This scene was inspired by Leo himself. He was the one who bought a book at auction written by a slave owner justifying slavery through phrenology. He used it to understand the characters ideology and when he told torrantino about it torrantino got inspired and wrote the dinner scene.
@@dillon.phelps3 absolutely not he's a boring actor infact thats probably one of his best movies he's ever played a role in and he still makes it even more of a bore.
That's because Stephen had considerably more personal contact and insight about the day-to-day interactions with & amongst slaves. Stephen had the trained-eye and knew what tell-tell signs to recognize... especially since he was much older than and was a father-figure of sorts to Calvin.
@Keyser Soze He didn't tell for a pat on the head. He told so he could keep money on the plantation. Since he is the real ruler of the plantation, defrauding Candy is the same as defrauding him.
Interviewer: “so what’s your job around here?” Slave: “I clean and polish all the skulls mr candie brings out to intimidate his dinner guests, you’d be surprised how often he does it.”
You know, I just realized something about Candie’s little monologue here. He mentions how growing up he was confused why the slaves didn’t rise up and kill them, since he would kill anyone who tried to enslave him. That meant he had to empathize with them, seeing them as fellow human beings who couldn’t have enjoyed their plight. I never noticed how this movie subtly shows that racism isn’t born, it’s taught. Calvin had to be taught the junk science of phrenology to begin to excuse slavery. I’ve really gotta get this movie. It’s one of those great works of cinema and writing where more and more jumps out at you with each viewing.
LMAO you need to grow up if you think Mr. Tarantino worries about such things! Stick to your Marvel and Disney kiddy stuff, their recent works have plenty material you can pick at. Or better yet, take your sjw glasses off - life is much better without constant nagging!
I took it to mean that Leo/Calvin actually doesnt believe in Phrenology. When he says, "If I took this hammer and bashed in your skull [you would have the same three dimples etc]" I think Hes saying that you force submission out of people through violence and intimidation and that he doesnt really even believe that Blacks and Whites are different at all. This shows that Calvin is not just ignorant but actually evil. What do y'all think?
Imagine how long Calvin had Old Ben's skull resting there in its box, patiently waiting for a dinner guest to bring up the subject of phrenology so he could have his great "Well, I'm glad you mentioned it"-moment
Either he had plenty in inventory, or he rarely had guests of Schultz caliber. Being one of one I find it odd how he hacked it without a second thought, then again there may be some significance to that as well.
1:15 The look Calvin shoots at his sycophantic underling for laughing is just brilliant. He's got a huge speech prepared, and his lackey is ruining the mood with his laughter. I know it’s such a small thing, but it’s a great little acting moment that I’ve revisited several times. Calvin Candie is the most unique character he's ever played.
JimmySteller the reason he never got one of because he should have, he's actually a decent guy who didn't play along with the Hollywood pedophilic/homosexual cult.
Calvin is actually one of my favorites roles Leo has played throughout all of his career. Even though he wasn’t the protagonist or lead, just his portrayal and skill in showing us this character, I think makes it one of his best performances.
It shows how much care he took of the skull - to try and prove that his argument was correct - he needed to show the proof so desperately as he was never conflicted by anyone before. the way he concentrates on the skull when cutting it was 1. like he was doing a job in a building site hed done for years, 2. determined to prove this theory correct
The sad thing is that this was considered legitimate science back in the day. Phrenology was proposed by Franz Joseph Gall, based on the Localistic theory of the brain, which suggested that strong mental faculties correlated to highly developed brain regions, which were observable as bumps in the skull. Except Phrenology was only popular from 1810 until about 1840, when no one could find any evidence for these localized qualities and the concept was scientifically discredited. So plantation owners were using outdated theories to justify the enslavement of Africans. And for the record, bumps, dimples, and other minor deformities in the skull are caused by imperfections in bone growth. It happens to everyone.
+Mister Bubbles It also shows how pretentious and ignorant Candie really is: he tries to sound intelligent by spouting what was *even in his time* known to be junk science. I was surprised there wasn't a scene where Schultz tells Calvin that phrenology was BS, and that even a scientist who SUPPORTED slavery would have called him out.
I love the look Schultz has when he realizes that Calvin is about to go on an educational tangent regarding race science, instead of discussing the deal involving Hilda. It’s like he almost realizes that something is about to go down but he can’t quite make out what kind of game Calvin is playing at with the skull and phrenology tools.
