Tuesday, November 29, 2011

W Django

I don't have much to add to what others have already written about this movie.  It is a B Grade Spaghetti Western in the Django franchise (which means is has the name Django in the title).
Directed by Edoardo Mulargia in 1971 (some suggest it was 1972 but those sources are not trust worthy), there is very little original in the film.

I wholly agree with Stanton at The Spaghetti West when he says, that in this film"there are lurking a few nice ideas."  The ending of the movie is just brilliant.  It almost looks as if Mulargia had a great idea for a final scene and the rest of the film was just an excuse to shoot the ending.  The directing and the camera work in the last scene was really good.  And, no, I am not at all sure if this was a result of the rest of the movie being so "B" grade.

The music soundtrack goes from fantastic Spaghetti West fare to "oh God, make it stop!"

The DVD I watched was the DAGORED release from 2005.  Amazon says its the full 90 mins, but the DVD only plays for 80 mins.  Reviews on Amazon always complain about this, but I cannot see how adding 10 mins. back into this movie would change anything other than making purists happy. 

Interestingly, this was the first Spaghetti Western I have watched in Italian with subtitles.  Its an interesting experience.  When dubbed in English, you can multi task and tune out the boring bits, but this is not possible when you have to read the dialog (dialog here being of relative value). 

Finally, the DAGORED version is from a very abused print.  Me?  I like that part with pops, scratches and color loss; like listening to old vinyl records.  Reviewers on Amazon LOVE to whine about that a great deal (like children).

For sure this is worth watching if you can rent it off Netflix, but only buy it if you are a collector. 

Check out the review on FistFullofPasta.com and IMDB.com.

Louis Stone-Collonge
stonecollonge@gmail.com

Monday, November 28, 2011

Ready, Steady, Go: Silicon Valley Spaghetti Western Film Appreciation Society

Yes, its finally here!!
The Silicon Valley Spaghetti Western Film Appreciation Society is now a reality!

I know, you are all very excited!!

Here are the details as we know them so far:
  • We will hold one event per month where we will eat pizza (or other food), watch films (1 to 2) and talk about the films.
  • We will host a blog (you are reading it now) and a Facebook page for other to share cool stuff about this amazing collection of films.
  • There will be dues (to cover the cost of food and drinks).  $5 per month or $50 per year.
  • We are looking for sponsors ($300 per year for Gold Sponsors and $150 per year for Silver Sponsors).  We will say lots of nice things about our sponsors!
Our first event is scheduled for January 19, 2012.  Details to follow.  Seating will be limited so contact Louis for details and to be added to the invite list: stonecollonge@gmail.com.

Its going to be a GREAT year!!

Louis Stone-Collonge
stonecollonge@gmail.com