Django Shoots First (1966)

A decent early Spaghetti Western that benefits from a good cast and direction with a decent storyline. UK R2 Cinema Club DVD.

Django (Glenn Saxson) is camping on a hillside when Ringo (José M. Martín), a bounty-killer arrives with the body of his latest victim. Django discovers that the corpse is that of his father and kills Ringo. He heads into Silver Creek to collect the bounty on the body and learns that his father actually owned most of the town along with a man named Kluster. Kluster tries to scare away Django, but the gunslinger is determined to stay and claim his portion of the town after discovering that his father's death was set-up. Django gets help from a mysterious stranger as well as some townsfolk, but Kluster does not give up easily and sends men to kill Django and his friends...

Although the from the synopsis it seems quite basic, Django Shoots First is a very well scripted film with good characters and none of the gratuitous gun-fights that plague many films in the genre. Unlike many Spaghetti Westerns, Django here is just a normal man - a better than average gun-slinger sure, but not the invincible avenging-angel he seems to be in some of the other stories - this helps to create more tension, as we get a character who really could get hurt or killed. The villian, Kluster, is a rounded character and avoids the 'pure evil' streak of many of his counterparts, while the two female 'love interests' are more than just two-dimensional characters. The film is paced normally for a Western and has some nice twists and turns, there are various fist and gun-fights included that are all plausibly written into the story. On the negative side the ending is rather drawn out for a cheap gag and there is a ridiculous bar-room brawl toward the end, complete with comical music, that rather ruins the mood. In a nod to the genre, the bounty hunter killed by Django is called Ringo - symbolic of the replacement of the Ringo films (popular in 1965) by the Django films.

The film is boosted by strong direction from experienced exploitation director Alberto De Martino, the action scenes are shot very well and he makes good use of the scope frame - this film would certainly look very poor if pan-and-scanned. There is some notable use of the zoom-lens in a few scenes, akin to Parolini's direction of the Sabata films. The sets and costumes all look strong, and good use is made of the Spanish locations that give this film a very traditional Western feel - in contrast to the mud and snow that featured in many of the later films. The stunt-work is generally subdued, but Django does some hopping and flying about, particularly in the final bar-fight sequence.

All text in this review written by Timothy Young - 1st July 2006.
Text from this review not to be used without authorization.

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