Broomhilda being punished nearly to the point of no return, the sense of empowerment between the “field n***er” vs. the “house n***er,” and the shots of slaves wearing metal rods over their heads like dogs back from the vet, reminds us of the pivotal character in this film. This is slavery, and there’s nothing funny about it. Even when Johan Hill and Don Johnson joke about wearing white sheets over their heads as Klansman, but can’t see out of the cut-outs for their eyes; this is still slavery. When Dr. Shultz offers a short but important commentary on the sheet wearing men, “Look at ’em run. Cowards tend to do that,” you go back to the pink elephant in the room: slavery.
