What Makes Calvin Candie One Of The Most Terrifying Villains In Film History 

Which villain should we cover next?

Never in a million years would I have thought the kid from titanic would end up being one of the greatest actors of our life.

Fun fact, they gave Dicaprio an academy award for this performance which for some bizzare reason was delayed until he’d starred in The Revenant.

What makes his character so scary is his ability to be incredibly charming while intimidating simultaneously. Similar to Hans Landa, he lures in his victims and lulls them through simple conversation and then attacks. It’s amazing.

What I found most interesting about Candie is that he isn't Django's villain. That title goes to Stephen. Calvin Candie, although mainly seen interacting with Django, is Dr.Schultz's villain. Everything that Schultz is, Calvin is the opposite: Schultz is well-mannered, travelled and both empathetic and humble despite his profession Whereas Calvin is crude, maintains a facade of being a well-educated man when in reality he is wholy ignorant and an absolute monster to almost anyone that challenges his ego Plus, there's the irony of a man named Candie antagonising a dentist lol

This is hands down Leo's best performance. Definitely should have gotten an Oscar for this. He makes the 2nd half of the movie the best half.

People might say Jordan Belfort from "The Wolf of Wall Street" is Leo's best performance, but I lean towards this one as the best. Seeing a guy in Leo who usually plays the hero take on a villain role in a slavery revenge tale, and for him to completely steal scenes alongside Sam Jackson, Christoph Waltz, and Jamie Foxx who's the main character speaks volumes to his talents as an actor. For him to actually cut his hand on glass during the dinner scene and CONTINUE ACTING while bleeding profusely is a different kind of dedication.

The fact that Calvin Candy treats slavery like a game is what makes him truly despicable. Even Schultz couldn’t stand him for long, let along his perverse admiration for European culture.

A year or two ago, someone pointed out to me that one of the protagonists (Schultz) was a dentist and quite appropriately, the villain was named Candy. I had seen this movie like 5 times and never connected those dots. It blew my mind lol.

Best performance ever. It feels 100% real. No Oscar for that is a joke.

Samuel L. Jackson’s interpretation of “Stephen” was very unexpected to see. He’s an amazing actor, and the way he played the “house slave” was like being transported into a different reality. All I knew is that he was going to be in the movie, but when I watched I just could not believe my eyes!

Stephen is the real evil the very first shot we see of him, he's filling in a check in Candie's name and with perfect penmanship. No ordinary slave would have such power or access, and write so well. He's the one running the plantation and controlling Candie, but he plays an old fool/clown to keep up appearances then at the end he drops it and walks normally like he didnt need to pretend no more. I loved that detail so much. He was a calculated despicable character.. Candie treats him like an amusing pet around others but in private they're equals. I don't believe he truly cared for Candie, he needed him to survive. He said to Django when he was hanging upside down, "White folks ain't ever had an original thought in their head" and implies he steered the conversation so Miss Lowell believed it was her own idea. Something tells me he's done that a lot with Candie as well.

I think the fact that DeCaprio would often cry inbetween takes, and had a few emotional breakdowns on set, while playing THIS character is proof that you do NOT have to be a raging cumstain to your costars behind the cameras to play amazing villains. (Looking at you, Jared Leto)

DiCaprio is one of the best actors in the world. It's wild he's been straight up snubbed for so many years awards wise

I think something that wasn't commented on was the idea that Candy has a fragile ego. He uses his rage and power to intimate the people around him into silence about his deficiencies. Calvin loves French and the air of exotic superiority he feels when indulging it, but can't speak it. Yet he doesn't welcome speaking opportunities in the language because they would expose a deficiency. Similarly, upon finding out he's being tricked, he uses rage to regain power over the his guests. Anyone who's got a parent like this, for me its my dad, knows what I'm talking about.

This movie has no dull moments, it could've been 5 hours long and still captivating.

Django is genuinely one of my favourite all time films. DiCaprio and Jackson as the villain duo are phenomenal. Genuinely terrifying and unpredictable

It still amazes me that Leonardo DiCaprio did not win an Oscar for this performance, it was by far one of his best performances.