One important thing to remember about this scene - Candie mentions that old Ben took care of him, his daddy and his daddy's daddy too. You can see in his face he considers it pretty much a given slaves are around. And that's how it is in life with many things - money, careers, friends, regimes. Never become too arrogant or take things for granted, especially your status. It might be gone one day just like THAT.
The people in the south knew, to some extent, what their fate was going to be in regards to slavery years before the war started. By 1858 there was plenty of talk about abolition, it was just a matter of getting someone like Lincoln elected and people in power acting on it. Obviously there were many people in the south like Calvin who saw slavery like religion and were willing to die for it, the ones who weren’t blinded by arrogance knew the north was going to have a distinct advantage in the war. Southern male pride was and is a real thing, they had to practically trick themselves into not only thinking their cause was just, but that they had any chance of winning. When there’s a shift in society, it may feel sudden, but often times it’s actually more of a gradual process comprised of many smaller events that resemble dominoes. What keeps people from seeing the shift is their own arrogance. Whether the shift is positive or negative is in the eyes of the beholder, but it’s always happening.
In my opinion, Leonardo DiCaprio's finest performance. I remember watching What's Eating Gilbert Grape more than two decades ago, and thinking that was one of the finest actors I'd ever seen. But this is even better. Every scene, from his introduction in front of the mansion until his sudden and unexpected death scene, was hilarious or terrifying, and the movie was never the same without him.
@@jacobbailey6134 I'm not an political guy but let's just not pretend that the other side aka white liberals are saints and does not use the racist words, if an independent black man doesn't align with the party line. I mean you guys got an freaking President who says "If you don't vote for me, you ain't black" like he doesn't even look black folks as people, but someone he can exploit from.
The Academy hates crowd-pleasers. That's why blockbusters have shown up less and less as winners over time, except in categories like "Best Animated Film" which, let's be real, is an admission that the Academy thinks animated films can't cut it against "real" cinema.
I just realised, when Candie points out the dimples, it switches to a wide shot from a close up, and you can hardly make out any detail on the skull at all. I can't help but wonder if that's meant to be intentional, considering the actual nature of Phrenology...
Phrenology was actually somewhat correct it just. Was far too specific. Different parts of the Brain do different things this is mostly true. It’s just we are not yet able to pinpoint which part does what specifically. As we’d have to test very brutally on live healthy subjects. Something that is highly illegal.
@@Nothing-ch3dw What you're describing is just neuroscience. Phrenology is debunked psuedo-science which focused on the shape/size of the skull to explain brain functions. It was most commonly used to justify racist beliefs. Phrenology is 100% pseudo-science and even a brief online search will tell you as much.
Definitely intentional-it would seem a little off if they zoomed in and showed dimples, wouldn’t it? Like the film was validating Candie’s racist pseudoscience
@Иван Распутин Ok but with respect, that isn't the way it works. Once something has been debunked, it is no longer science/medicine. It is by definition a separate thing now: pseudoscience. Something cannot be both science and pseudoscience. In the past phrenology may have been considered a branch of neuroscience, but today we know better.
Everytime when I watch this movie I always go to this part as it's one of the most greatest, memorable, and iconic scenes in the whole entire movie due to it's rawness, passion, and intensity. Leonardo DiCaprio did a phenomenal and spectacular job portraying those elements. 😍😎💯👍
I've always loved how Schultz is practically covered in grey as the middle ground between the black and white races. He has the instinct to kill without hesitation towards bad people but has strong enough morals to know what's right and wrong. Beautifully written character from Tarantino and a great performance from Christoph Waltz.
+Bálint Ujvário well I hope you don't mind if I go out speaking the king's scene? I still feel this is far better acting, at no point does DiCaprio let go of your attention
I would say for The Wolf of Wall Street, Catch Me If You Can, and Shutter Island as well, The Revenant is good movie but not really as phenomenal as those..
I think the best description wouldn't be insane but mostly like a spoiled 8 year old in the body of an adult man with way too much authority. He simply never grew up, had no responsibilities (since Stephen ran everything) and instead viewed everything, even human lives, as his toys while trying to impress every adult around him.
Phrenology had already been discredited, by that time. Tarantino and Di Caprio made a helluva work to make Calvin Candie as much as despising as possible in every way: morally, politically and even scientifically.
@@abnerdoon4902 Nazists used everything that could justify them. Remember that they kept saying that Darwin's theory says that the stronger lives and the weaker dies, to justify the supposed Aryan superiority, while the true evolutionary theory says that those who posses the best characteristics to survival manage to reproduce more than others, therefore, in the next generation, there will be a bigger fraction of population similar to them.
