When Movies Attack
By The Vern of The Vern’s Videovangaurd
SPOILERS****** Be warned I will be discussing both movies and may give away certain plot elements.
If you have any suggestions please leave them in the comments, and I will write an article based on that first choice in two weeks.
Hello Readers,
Have you ever watched a movie and thought to yourself. ”Wow. This story seems very familiar. Have I seen this before?”
When one movie becomes a huge hit other studios try to cash in on all the excitement by releasing titles that are very similar. It becomes more difficult with certain types of genres especially horror and fantasy. There is only so much original stories you can do before it all starts repeating itself.
When Movies Attack doesn’t really want to tell you what movie is better. Just give you a bit more insight into titles you may or may not have heard of before. Although that won’t be the case for this new one. Everyone has heard of these two flicks. That’s right I’m giving you folks..
Django Unchained Vs. Blazing Saddles
The Challengers
Django Unchained
Set in 1858 in America’s south before the civil war. A slave named Django (Jamie Foxx) is being shipped from one plantation to another when his group comes across a bounty hunter named Dr. Schultz (Christoph Waltz). After he frees Django from his captors, they both go into the bounty hunting business and later decide to help free Django’s wife from Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio).
Blazing Saddles
In order for the construction of a new railroad to be completed, it must go through the town of Rock Ridge. State Attorney General, Hedly Lemar (Harvey Korman), wants the residents out of there so he dispatches some of his thugs to kill their sheriff and make the town unlivable. The town folk demand a new sheriff is brought in so Hedly convinces the slow minded Governor (Mel Brooks) to appoint a black man named Bart (Cleavon Little) to be the one in charge. This way the residents will either move or they will lynch him making it that much easier to finish the construction.
Similarities
- Both movies are set in the south before the 1900′s
- Both movies have a strong black lead actor and a comedic white supporting actor. Jamie Foxx and Christoph Waltz in Django Unchained. Cleavon Little and Gene Wilder in Blazing Saddles.
- Both movies have scenes where characters con their way out of trouble. Bart holding himself hostage to get out of being lynched in Blazing Saddles. Dr. Schultz showing a fake piece of paper to get off from being killed after he shoots most of the authorities in Django Unchained.
- They each show racists to be bumbling idiots. The Klu Klux Klan complaining about the eye holes in their hoods in Django Unchained. The white owners who are ignorant their black workers only know songs by Cole Porter in Blazing Saddles.
- Both movies were considered by many to be racist when they were first released.
- Both movies are rated R.
Differences
- Blazing Saddles stays as a comedy throughout the duration. Django Unchained has its mixture of moments that are comedic, dramatic, and suspenseful.
- Bart discovers his sidekick Jim (Gene Wilder) in Blazing Saddles. In Django Unchained, it’s Dr Schultz who finds Django.
- The plots of each movie are completely different.
- Blazing Saddles breaks the fourth wall at the end of the movie in hilarious fashion. Django Unchained however does not, but a lot of skulls are left bloody.
Closing thoughts.
There is no winner here because both movies are great and deserve to be seen. Blazing Saddles is a comedy classic and remains relevant even though it’s over thirty years old. Quentin Tarantino’s movies have gone on to become classics and I have no doubt that this one will too.
There has been a lot of debate about the word “nigger” in pop culture. Some believe that the word should be removed from all books and films and be replaced with another one instead. Others including myself believe that it’s all about context in which the word is used. If you are writing a book about slavery or about civil rights and you feature racist characters. They are not going to be politically correct. They are going to spew the most hateful speech imaginable. Removing that word makes the action of a hateful person have less impact. Having these fictional characters use the word is not going to give white people the free use to use it openly…trust me. It would be the same as using the word fuck all the time. That word is highly offensive and should not be used by anyone, blacks or whites. Same thing can be said for the N word as well.
