Inside an attractive, sturdy sepia-brown cardboard box, a black, slightly thicker keepcase houses a triple-layered UHD100 disc on a center spindle while a BD50 disc of Ferdinando Baldi's Texas, Adios sits comfortably on the opposing panel, and the two are joined by six double-sided lobby cards and a flyer for Arrow Video's new streaming service. Sergio Corbucci's Djangorides into town courtesy of Arrow Video as a two-disc 4K Ultra HD Limited Edition box set.
On the other hand, an unforeseen revelation halfway through adds to the character's conflict and ratches the tension for a terrifically satisfying and well-earned conclusion. Admittedly, the story can feel somewhat melodramatic, particularly in Burt's younger brother tagging along yet lacking the mature skills for navigating through the world of the immorally corrupt and dangerously seedy underbelly of civilization. Of course, none of this is meant to disparage Baldi's work or the film, as it is nonetheless an entertaining tale about our hero seeking vengeance for his father's death decades earlier. Also, the violence depicted on screen is less graphic and explicit than usually seen in the Italian cinema of this period although the body count remains relatively high. By this, I mean Nero's Texas sheriff Burt Sullivan is more hero than antihero, motivated more by his strong sense of justice in the vein of John Wayne than a pursuit for personal monetary gain by any means necessary, as would later become the archetype made famous by Clint Eastwood. (Movie Rating: 4.5/5)Īlthough starring Franco Nero as the ruggedly tough, amoral and dangerously silent gunslinger familiar of Italian westerns, Ferdinando Baldi's Texas, Adios unfolds in the style of a traditional American western.
And although The Great Silence remains his pièce de résistance - and a dearly beloved personal favorite of yours truly - Djangowill and should forever be remembered alongside as primo gritty, ultra-violent Italian western drama. With its themes - or better yet, social critiques - about racism and religious fanaticism, Djangois a brilliant motion picture, both poetic and demythologizing. Only, Corbucci sets his tale in a place that feels even more despondent and godforsaken with an eye for detail and rich in the swagger, grandeur and spectacle commonly associated with Italian westerns. Adding more fuel to the intentional irony, it soon becomes apparent that much like Leone's Fistful of Dollars, the plot is a loose reimagining of Akira Kurosawa's Yojimbo, which itself was inspired by American westerns. history, the town is a desolate grimy place on the verge of becoming a ghost town. Contrary to the sterilized and romanticized idea of this unique period in U.S. Immediately, we know Django is the bringer of death.Įven the colorless, muddy town he visits is the antithesis of the American image of the West. The man is much more menacing than valiant as he drags a wooden coffin behind him across the desert plain, the ultimate reminder of one's mortality. Instead, we see the titular character played by the memorable Franco Nero in sharp contrast to everything we've come to know about the genre, epitomizing the traits of the antihero by wearing dark, dirty attire and walking on foot. Our would-be hero doesn't ride into town atop his trusted steed and save the locals from a violent posse of ruthless outlaws. Sergio Leone may be remembered as ushering in a new vision of the American West with his Dollars Trilogy, but I will forever argue that the opening sequence of Sergio Corbucci's Djangoactually signaled a departure from Hollywood conventions and formula.
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