Quentin Tarantino's latest film, Django Unchained, has fans at the box office and in Hollywood.
The controversial antebellum epic, dubbed a "postmodern slave narrative Western" by prominent intellectual Henry Louis Gates, Jr., has raised a rousing debate over its use of the N-word. Some call it excessive (the word is said over 100 times in the film) while others defend it for its authenticity to the era. 
Gates, a Harvard professor who is a regular fixture on the talk show circuit and has written extensively about race relations in America, posted an interview with Tarantino to his website in support of the film. Writer and MSNBC host Touré tweeted, “I loved Django. Much to say about it: complex film and one of the year’s best.” 
Star Jones, who earlier this year led a protest against the violence on Basketball Wives, didn't seem fazed by the brutal and blood-soaked film. She tweeted, “Wow #DJANGOUNCHAINED is truly NEXT LEVEL. Brilliantly written, acted and directed . . . across the board.” 
Meanwhile, Happy Endings star Damon Wayans, Jr. joked, “It was good. But it was racist. AND I had to sit in the back of the theater. #DoubleRacist.”
Not everyone has good things to say about the film. Spike Lee vowed that he would boycott the film because he felt it was "disrespectful to my ancestors." He seems to be in the minority among his peers, with most celebrities and critics heaping praise on the likely Oscar contender. 
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(Photo: Columbia Pictures)