Django (1966)From the opening bars of Luis Bacalov’s score, with Rocky Robert’s heroic vocal, as a lone figure drags a coffin through a muddy, apocalyptic landscape, this watershed 1966 spaghetti western from Sergio Corbucci set a benchmark for this stylish, violent, political and often sadistic genre. Django is the strange drifter who trudges into a bleak ghost town controlled by Mexican revolutionaries and hooded ex-Confederate soldiers. You discover what Django stores in his coffin once he pits one side against the other in a violent dispute involving ear-slicing, beatings, massacres and a fistful of bullets.
This is far from a mindless, violent western though. It tackles racism and other political and social themes – all of which are far more prevalent in the Italian language version than the dubbed English VHS copy I owned. If you’re looking for a spaghetti feast after the films of maestro Sergio Leone and Sergio Sollima then look no further than Django.
Victoria Millington
Press and PR Co-ordinator