In a way Samuel Jackson's character was actually the person running the plantation. Candy didn't even know he was being duped until Samuel Jackson told him. Samuel Jackson survive all those years on the plantation by staying in the background, observing.

Everyone was phenomenal in this film. Jamie Foxx, Samuel L Jackson, Kerry Washington, Don Johnson and Leonardo DiCaprio. Quentin Tarantino direction is impeccable. This movie is definitely one of the best films of the 2010s.

Part of what's so impactful in this performance is not only who Dicaprio is portraying but also the fact that his face has a gentle, innocent look. So the dichotomy between his looks and his actions is what makes it even more shocking

Calvin Candie is one of the few movie villains who genuinely scared me. No scary monsters, no supernatural spooks, haunts, or poltergeists, have moved me the way Calvin Candie did, and you nailed it with one word: Normalcy. There ARE real-life Calvin Candies running around in this world. Maybe not as overt or over-the-top as their screen counterpart, but no less violent, no less sadistic.

What might make Candie even more evil is that his treatment of his slaves was actually against the law even in the ruthless American Antebellum South. You weren't allowed to just torture and murder your slaves. These laws weren't in place, of course, out of any pity or humanism towards the slaves - but a self-preserving measure to prevent outrage in the North and the potential for slave insurrections. Additionally, by murdering his slaves, Candie is showing that money doesn't really matter to him since murdering a slave would be like setting many hundreds of thousands of dollars on fire.

Tbh I always saw Calvin as someone who tries to project power, sophistication and intelligence when he’s actually just a pawn of Steven. It was Steven that figured out the protagonists’ true goals, and Candy tried to play it off as though he discovered it. Steven was the final threat of the movie. So I really think that Calvin is more pathetic than anything, trying to portray himself as a worldly intelligent man when he has to be guided and directed by one of the very people he considered below him

I firmly believe that the only reason Di Caprio didn't win an Oscar for this amazing performance is because they felt that they couldn't reward such an abhorrent character. But he deserved that win for the glass alone.

I knew that scene was real the 1st time I saw it in the theater! I even leaned over to my buddy and said “dude, that looks way too real!” The light trembling both in his voice and his hand was too real! And the way he still delivered the performance while picking the glass out of his hand is movie GOLD!

I've always loved the duality between the two German characters that Christoph Waltz plays in Django Unchained and Inglorious Basterds. You could honestly do an entire essay just on the comparison of the two films/characters.

I watch this movie a lot, and every. Single. Time... DiCaprio blows me away with the subtlety in his eyes, in his glances, his expressiveness with his eyes is truly a skill he has mastered. He can say everything without saying anything and it makes all of his performances significantly more powerful for it

I'm pretty sure it wasn't Calvin that gave Brunhilda the scars. I'm pretty sure it was Django's last master. I remember a scene where Django was begging the man not to whip her

Calvin is a great villain no denying that but Stephan’s character was the most chilling to me.. it’s always interesting to me on how much a human being is capable of when it comes to self preservation.

The fact that Candie is looked at as a terrifying villain despite getting clapped in his seventh scene is a real testament to Tarantinos writing and Leo's performance

It's still despicable, but you mentioned how he let someone get eaten for "a few hundred dollars". Back around the time the movie plays (1858) 500 dollars is equal to the buying Power of almost 20.000$ today. Not that it's not still horrible, but back in the day that was a REALLY serious amount of money

I love Nerdstalgic but this is the first time they got something horribly wrong. And I'm not talking about the breakdown, it's the details. Candi didn't admimister the beating to Broomhylda, and he didn't allowed the dogs to eat D'artagnan for underperforming. It was for trying to run away and not wanting to go back to fighting.

Leo's rizz to be able to portray such a disgusting human being in such a charming and engrossing manner is.... frightening, honestly. It's fascinating and insanely amazing to see how Leo went from Hollywood's pretty boy in Titanic to this Titan (eh? :D) of acting serious roles he is nowadays. And honestly, Django is just an absolute MASTERPIECE on all levels.