Discredited but not widely accepted by the people that would own slaves, obviously. Plenty of people believed it for much longer than the time this movie took place
clean teeth and serving 3 generations of a family proves: A. He hardly or never ate anything with sugar. In real life the Tudors who also have their own TV show also died because their jaw was so infected because back then eating sugar was a new thing that only the rich people could afford and they paid for it with their short lives and infected mouths.
I always thought the use of the skull here is just brilliant. I like it because you cannot find a better, more universal symbol of human equality than this reminder that all of us, great and small, will die someday. The fact that Candy has to exert so much damn violence on that symbol in order to delude himself into seeing differences where there are none perfectly encapsulates not only the character, but white supremacy as a whole.
There are actually several differences that are easily discerned to determine the race of the skull. Granted, that reality isn't as dreamily supportive of fashionable narratives, so I understand what you tried to say.
@@youtubecensors5419 No one said that differences in skull physiognomy don't exist. What makes phrenology a pseudoscience is the idea that these differences correspond to appreciable differences in intelligence despite the lack of evidence. What makes racists like yourself horrible people is that you're willing to take that pseudoscience as an excuse to oppress your fellow man. Go back to 4chan.
@@youtubecensors5419 you can determine it by face structure, which is obviously going to be different just as it is different between two people of the same race. nobody said we've all got perfectly equal skeletons. but sure, get you racist dogwhistle about "fashionable narratives" in, loser. nobody likes you and you deserved more bullying in school
Obviously black people and white people have physiological differences, anyone with eyes can see they're differently colored just for starters. But there are physiological differences between white people with blue eyes and white people with brown eyes - it doesn't mean that one is inherently smarter than the other.
People debate the actors, but the most interesting thing about this scene is phrenology itself and what it says about human beings. People will find a bullshit rationalization for anything as long as it serves their purpose. They will make a science out of it, write books about it, articles about it, teach about it, whatever. And especially when it comes to convincing themselves they're better than other human beings. I was at the top and at the bottom as well. I sort of understood how it sucks at the bottom, I never looked down on any class of people, but man, it's quite a different experience when you're actually there. Those well off think "well, if I didn't have money, it would be much harder than now, but I would still have the same opinions, tastes, still be me". Even those that realize their taste is greatly affected by their wealth, do not realize just how much. And they would find out even parts of their personality they never attributed to a comfortable life are in fact just a byproduct of that. Of course, slaves perhaps weren't openly smart, they weren't openly assertive, or confident, or anything pro-active really. So after some time, some idiot decided that their servitude and submissive behavior must be natural, because that idiot does not understand how a human being can change in a humiliating circumstance. Slavery was basically convincing a whole race of human beings that they're not human beings. Can you even imagine how that feels?
1:04 The question is actually really good. Candie just asking himself “why dont they kill us?” shows some pretty deep thought. Living a whole life on a plantation and finding outdated and discredited sciences kinda messed him up obviously, but he was really close to a solid answer there. Almost realizing that slavery was awful and that blacks are human, because as he said, he wouldve cut his fathers throat if he had to do and live as Ben did.
@@pierzing.glint1sh76 Also if old Ben did murder Calvin's father, he would have been brutally tortured to death like Django almost was. Calvin who has lived his entire life in absolute luxury and authority, and has a inflated sense of self importance and looks down on black people, he cannot understand why his slaves would fear rebelling, and just assumes its because they are too stupid to stand up for themselves.
The thing is many African American rebelled. There were many riots but slavery was legal across the country with many people involved.. After a few rebels(nate turn for instance) they restricted African Americans from reading, being in groups, ect...
The extent of Candie’s ignorance is truly stunning to behold. Not because he’s belligerently so, but because he speaks such idiotic points with the unchallenged polish and critical thinking skills of a college educated professional. He’s wrong (dreadfully so), but he’s so convinced that’s he’s right, to the point that he’s willing to take a skull and break down an entire races’s phenology as if he truly knows what the hell he’s talking about. One of the best portrayals of Social-Darwinistic rhetoric I’ve ever seen implemented in a movie regarding such a topic.
