Django 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		0.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.5

Django 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman June 9, 2021

When is a Django film not “really” a Django film? Quite a bit, and maybe even most, of the time, according to a phenomenon that has already been mentioned on a number of previous “Spaghetti Western” Blu-ray releases, including The Complete Sartana and A Pistol for Ringo & The Return of Ringo: Two Films by Duccio Tessari, but which is gotten into even more overtly on some of the supplements included on this new release from Arrow. In one of the kind of strange ironies of international cinema, while Django never made any substantial inroads in the United States market (at least as a theatrical exhibition), when it was originally released and took off big time in Italy, and then later in West Germany, it created such a sensation that literally scores of “Django-ized” supposed sequels were produced, though none of them had original star Franco Nero, and kind of hilariously, many of them didn't even feature a character named Django. It was apparently felt that simply sticking “Django” either right into the title or at least into some of the marketing materials would more or less guarantee audiences showing up and buying (coffins full of?) tickets. As is also discussed in some of the supplements, both Django and A Fistful of Dollars might be vulnerable to another cheeky kind of question, namely, “When is an Akira Kurosawa film not “really” an Akira Kurosawa film?” As is mentioned in an interview included in this release as a supplement, both Sergio Leone and Sergio Corbucci evidently saw Yojimbo within just a few days of each other in the early sixties, and both then set about more or less adapting some of the basics of that property in their own ways. The first Django film and A Fistful of Dollars therefore both exhibit some undeniable similarities, but as is also discussed in some of the supplements, Django is considerably more hyperbolic in a number of its elements.

Reviews of the two films in this set can be accessed via the following links.

For technical aspects of and supplements included with this Arrow version of Django, please see below.

Blue Underground also released Django on Blu-ray several years ago. For a plot summary of the film as well as an assessment of the Blue Underground release, please see Martin Liebman's Django Blu-ray review. Marty's review is also a good resource for screenshot comparisons.

For the second film in this Arrow set, please see the Texas, Adios Blu-ray review.

Django 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: Screenshots are sourced from Arrow's previously released (and recalled) 1080 Blu-ray. This release does not include a 1080 disc of Django (and so there's no 2K score listed above), but Arrow has a standalone 1080 release scheduled for August 3, the same day they're releasing a standalone 4K UHD version of the film (without the bonus film).

Django is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of Arrow Video with a 2160p transfer in 1.66:1. Arrow's hefty insert booklet contains the following information on the transfers of both films in this set:

Django is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.66:1 with Italian and English mono audio.

Scanning and restoration work was completed at L'Immagine Ritrovata, Bologna. The original 35mm camera negative was scanned in 4K resolution on a pin-registered Arriscan. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, picture instability and other instances of film wear were repaired or removed. This restoration was completed in 4K resolution.

The film was graded in 4K HDR/Dolby Vision and SDR at Silver Salt Restoration, London.

The mono Italian and English language tracks were remastered from the optical sound negatives. The audio synch will appear slightly loose against the picture, due to the fact that the dialogue was recorded entirely in post-production, as per the production standards of the period.

All original materials used in this restoration were accessed from Surf Film.

Texas, Adios is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1 with Italian and English mono audio.

Scanning and restoration work was completed at L'Immagine Ritrovata, Bologna. The original two-perf Techniscope 35mm camera negative was scanned in 2K resolution on a pin- registered Arriscan with a wet gate. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, picture instability and other instances of film wear were repaired or removed.

The film was graded on Digital Vision's Nucoda Film Master at R3Store Studios, London.

The mono Italian and English language tracks were remastered from the optical sound negatives. The audio synch will appear slightly loose against the picture, due to the fact that the dialogue was recorded entirely in post-production, as per the production standards of the period.

All original materials used in this restoration were accessed from Surf Film.

Since Arrow is continuing its somewhat perplexing strategy of releasing 4K UHD discs without an accompanying 1080 version of the same film, my comments are relying on a comparison to Arrow's previously released 1080 version, which I'm assuming is going to be the same as the one scheduled to be released in August. This is a largely gorgeous looking restoration, with a nicely burnished palette that still manages to pop vividly (and in my opinion more naturally than the Blue Underground version), especially in terms of when some of its trademark reds arrive on screen, which pop incredibly well in this version. Arrow's recalled 1080 version had a slight tendency to tip toward oranges with regard to red tones, and Dolby Vision arguably lessens that aspect while preserving a really rich, at times almost crimson, look. While the Blue Underground release offered an almost pixellated grain field at times, this 4K upgrade improves things dramatically, but my hunch is if there are any complaints about this version, it may in fact be centered on so-called "grain management". There is an absolutely fascinating anomaly just as the film opens, which fans will know is not just optically printed but also optically zoomed, and the result is it looks like Franco Nero is slogging through a swamp of grain, a swamp which visibly bends and undulates around him as he moves. Things improve measurably once the film cuts away from the credits sequence and gets into the actual narrative, but there are still some moments of very chunky, often yellow tinged, grain, and even some of the more tightly resolved grain can look a little noisy against bright skies (though not always - the finale of the film offers a relatively subtle looking grainfield). Detail levels are routinely excellent, helped along by Corbucci's tendency to grant his performers lots of close-ups (sometimes courtesy of extreme zooms).

Django 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are DTS-HD Master Audio Mono tracks available in either English or Italian. The Italian track sounded slightly boxier at times to my ears, especially with regard to score and effects, but otherwise, aside from voice acting performances, the tracks are extremely similar if not identical in mix levels. As is discussed in some of the supplements, Django has a certain "Eastwood-ian" ambience in the English language track, with a much more forceful, darker tone in the Italian. There are similar differences in other voices, and fans may well want to check both tracks out. Dialogue, score and effects are all rendered faithfully.

Django 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary with Stephen Prince


• Django Never Dies (1080p; 26:07) is an engaging newly done interview with Franco Nero, who covers a lot of his career aside from this particular film.


• Cannibal of the Wild West (1080p; 25:48) is a new interview with Assistant Director Ruggero Deodato.


• Sergio, My Husband (1080p; 27:48) is a sweet reminiscence of Sergio Corbucci by his widow Nori.


• That's My Life, Part 1 (1080p; 10:16) is being billed as an "unseen archival interview" with co-writer Franco Rossetti.


• A Rock 'n' Roll Script Writer (1080p; 11:03) is another archival interview with another co-writer, Piero Vivarelli.


• A Punch in the Face (1080p; 18:43) is an archival interview with stuntman and actor Gilberto Galimberti.


• Discovering Django (1080p; 23:33) is a newly done "appreciation" by Austin Fisher, who gets into the history of the "franchise", including its many supposed sequels.


• An Introduction to Django by Alex Cox (1080i; 12:04) is an archival piece with the director also giving some history. He slightly misspeaks when he mentions Techniscope, stating that this film was shot in Academy Ratio.


• Original Trailers

  Italian Trailer (1080p; 2:58)

  International Trailer (1080p; 2:58)

• Image Galleries are advertised as coming from the Mike Siegel archive:

  Stills (1080p)

  Posters (1080p)

  Lobby Cards (1080p)

  Press (1080p)

  Home Video (1080p)

Additionally, this release is packaged very handsomely, with an almost pamphlet sized insert booklet containing a number of interesting essays and technical information. Six double sided collector's postcards and a double sided fold out poster round out the non disc swag.

Django 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

It's not hard to see why Django created such an instant sensation when it was released, even if took a while for that sensation to reach the shores of the United States. The story is stuffed full of outré touches and Corbucci provides a really kinetic style that helps propel things in a consistently exciting way. Arrow's new release sports great technical merits and excellent supplements. Highly recommended.