I worked as a first unit Grip on "Django Unchained", and I was on set when Leo smashed the glass on the table. He is not normal. He takes his job very seriously, and like a drummer dropping a stick during a performance he just keeps going until he could get his composure then nail the part.

Great video! And I'm not trying to be "that guy," but Django Unchained wasn't loosely based on Django. When Django, a western made by an Italian studio in 1966, was released, it became a surprise hit. So Italian movie studios took advantage of legal loopholes in that country that applied at the time to films. One of these was that while a studio couldn't release a movie with the same title as another, there weren't any laws that prohibited adding a number or other word to an already-existing title, even if the movie in question had no association with it. (For example, Night of the Living Dead's Italian title was Zombi, so another zombie film that came out later went by the title Zombi 2, even though it was completely unrelated to the George Romero movie.) So after the success of Django, Italian movie studios started giving other westerns they were producing Django-related titles to ride the coattails of the original's success as unofficial sequels with titles like Django Kills, W. Django and countless others. They even started doing that with non-westerns that starred Franco Nero, the actor that played Django. Nero would star as a cop fighting crime in modern-day Miami and it'd get the title Django vs. The Mafia. There are over fifty of these unofficial sequels and Tarantino was paying an homage to this tradition by using the name and the title, as well as a cameo from Franco Nero as the Italian slave owner. (The joke being that he knows that the D is silent.) So this was Quentin Tarantino making his own unofficial Django sequel. There's actually even more to this whole Django story, but this comment is already way too TL;DR. So thanks for reading all of it!

What I like about the power dynamics at play in Candyland is that while Calvin has Marsha and the rest of his pack of attack dogs, Calvin himself is effectively Stephen's attack dog.

Django Unchained is one of the few films who left me with this feeling "what now" you get when you finished a very long series. This feeling of having witnessed something amazing that leaves you a bit stunned for a moment, not knowing what to do next.

I had no idea that Leo actually cut his hand on the glass in that scene. The fact that he did it by accident but just rolled with it is dedication to the role for sure. Just helped fuel it.

I’m a black man and this was the greatest acting performance I have ever seen in my life 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

As wicked as Calvin was Stephen was even more sinister

Candie’s charm seemed to work on me when I was watching the movie because the word smithing mastery of Dr. Schultz made me feel like he could talk his way out of almost anything. It wasn’t until a scene right near the end where Candie insists he shakes his hand that really got my heart going, it felt like he was planning something, and no amount of talking was gonna get him out of that situation. Thankfully it was resolved without words.

0:07 😂 That look. You know exactly what he’s thinking at that moment.

This man has deserved so many Oscar’s it’s insane.

What I absolutely love about Quentin Tarantino films, all of them, is that he never forgets the purpose of a film. And that is it should be interesting, entertaining and hopefully riveting. I have never seen a Quentin Tarantino film that I could get up and walk away from. He is the quintessential filmmaker of our time and I am lucky to be alive while he makes films. Thank you Quentin Tarantino for making my life very, very interesting. I absolutely love your movies because it feels like you are making films just for me. Also, without this brilliant script and masterful directing , Leonardo DiCaprio would be just another pretty face on the screen. Earl Marshawn Washington, artist. born 1962.

the 'silver tongued devil' line is my fav of ALL time

Samuel L Jackson was robbed of an Oscar for his performance

major respect to leo for staying in character and finishing the shot despite injuring himself and watching his own real blood pouring from his hand. That takes real dedication

Hans Landa still the scariest villain for me, he literally sent chills down my spine everytime he's on screen

I will say, I just recently watched Django Unchained since it was on Netflix, and I was mostly fine with it, the gore, the swearing, the violence. Until this scene came up. Watching those two men fight to the death just for two men's amusement was horrible in a way I've never seen before, as if they're just animals there to please their masters. Intellectually I knew that's how a lot of white slaveowners in the antebellum south felt about their slaves, but this scene really made me feel it. And when the film got to part where Candie has a slave eaten alive, it was actually difficult for me to watch.

