Django Blu-ray Review
The Franco Nero cult film makes its way to Blu-ray in the wake of the Tarantino feature hitting theatres. Django is you typically lone wanderer in a post North/south conflict. A soft spot for helping out the ladies, Django saunters into town dragging a large coffin with him – with the full intent of using its contents against the two gangs in the area who are running amok.
It’s familiar to anyone who has seen the Leone films, but Django was made around the same time and was more of a trend setter for the lower budget westerns that were made back in this era (and spurred a generous number of unofficial sequels).
What sets Django apart are a few things: The contents of the coffin, Nero’s performance and the ultra-violence on display. One violent act from one gang member to an adversary shines a light brightly on where Tarantino got some of his “influence” from. It is a surprisingly violent film and stands up very well against other classics.
The Blu-ray come equipped with a decent chat from British film director Alex Cox, a fan of the film, who puts it into context (best viewed after the film). There is also an interview with star Nero. Beyond that there isn’t a heck of a lot. The transfer itself isn’t very good. The opening titles alone present so really obvious specks of dirt.
The film does look better than perhaps any VHS counterpart that has been released – as stories tell of almost unwatchable prints. Thankfully this has been given a bit of a wipe, but there is little in the way of restoration.
Fingers may point at “Cash in” for this release, but to be honest the film has been missing from print for so long that it being here makes it worthy of collection.
Steven Hurst