Django

Synopsis: A strange loner, Django, arrives in a sleepy town dragging a gun-filled coffin behind him. The townsfolk view him with suspicion, is he here to make a new home or does he have a more sinister agenda? Inevitably all hell breaks loose as Django takes bloody retribution on his enemies.

Sergio Corbucci's Django is not only a groundbreaking spaghetti Western but it is one of the finest westerns ever made. Strong words indeed but this landmark film was one of the most controversial and radically bold films made in any genre, its combination of brutal violence and beautifully-crafted imagery taking the film and the Italian western to a worldwide audience. Many understandably cite Sergio Leone and his Dollars trilogy as the benchmark but Django should also be regarded in high esteem.

Spawning over fifty spin-offs, the film was a huge international success although it took over ten years for its star to feature in an official sequel in Django Strikes Again. Django made Franco Nero a star; his rugged good looks and piercing blue eyes made him an icon of the Western, he along with Clint Eastwood, taking the genre out of the hands of an aging John Wayne and making it hip again. The performances are wonderful throughout, and if the spaghetti Western is often blighted by over-the-top histrionics and horrendous dubbing, here everything fits into place.

Modern day cinema audiences will witness the influence of Corbucci's cult classic, the scenes in Terminator 3 in which Arnie carries around a coffin loaded with heavy artillery being lifted straight from this. And although the bar of cinematic violence has been raised many times since, the film's finale as a shattered and bloodied Django battles his enemies with a mashed broken hand is still excruciating to watch.

A fantastic experience from beginning to end, Django is a perfect movie for those who want to immerse themselves in the wonderful world of spaghetti Westerns, everything that is glorious in them being delivered in bloody spades.

 

 

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