|
Directed by: Sergio Corbucci Starring: Franco Nero A lot of westerns start with the same basic premise: a mysterious stranger shows up in town during times of hardship, and the people look to him for aid against whatever it is that’s plaguing them. Django begins in a similar fashion, but there’s always something tugging at the back of your mind, letting you know this isn’t quite your ordinary western. Maybe it’s because the opening gunfight clearly does away with the limitations of physics and human ability, or maybe it’s because Django drags a wooden coffin over his shoulder wherever he goes. Whatever it is, it isn’t long before your suspicions are justified, as the film turns from a somewhat conventional film into a ballistic comic book of a western in a short matter of time. Django, while something of an obscure cult film, has had a pretty big influence of pop culture in the last few decades. Even if you’ve never heard of the movie before, you will probably recognize things in it that have been repeated in other movies and video games since it was made. The story follows Django as he arrives in town, though his motives are unknown at first. He quickly makes a name for himself as he puts down a small group of thugs, which calls down the wrath of Major Jackson, a tyrant who rules the region with an iron fist. After each encounter, the stakes get higher and higher, with the violence and carnage of the gunfights building upon the excesses of each previous battle. Django often feels more like a collection of vignettes rather than a complete story. Each sequence of the film operates somewhat on its own, with characters appearing and disappearing between different chapters and overlapping plot points are left hanging in the air for some time. However, by the end, everything comes together, even if there is some dues ex machine at work. The look of the film is different than a lot of other spaghetti westerns. While other films of the genre use arid deserts and badlands as their setting, Django is filled with muddy streets and quicksand, making the terrain as hostile as the villains. The film is also considerable more colorful than other spaghetti westerns, with a vibrant saloon acting as one of the primary sets, and an army of thugs wearing red masks, echoing the KKK, providing a lot of Django’s opponents. Corbucci’s directing style is pretty different that Leone’s, especially in the use of music, which is far less prevalent here than Leone’s famous westerns. Django himself is a pretty simple variation of the “Man with no Name” character. He is unknown to anyone when he first arrives, but you can count on everyone remembering him by the time the film is through. Pieces of his past are slowly revealed throughout the film, building toward the eventual showdown at the end. Django isn’t without his memorable qualities though, such as the mysterious coffin that accompanies him everywhere, and his personality is more animated than many of Eastwood’s characters, though he’s till pretty subdued in comparison to other character archetypes of the genre. His sense of right and wrong is fittingly amoral, and he will often stand as a pedestrian as things happen to other characters, only acting when it’s in his best interest. The action in Django is so over-the-top and violent it takes on a life of its own. It’s almost as if the filmmakers were challenging themselves to constantly one-up each battle with something bigger and more outrageous. This makes for some pretty entertaining gunfights, many of which are completely unlike anything else seen in a western. While not especially gory compared to modern films, there are some pretty horrifying acts of violence throughout the film. The famous ear-slicing scene from Reservoir Dogs is actually a reference to this film. Blue Underground must be given special credit for their new DVD release of this film. The video quality is outstanding for a film of this age, and they found the original negative for the transfer, something you only typically only expect from Criterion. They also offer the original soundtrack of the film, in addition to the English dub available on most other releases, a nice bonus. There aren’t many special features, but the beautiful presentation of the film makes up for that. This is an underappreciated classic of the western genre. Leone’s work overshadows most other spaghetti westerns, but this is one that warrants a look even for only minor fans of westerns. It’s more of a comic-book style action film than a sprawling epic like The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, but fans of Leone’s work will probably enjoy this as well. Highly Recommended. RATING: 4.0 PROS: original, interesting character, great action CONS: somewhat broken structure, short ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0060315/
|
#
?
Jul 29, 2004 18:09
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 20, 2024 00:12 |
|