my Uncle Olatunji put it, did these people celebrate Colin Ferguson, a Black man who shot & killed a number of White people on a train in New York during the 90s? I asked myself did these people celebrate when the lie was told that Mugabe was killing White people in Zimbabwe? Who celebrated Nelson Mandela absolving White criminals in South Afrika of their crimes during apartheid? Would they have sought retribution for Trayvon Martin, Oscar Brown, Smiley Culture, Azzelle Rodney or Sean Rigg? Are these same people now celebrating the fact that a Black man is killing White people in a movie about slavery?

It seems Hollywood used Tarantino as a front man to GIVE us permission to feel good about killing White people – so we decided to revel in it. Such levels of justice can not come from Afrikan self determination, only European sanction – interesting.

Then there was the “this film is not about slavery, its a love story” rhetoric that I kept coming across. OK -So being aware of the premise of the film I thought about this – An enslaved Afrikan man, goes on a quest to save his enslaved Afrikan wife, by taking revenge on the brutal white slave master, on slave plantation in the institutionalised slavery context of the Untied States of America….

Nah – this film is not about Slavery at all is it. Just like “Schindlers List” was not about the Holocaust; it was about a dude trying save some Jews. Or “Inglorious Basterds” was not about the World War II; it was about killing Nazis. Or “Roots” was not about Slavery; it was about the family of Alex Hayley. Or “Amistad” was not about the so called “Slave Trade” it was about a court case. This was a peculiarly analysis to say the least.

All of the above drew me to one conclusion. For many, enjoying this film was something that had taken on a “By Any Means Necessary” character. They were not going to be deterred. Certainly not by some self righteous negros with a pro-Black conscience. This film was to be enjoyed and as such Tarantino was to be defended at all cost. Again – an interesting dynamic to say the least.

Personally, I knew I was going to watch this film. Seemingly unlike many, I heard Spike Lee when he said “I can only speak for myself” so I didn’t take his statements as a judgment. I observed the dynamics and went to watch the film.

Usually films on slavery, (or any other aspect of the post Slavery Black experience for that matter) feature some standard characters: The White Hero (is always a must) the Side Kick Black, who is dependent of the White Hero in order to help himself. The White Villain (who is often conflicted or obscure) and of course, the Black Villain/Self hating negro, who is usually extremely prominent.

Django unchained was Quentin Tarantino’s take on all of the above. It contains all of the entertaining dialogue, unique cinematography, colourful wardrobe & scenery that audiences have come to expect from a Tarantino film. Its entirely watchable, although I cant get my head around why its getting standing ovations –  as films go, he’s done better. That said “Django Unchained”  is essentially the same old same old, buried under a lot of killing of white folks.

The film begins with Django being freed from Slavery by DR. KING Schultz, a German bounty hunter – A white man who doesn’t like slavery but is prepared to “use it to his advantage”. He offers to free Django, in exchange for his help. Hey presto – white hero. This beneficent German caries Django around southern USA in order to help him find his wife Broomhilda (Hildy) and act vengeance on her slave masters.

We also have our Black side Kick, who is suppose to be the main hero, but really, watching the film, his side kick status is thoroughly apparent. For much of it Django maintains an intense onlooker demeanor, while this charismatic, articulate German captivates the audience with flamboyance, admirable wit and the ability to manipulate circumstances to his benefit.

A rather humourous scene features some Ku Klux Klanesque masked men on their way to hunt down Django & Schultz, who have just killed a number of Slave drivers. The scene centres on a seemingly pointless dialogue about the fact that the holes in the sheets were cut wrong, and therefore difficult to see out of. This harmless, elongated display of comedic randomness served an important purpose. It gives an impression – Slave drivers were ignorant dumb crackers. They lacked intelligence. These were not, for he most part intelligent white men with an agenda, they were simple citezens going along with the status quo. This is another well used feature in the slavery discourse – mitigation for the actions of white people.

The number one & by far the most effective tool of this mitigation is the Black Villain, usually accompanied by the“Afrikans sold west Indians into slavery” tag line. In “Django Unchained”  this character is personified by Stephen, masterfully played by Samuel L. Jackson. Stephen is a classic Uncle Tom from head to toe. Samuel was even darkened for role. He carries all the airs & graces of servitude, he constantly bows when addressing the master, his speech patterns and absolute contempt for “niggers” cements his subordinate role and Uncle Tom status.

