DJANGO & DJANGO

 

The 2021 documentary DJANGO & DJANGO, which specifically focuses on the Westerns of Italian filmmaker Sergio Corbucci, is available for viewing on Netflix. Corbucci's work is not for all tastes, but his Euro Westerns--which are dark, ironic, quirky, and violent--certainly gets one's attention. This was directed and co-written by Luca Rea. 

DJANGO & DJANGO includes interviews with Quentin Tarantino, Ruggero Deodato (who worked as an assistant director several times with Corbucci), and Franco Nero, who of course was the original Django. 

It could be said that the real star of this film is Tarantino, since he's onscreen the majority of the time. The movie even starts out with Tarantino describing what could be called a "deleted scene" from his movie ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD, in which the character of Rick Dalton meets Corbucci. Tarantino has plenty to say about Corbucci's Euro Westerns, and even if you don't agree with all of his analysis and theories of the director's work, it certainly gives any hardcore film geek food for thought. Tarantino's excitable enthusiasm is welcome (I don't doubt that his unedited interview session lasted hours and hours). 

Spaghetti Western fans will love all the vintage behind the scenes footage shown here, including a few moments where Corbucci himself is speaking. Despite this footage, though, there's very little personal info about Corbucci, and his non-Western films (such as the comedies he made with Terence Hill and Bud Spencer) are barely touched upon. 

There's plenty of footage from almost all of Corbucci's major Westerns, such as DJANGO, THE GREAT SILENCE, and NAVAJO JOE. (There's no footage at all from THE HELLBENDERS--I assume this must have been due to a rights issue.)

This is definitely a film geared toward major Euro Western fans. If you know very little about the genre, or Sergio Corbucci, you will feel lost--there's almost no technical or historical info here. Most of the film is made up of Tarantino's musings on Corbucci's intent and style. As someone who does appreciate the Spaghetti Western genre, and owns several of Corbucci's films on Blu-ray, I enjoyed this documentary. 

Most of Sergio Corbucci's Western films are now available uncut in excellent home video editions, which enables viewers to judge them on their own merits. DJANGO & DJANGO is a fine tribute to the director, and it may give some an impetus to seek out his films. I do have to say that this documentary will work best with those who are drawn to Euro Westerns and Corbucci in particular.