Who would have thought that the kid from Titanic would become one of the best actors of this generation? Hell, one of the best actors EVER!

DiCaprio is one of the greatest actors of all time in my opinion.

I find this film incredibly rewatchable which, in my opinion, is the mark of a great film. I also enjoyed the hateful eight but i think Django might be up there as one of my favourite Tarantino films. I rewatch this film and pulp fiction alot but it might just be my favourite. I also think it is underrated.

I just watched this movie today because RU-vid recommended me your video essay on this character, and thank you for that. He is terrifying indeed, especially because of his will to do everything he need in order to get what he wants and he enjoys every cruel act in between. That he is powerful, in control and can hide all that behind his charming good looks makes him all the more terrifying and a very interesting villain to watch. I have laughed with the characters when they joked, I have cried during the torture scenes and I have enjoyed every dialogue in this movie because to me dialogue in a Tarantino movie is simply just delicious.

When I first saw Django Unchained, I was really surprised to see Dicaprio in it. I never thought Tarentino would use him in one of his movies. However Dicaprio did nail it. He was brilliant in this.

it just shows the exceptional talent Leo possesses how well he acts the characters out. even during the cruel and psychopathic moments you are just taken aback by his charisma

It is insane that Leo actually finished that take. I wonder if the adrenaline helped or hurt his performance.

Leonardo dicaprio transcends all his rolls, I aways look foward to watching his movies.

Girl he ain't acting... he treats his young girlfriends with a similar hospitable clinical approach

DiCaprio is among the best in Hollywood. He made everyone hate and fear him in this film. You also can't take your eyes off of him. You don't know what he's going to do next.

Now I can see why this character is a prime example of an unsympathetic villain. DiCaprio literally inflicted immense bodily harm to himself to sell the hell out of this performance Intentional branding his own hand with the wrath of a hateful character that they work to manifest into the culture Amazing what you can do when you merge talent and dedication on everyone’s part.

This movie is a complete masterpiece...not even a single bad scene..🔥🔥

His exceptional calm can only be rivaled by his explosive cruelty, both equally intimidating. An absolutely amazing performance which leaves you feeling uncomfortable yet somehow unable to look away.

The matched partnerships of the heroes and the antagonists is so perfect. Calvin and Stephen are the evil mirrors for Schultz and Django.

Candies cutting into the skull, is backed up by science, black and white and asian and indigenous skulls have differences which DO affect mental development.

Don’t know if anyone else noticed this but James reemer played two characters in this movie. Man shot in beginning and Calvin’s bodyguard. I call him dexters dad but still funny he played two guys who die in the same movie. And my favorite camera work of the movie is the zoom in on Calvin’s face after introducing himself. Love it.

Leo didn't need to nearly kill himself in The Revenant, he should've got his Oscar for Django!

I'm bewildered as to why Leo didn't won an Oscar for his role as Calvin Candie.

Did I just see CC Balls used as a transition at 1:24?... the editing in these videos never ceases to amaze me.

I didn’t find him scary, I found the situation they put themselves in terrifying

Amazing what this man was considered when we were younger and what he he he has become. Glad that he actually turned out to be a great actor unlike so many of his fellow former teen hearthrobs. Edit: just seeing the clip again makes me sick. This movie...well, time for a rewatch with the wife and kids out of town.

I have a theory about him - when he does the deal with shultz he insists on a hand shake , now shultz has the sleeve gun and the way he insists on the handshake would raise suspicion within shultz as he is very familiar with that weapon and usually deploys it when going for a handshake , shultz knew calvin was gonna shoot him so he shot first

Still think landa is the most evil of all… he never have rage outbursts, he’s always planning and fully aware of how he’s going to hurt people.

Leonardo DiCaprio can act. Him as Calvin Candie made me instinctively hate him when he first came into scene way before he flew into a rage. I told myself “we’re going to hate this character”

2:22 personally, my favourite villain ever. Waltz played that to another level.

amazing analysis👌👌👌👌👌👌

Absolutely an Oscar-worthy performance but I can see how the academy may have been apprehensive with the subject matter

Ramsey Bolton is the most terrifying villain ever. His twister tormented smile alone is enough to send shivers down anyone's spin.