What is apparent though is that he is not a House Nigger like the rest of the House Niggers that surround him. Even the way that Calvin Candie, the master played by Leonardo DiCaprio, speaks to him is different. The reason for this becomes apparent when Stephens begins to see through the plot of Schultz, Django and Hildy. He calls the master to the library where they discuss. In the Library, the low bent, subservient, shaking Uncle Tom transforms in to an upright, steady, Cognac sipping, assertive mastermind. Where as he was constantly bowing before, he now sits across from his “master” – as an equal, revealing the plot of the niggers and their nigger lover in the Dinning room.

Interesting dynamic here – Stephen is not a slave, he is as much a part of perpetrating slavery as the Slave Master. The obvious – yet subtle implication here is again, Afrikans sold Afrikans into slavery and are equally culpable in all that was suffered by Afrikan people. These sinister elements are what really make this film, hidden behind the killing of all the white folks.

And on the subject of killing, much was made of the violence that was portrayed. In truth as far as Tarantino goes, it was a regression. Either way it is noticable that all of the most extreme violence was Black on Black. The wrestling scene that features 2 Black men fighting to the death for the entertainment of white slave drivers, is by far the most violent – gruesome scene in the movie.

The violence inflicted on white people simply doesn’t compare, not even Django’s whipping of a slaver driver. Master Candie, the number one slave driver, supposedly the main villain, like most of the White Men in the film is simply shot to death; and He is not shot by Django, he is shot by Schultz  This is a self sacrificial act as Schultz is killed soon after, cementing his white hero status. Django then proceeds to go on a shooting spree, killing many more white folks in the process.

The film takes its biggest turn here. The main white characters have just been killed off. Django’s shooting spree is called to a halt by the voice of Uncle Tom Stephen – who has Hildy hostage. From this point on Stephens takes centre stage amongst a small army of White Men,  leading negotiations with the rouge slave. The rest of the film is essentially a stand off between these 2 Black characters. Stephens convinces the white slavers to have Django brutally re-enslaved instead of castrated, cementing his Black slaver mastermind status.

All this brought home by the fact that Stephen is killed last. Anyone with the most rudimentary knowledge of Hollywood traditions knows that this is a spot usually reserved for the primary villain. And he is not simply shot, he is some what tortured. Shot a number of times around his body, before being blown up with the rest of Master Candie’s house.

This leaves Django to ride in to the sunset – or moonlight, with Hildy, a character who is tragically under developed. But when I considered it properly, with the exception of Uncle Tom – ALL of the Black characters are severely underdeveloped, including Django. Tarantino is known for intense dialogue/monologue. His main characters usually engage in lengthy heavily scripted scenes. “Django Unchained”  reserved such scenes for the White characters, primarily Schultz & Candie. By far the most intense scene is DiCaprio’s “three dimples in the skull” scene – very well put together by any standard. Django was to be the ultimate hero, but as far as performance, though Jamie Foxx was the star of the promotion – he certainly was not the star of the film.

In truth the underdeveloped characters are the result of a underdeveloped story line that relied on the basic cliché motivation of Django – something that is referred to as “Love”. The focus of “(romantic) Love” allows you to ignore the issue of freedom. This was not the quest of an enslaved Afrikan to be free, this was the personal vendetta of an individual enslaved Black man trying to save his wife. No Black Man or Woman in this film seems to have any serious inclination toward being free, which is cemented by the fact that Django’s connection to any of the other enslaved Afrikans in the film is extremely detached.

So in conclusion, Django Unchained is an entirely watchable, somewhat entertaining peice of sinister cinematic propaganda. I do not celebrate this film – nor am I overly emotional about the observations I have made – I just see it as a matter of fact based on what the film presented. Had it not been for the hysteria of Black people surrounding the film I wouldn’t even have written a review.

I dont expect everyone to agree with me. What I hope is that people are not inclined to suspend intelligence for the sake of entertainment. I hope that Tarantino feeling the need to give us a carrot, does not lead people to engage in an orgy of illogical praise & worship.

There is a need for Black people to stop being satisfied with carrots and start ploughing our own field as consumers & creators. What I would like to encourage is for Afrikans to be concerned with developing our own self-reliant perspectives on these very important aspects of our history and channeling our creative energy to bringing that perspective to light.

Getting excited over these little hand outs and crumbs from paternalistic Europeans is really perpetuating slavery. There are apparently going to be a number of films addressing Afikan enslavement and related themes through out 2013, which makes for an interesting year. I hope we see fit to use it as a period of right education at the very least.

I have become aware of one effort to do a biopic entitled “Nat Turner Unchained”, I look forward to seeing how that develops. Heres the link for the website: http://natturnermovie.com/

Peace & Blessness Afrikans. Thanks for reading.

Tafadzwa ShakaRa Mbandaka