The wider (and very real) context though was that lots of people believed in this junk. Remember this was a time when it was important to look learned in the ways of science; upper-class people would attend scientific lectures, autopsies and surgeries, and read scientific texts. As social backlash against slavery grew, there was a growing movement to intellectualise white supremacy, to use newfangled ideas of the time like anatomy and Darwinist evolution to justify it. That's the sort of environment in which phrenology formed. They literally turned racism into a science, and people of Candie's ilk, the rich, educated, self-styled intellectuals, readily embraced these new, hot ideas, as people who "understood science". It was entirely possible for a person like Candie to think of themselves as the supreme intellectual, even though (as the movie sets up so well) he never left his estate in backwoods Mississippi and didn't even know the French author he claimed to be a fan of and whose books adorned his shelves was black. It wouldn't have mattered; these people legitimised the science they believed in and the science in turn legitimised them. You wouldn't even _know_ you were ignorant, not when the brightest minds of the day were literally telling you you were the supreme being. White supremacy has always been this sort of circle-jerk and it's sad to say that, even to this day, there are people who still behave this way. It may not be phrenology, but they'll find some other pseudo-science like IQ to latch onto and keep justifying their ideology.
You're just mad that black people have that skull trait. Sometimes life is what it is and is done for a reason. Not all things are equal and maybe not all humans need to be equal. Some humans are built different than others. Stop trying to deny that.
My good fellow do you have any evidence to back up what you just said ? I understand you white supremacists like to think of yourselves as men of science, but to proof that something is true you need this tiny little thing called evidence. Can you provide any evidence? why are black people not equal to white people ? I’ve met plenty of black people in my life who have displayed a significant amount of intelligence well beyond the supposedly superior white people around them. Please explain your logic, because I always see these claims but rarely is there any evidence, and if there’s evidence it’s usually either pseudoscience or the words of someone totally unqualified to talk about anything. And I also have a question for you, would you like to be a slave ? to have someone else control everything that you do? I’m certain that you would not. Of course I don’t expect you to reply to this, I mean how could you, anything you say will only make you sound more nonsensical than you already do.
@@themediumcheese exactly what I said. All humans are not built the same way and are not equal. Some humans are built with brains which are different than other humans. Nature doesn't give a shit about how you feel. It only serves purpose to preserve life and in this case it made black people's brains to have a more obedience. Along with physical gifts these traits make for great slaves. Now do I condone slavery? No. But black people were built this way for a reason.
Fun Fact: Phrenology had already been THOROUGHLY discredited by 1860 or so, before the movie takes place. Candie is using what *even in his time* would be considered junk science.
The scene with the hooded raid is also incorrect I think. The KKK was started after the civil war. They didn't need to hide their faces to kill black people prior to that.
Somehow, I don't think there could possibly be a more wholesome way to react to someone bringing out a skull than saying "Who's your little friend" in a bright manner. First time I held a real human skull, I said "hi". Skulls are people too y'all.
you know that monsieur kandee was hilariously badly enraged about finding out our two heroes little charade, when he brings out and destroys a particular family heirloom.
So Ben took care of your family for fifty years, and he wasn't even given a proper burial when he died? And now you're sawing up his skull in front of strangers? That's pretty messed up when you think about it.
So strange to me, I watched the movie when my ADHD was still leaving me unable to comprehend many elements of a story and his demeanor kept me from feeling disturbed when he set the skull down Watching it again now that I do understand stuff is pretty crazy
It's important how the camera doesn't even bother to zoom onto the "three dimples", suggesting the ridiculousness of the argument isn't worth examining.
Leo is not only a legendary actor but he is one of the best actors of all time and probably the best actor of all time. Leo and Denzel are the 2 best actors of all time for me
@Always go [WOKE] Why did they need chains if it was willing? Why were they beaten? Why were they killed? Just basic questions, nothing brain wracking.
My god the acting by dicaprio here is just on whole other level. so fucking scary and menacing the fact that he pulls out a dead slaves skull to lecture abt the science of human nature of a black slave shows you how evil his character really was very disturbing.
"Why don't they kill us?" Because none of them were stupid or selfish enough to endanger everyone else in the plantation over (and I might say justifiable) revenge.
Brain size doesn’t correlate with intelligence. Elephants have bigger brains than humans. If you were as smart as you think you are you would have known that.
Leo! Should've had an Oscar for Gilbert grape, Titanic, wolf of Wall Street, django unchained, damn near every movie he's ever been in! Romeo and Juliet was Oscar worthy even. Why are people not giving this man what he deserves!
Well, some of the movies had solid competition...other than that, jealous old dudes thinking young uns don't deserve to win. Took him crossing forty for him to get it, despite it being among the worst roles he had.
He did and Quentin wanted to use that and exaggerate it in the other takes, some people actually believe that's his real blood he's using on Kerry's face, I mean come the fuck on.