Had no idea Leo actually injured his hand in that scene, but after rewatching it you can definitely tell, has a slight pull back after hitting the glass. The fact he channeled that pain from cutting up his hand into the rest of the take instead of stopping speaks volumes to the dedication he has to his work.

I loved his performance in this film. They all did well actually. A legendary film!

Such great acting by Leo, I thought the acting for this villain was at the level as for Hans Landa in Inglorious Bastards. Personally, I was surprised Leo didn't get an Oscar nomination for this.

This is my favorite Leonardo DiCaprio performance and character! I also love character design. Everything about candy was perfect for Django! Leo killed it. 💙🖤💙

I don't know. Calvin is a pretty boring and predictable villain in a fairly forgettable film. I honestly don't remember what happened in this movie at all. Now Hans Landa... that was a hell of a villain. Made my skin crawl.

I was about to argue that Landa was the worst in all of Tarantinos movies. But man LD completely did this character justice.

I like the description of Candie as more of Roman emperor drunk with power. I don't know why I never noticed it before, but he gives off Caligula vibes for sure, especially with the interactions with his sister. The scene in the parlor where he's having drinks and casual conversation while a man is brutally murdered a few feet away is reminiscent of the decapitation machine scene in the old 1970s Caligula flick.

Can we just just acknowledge the talent of DiCaprio he is one of my favorite actors, who transcends into every role he plays.

Django Unchained is the only Tarantino that I never rewatched. It was amazing and I was _sick._ I couldn’t handle it. Even this short video has me on edge.

For him to be so uncomfortable playing a racist villain and saying a lot of racial slangs, he still played this character very well

As terrifying as this is, I think it's potentially more terrifying to realize the horrors seemingly average people are capable of when they dehumanize any group of peoples, regardless of the time period and group being dehumanized.

9:30 this scene honesty proves how incredible Leonardo is as an actor. He is truly a legendary actor

Never thought he was especially intimidating with how easily he was dispatched, of course the acting was incredible, Leo always is. But i just found that he was inept, not truly capable of causing any damage without an army of help. I almost felt the same way about Le Chiffre upon first watching Bond because he was about to be killed by angry criminals, but he was incredibly cunning and could handle his own even against Bond on an individual level. Even with the first viewing i was satisfied with him as a villain, ranking second, only behind Sean Bean's 006. But this guy is not cunning

I'm really going to miss Tarantino as a filmmaker. While I'm hoping that he will eventually break his word and not make his next film his last, as a fan of his work I really look forward to what this film will be. He has brought out some of the best performances in all the actors he works with. Also, i'm glad you cleared up the fact that he did not smear actual blood on Washington's face as some people have tried to claim.

D'Artagnan was killed by the dogs for running away not for under performing. Candie mentions his last performance was less than stellar, but it was the running away and Django antagonising Candie in front of his men/slaves that got D'Artagnan torn apart.

I love how he just barely contains how much of a psychopath he is. You’re just waiting for him to explode, you just don’t know when

Hans Landa was actually terrifying. Calvin was more like a loose cannon. He was too unhinged to be terrifying.

Calvin didn't give Brumhilda her scars that was from the Brittle Brothers. How are you dissecting a movie and getting that wrong?

Crazy performance especially considering he was bothered so much playing Candie he would apologize after shooting scenes to Jaime Foxx and Sam Jackson until they told him to stop.

"you must address him as Monsieur Candie.... Oh no, he doesn't speak French. " This showed how crazy this character is.

No other distinguished actor could have played Calvin Candie better than DiCaprio.

Im usually good at suspending disbelief or for serious movies not reading into too much detail but this is one of the few movies that have been ingrained into my mind. Leonardo's Calvin made me feel uncomfortable and it speaks volumes for him as an actor. Jamie Fox and Leo had fantastic performances but it's still hard now for me to watch it again. Fuckin Tarantino man