According to that article he sees some POSSIBLE connections to "Basterds," but they don't as yet exist, nor are they present in this film. But more to my original point, whatever ties he'd LIKE to make to "Basterds" has nothing to do with the current and existing narrative of "Django," which, while fictional, is not revisionist. We need to be clear that while revisionist is always fiction, fiction is not always revisionist, at least not obviously so.
Continuing, to your point about its educational merits:
Django is only educational to people who don't know what slavery looked like, or haven't been able to glean an impression of it despite years of slave imagery. What it presents of slavery is stuff that's been in other films, is taught in most classrooms at least once a year, and to be honest shows less than it's being given credit for. Not to mention that the one atrocity presented that the entire third act of the film hinges on - Mandingo wrestling - is an utter falsehood to the extent to which it is presented here. So I'd venture to say that it works AGAINST a true picture of slavery in its key moments.
I do not know the American culture as well as you do. (DA!) But I am a bit skeptical about "most classrooms at least once a year."
One example, in my ethics classes I talk about the Tuskegee syphilis experiment (in the context of introducing the concept of informed-rational consent). A great majority of students are like, holy shit, that was happening in our country and just recently. So, I just do not know how much people know about pre- and civil-war times.
anyway, it was but a conjecture on my part; some may learn something. Not as much as watching, say, Sankofa or Amistad, but still something.
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Django is only educational to people who don't know what slavery looked like, or haven't been able to glean an impression of it despite years of slave imagery. What it presents of slavery is stuff that's been in other films, is taught in most classrooms at least once a year, and to be honest shows less than it's being given credit for. Not to mention that the one atrocity presented that the entire third act of the film hinges on - Mandingo wrestling - is an utter falsehood to the extent to which it is presented here. So I'd venture to say that it works AGAINST a true picture of slavery in its key moments.
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One example, in my ethics classes I talk about the Tuskegee syphilis experiment (in the context of introducing the concept of informed-rational consent). A great majority of students are like, holy shit, that was happening in our country and just recently. So, I just do not know how much people know about pre- and civil-war times.
anyway, it was but a conjecture on my part; some may learn something. Not as much as watching, say, Sankofa or Amistad, but still something.
I agree about "mandingo" scene.
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