Cult Spaghetti Westerns

For anyone who has overdosed on schmaltzy Christmas fare or is simply just a connoisseur of classic Italian western flicks, Cult Films UK have a real treat in store: their SPAGHETTI WESTERN box set offers three cult spaghetti westerns fully restored on Blu-ray, together with a special contribution by Quentin Tarantino, plus three A5 cards with original poster images. The films are Django, Keoma and A Bullet for the General.

Let’s start with Disc 1 and one of the most ground-breaking and influential Spaghetti westerns of all time: DJANGO (1966) is directed and co-written by Sergio Corbucci and stars Franco Nero as the iconic drifter cum gunslinger who doesn’t talk much, instead he lets a seemingly never-ending hail of bullets do the talking for him… No wonder that DJANGO, here presented uncut and as the definite version, gained notoriety as one of the most violent westerns ever made while in the UK, it even was refused a certificate until 1993! Set on the border between Mexico and the US, the mysterious Django (Franco Nero) – sporting a Union uniform and dragging a mud-covered coffin behind him - appears out of nowhere. That is to say he is dragging said coffin along himself as he doesn’t seem to own a horse. Standing at a distance on a hill, he witnesses a bunch of Mexican bandits flogging Maria (Loredana Nusciak), a prostitute. Before Django can intervene, another bunch arrives, this time comprised of some henchmen belonging to Major Jackson (Eduardo Fajardo) – a racist ex-Confederate officer. Indeed, his men all wear red hoods, signifying their allegiance to the Ku Klux Klan. However, after having killed the Mexican bandits (not because they were bandits but because they were Mexican), Jackon’s ‘Red Shirts’ show no intention of saving Maria, instead they plan on killing her by crucifying the poor woman on a burning cross. This is the moment when Django moves closer and with the words “You don’t treat women like that’ shoots the henchmen dead. Offering Maria his protection, the pair ride into a town where the streets are nothing more than stretches of mud and the only inhabitants seem to live in the local saloon: Nathaniel (Angel Alvarez) and five prostitutes. Initially hostile towards the two ‘intruders’ (though it would appear that Maria has worked there before as a prostitute), Nathaniel eventually lets them stay after Django makes it clear he has no intentions of leaving. Nathaniel then explains that the muddy little ghost town happens to be in a so-called neutral zone and unfortunately, bang in the middle of a brutal conflict between General Jackson and his Klansmen while on the opposite side, General Hugo Rodriguez (José Bodalo) and his Mexican Revolutionaries have their own agenda. To make matters worse, Jackson regularly demands protection payment from Nathaniel.

The body count rises quickly and in the most violent manner imaginable as Jackson and Rodriguez seem embroiled in a constant bloodbath and the scenes in which Jackson’s hooded ‘Red Shirts’ ride into town are particularly unsettling. Eventually, we find out why Django has come all the way to this part of the world, namely to exact revenge on Major Jackson, who killed Django’s former lover Mercedes Zaro (presumably because she happened to be Mexican…). We also learn what’s hidden in our mysterious gunslinger’s coffin, namely a particularly mean Gatling gun and rest assured, Django makes full use of the weapon, especially when there is gold to be stolen from Jackson, stored in nearby Fort Charriba…
Franco Nero was only 23 when he took on the now iconic role (Corbucci originally wanted actor Mark Damon for the part) and thus Nero was made to look older by applying special make-up. The result is utterly believable and all the main actors ought to be credited with performances just as believable. Praise must also go to cinematographer Enzo Barboni and composer Luis Bacalov for the film’s memorable soundtrack.
As a special bonus, we are treated to the 80-min appreciation ‘Django & Django’ in which Spaghetti Western-fan Quentin Tarantino praises the genre in general and hails Corbucci’s film, which inspired Tarantino’s own 2012 tribute DJANGO UNCHAINED, in particular.

Disc 2 offers KEOMA (1976), directed by Enzo G. Castellari. Originally intended to be a follow-up to DJANGO, director Castellari decided otherwise and instead re-wrote the script on a daily basis throughout filming. The result doesn’t flow as smoothly as Django and at times, the pace feels interrupted by odd pauses in between chunks of dialogue. However, where it does succeed is in the re-casting of Franco Nero, this time as ex-Union soldier Keoma Shannon – part white and part Native American – whose character is almost even more stoical than his Django. Returning to his hometown after the Civil War, outcast Keoma is welcomed back into the family fold by his father William Shannon (William Berger) though the same can’t be said for his three half-brothers Butch (Orso Maria Guerrini), Lenny (Antonio Marsina) and Sam (John Loffredo). Making it crystal clear to him that he is doesn’t really belong here, Keoma is further aghast when he realises that his three half-brothers are in cahoots with a sadistic tyrant named Caldwell (Donald O’Brien) and his gang, who reign over the town with unparalleled brutality and intimidation. Together with dad William and his old black friend George (a superb Woody Strode), the trio decide to put a stop to the reign of terror though of course, no price for guessing that their plan is littered with all sorts of obstacles. In a subplot, the bitter Keoma displays his human side when, at the beginning of the film, he saves a pregnant woman named Liza Farrow (Olga Karlatos), who has fallen ill with plague (not the bubonic type) from Caldwell’s gang and leads her to safety in a nearby saloon (echoing the beginning of DJANGO). There are numerous flashback scenes in which we see Keoma as a child, including a chilling depiction of the massacre of an Indian village, with Keoma’s butchered mother dead on the ground. A clever touch is Gabriella Giacobbe’s character of ‘The Witch’ – an old crone who always appears to Keoma in visions whenever death is imminent.

Cinematographer Aiace Parolin came up with some effective camera angles including slow motion shots. Unfortunately (at least for this reviewer), the film is somewhat let down by the soundtrack (composed by Guido & Maurizio De Angelis) who drafted in two singers by the name of Sibyl Mostert and Cesare De Natale. Clearly, Sibyl aimed to sound like Buffy Sainte-Marie but only succeeded in sounding like a folk version of Florence Foster Jenkins, while Cesare’s intention of sounding like Leonard Cohen is thankfully more convincing. Either way, there’s way too much singing throughout the film – occasionally depicting parts of the plot. Perhaps it should be mentioned that the N-word is uttered on numerous occasions whenever Woody Strode appears. Different times, remember.

The jewel in the crown is A BULLET FOR THE GENERAL (1966), on Disc 3 – directed by Damiano Damiani and hailed as one of the greatest westerns among the so-called ‘Zapata genre’. Decidedly more political and more complex than the previous two films, the main plot centres around Bill Tate (Lou Castel) aka El Nino (The Kid), a young American mercenary who, during the Mexican Revolution, poses as a former army prisoner during a train ride ambushed by cocky guerrilla fighter and gun runner El Chucho alias Chuncho Munos (a terrific Gian Maria Volonté) though his real mission is to infiltrate Chucho’s gang. Among the many gang members are Chucho’s crazed half-brother El Santo (Klaus Kinski) – a priest who doesn’t shy away from violence if needed, Pepito (Guy Heron) and Adelita (Martine Beswick) – a female spitfire on horseback who is betrothed to Pepito. The film is also known under the title QUIEN SABE? (meaning ‘Who Knows?’) and that certainly applies to Chucho who, during the film’s first half, comes across like a leader of bandits who in turn is led by the Kid who seems to pull the strings entirely. Together, Kid Tate and Chucho’s gang conduct several heists, including the killing of countless opponents in order to get to their weapons. Chucho, who has offered the introvert Kid Tate his friendship, has no idea as to the Kid’s dastardly plan which is his actual mission, namely assassinating General Elias (Jaime Fernández) with his eyes on the reward: 100,000 pesos in gold paid by the Mexican Government. Until the penny drops, Chucho remains pretty oblivious as to Kid Tate’s real agenda and has no inkling that stealing precious weapons (even if it means massacring countless people) and selling them to Elias is part of Kid’s plan to get to the General. So convinced is Chucho of Kid’s sincere friendship that, out of loyalty, he even shoots one of his own gang members for attempting to kill Tate and nurses him back when he comes down with malaria. Alas, the table finally turns when Chucho finally realises that he has been manipulated by Kid Tate all along…

With its perfect casting (baby-faced Castel is particularly well suited for portraying ‘Kid Tate’) and all ‘round accomplished performances, especially Volonté), A BULLET FOR… is a triumph from beginning to end. Clever script, excellent cinematography by Antonio Secchi and a penetrating soundtrack by Luis Bacalov (with a little help from Ennio Morricone) make this a memorable thrill ride under the expertise direction of Damiani.
Both Disc 2 and Disc 3 offer additional and insightful Bonus Material.