Django, Kill... If You Live, Shoot! Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		2.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.0

Django, Kill... If You Live, Shoot! Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov July 23, 2012

Giulio Questi's "Se sei vivo spara" a.k.a "Django Kill... If You Live, Shoot!" (1967) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Blue Underground. The supplemental feature on the disc include original theatrical trailer; video interview with co-writer and director Giulio Questi and stars Tomas Milian and Ray Lovelock; and a gallery of posters, lobby cards, VHS covers, DVD covers, and other promo materials. In English or Italian, with optional English, English SDH, French, and Spanish subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

The Stranger

Giulio Questi’s Django Kill… If You Live, Shoot! has a reputation of being an unusually violent and bizarre western with a clear political message. This reputation is indeed well deserved because excluding Lucio Fulci’s Four of the Apocalypse, a film with equally strange bursts of violence, Django Kill… If You Live, Shoot! is essentially in a league of its own.

Tomas Milian (Don't Torture a Duckling) is the Stranger, a man who leads a group of Mexican and American bandits to rob a stagecoach. After the robbery, the bandits gather in the desert to divide the gold they have stolen. There, the Americans execute the Mexicans and take their share of the gold. The Stranger, who is half-Indian, is also executed. Or so the Americans think. After they leave, two Indians discover the Stranger in a puddle of blood, still breathing, and heal his wounds.

Meanwhile, the Americans head to 'the Unhappy Place', a strange town where human life is very cheap. There they try to buy horses from Templer (Milo Quesada, Blind Man's Bluff), the owner of the local saloon, who quickly concludes that they have too much of it. Assisted by Hagerman (Francisco Sanz, Let Sleeping Corpses Lie), the owner of the local deli, and a bunch of the town’s bravest men, they begin killing the Americans. By the time the Stranger enters the town, the entire gang is wiped out. Only Oaks (Piero Lulli, Kill Baby Kill), its leader, is still alive, though seriously bleeding.

Soon after, another bandit, Sorrow (Roberto Camardiel, For a Few Dollars More), and his men enter the festivities. They kidnap Templer's son, Evan (Ray Lovelock, From Hell to Victory), hoping that his father would trade the gold for him.

Django Kill… If You Live, Shoot! mixes elements of classic western, horror, and exploitation in a film that is virtually impossible to classify as anything else but an exotic experiment. Large portions of it remind about the classic westerns of Sergio Leone, but elsewhere it feels like Questi was heavily influenced by the likes of Alejandro Jodorowsky and possibly Luis Bunuel. The bizarre flashbacks, in particular, have an unusually strong psychedelic vibes.

The main protagonist is also a strange character. He has very little in common with the classic heroes Milian typically plays in so many other European westerns. Though he undergoes a somewhat predictable character transformation, he remains a fascinating enigma – he is a quiet man consumed by anger who seems to enjoy watching men kill each other over the same gold he desired. Gold can corrupt, this is clear, but still, his emotions are very strange.

The film’s visual style is very interesting. There are numerous very beautiful long close-ups and some unusually elegant panoramic shots. Yet some of these elegant shots are from the most violent and disturbing sequences in the entire film. The editing by the great Franco Arcalli (Once Upon a Time in America, The Night Porter, Last Tango in Paris) is also terrific.

Django, Kill... If You Live, Shoot! Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.42:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Giulio Questi's Django Kill... If You Live, Shoot! arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Blue Underground.

The high-definition transfer often has a harsh digital look, which more than likely will distract viewers who project their films or use large screens to view them. As it has been the case with previous Blue Underground releases of cult Italian films, there is a decent dose of scanner noise, but this time there are also traces of noise reduction corrections. Needless to say, detail and image depth are compromised (see screencapture #16). During some of the wider panoramic shots the damaging effects of the above mentioned corrections are extremely easy to see (see screencapture #14). Some close-ups look decent, but overall the film does not have the organic look one would rightfully expect it to have. All of this is indeed quite unfortunate because it is clear that a new scan for Django Kill... If You Live, Shoot! was prepared. Colors are stable but rarely look natural. Lastly, there are no serious stability issues to report in this review. To sum it all up, if interested in owning this film, my advice to you is to find a way to rent it first and see whether the issues described above bother you. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your PS3 or SA regardless of your geographical location).

Django, Kill... If You Live, Shoot! Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 and Italian DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. For the record, Blue Underground have provided optional English SDH, English, French, and Spanish subtitles for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

The English lossless track has a good dynamic amplitude. A lot of the shootouts are surprisingly intense, while Ivan Vandor's trippy soundtrack definitely shines during key sequences. The dialog is clean and stable, but keep in mind that there is some post-dubbing done on this film (as there is on most European westerns that were filmed during the '60s, '70s, and even the '80s). There are no pops and cracks, strong background hiss, or audio distortions.

Django, Kill... If You Live, Shoot! Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - original trailer for Django, Kill... If You Live, Shoot!. (3 min, 1080p).

• Poster & Still Gallery - a collection of posters, lobby cards, VHS covers, DVD covers, and other promo materials. The content was compiled by Gregory Chick. (1080p).

• Interview - in this video interview, co-writer and director Giulio Questi and stars Tomas Milian and Ray Lovelock recall their work on Django, Kill... If You Live, Shoot! and discuss some of the film's unique qualities. In English and Italian, with imposed yellow English subtitles where necessary. (21 min, 480/60i).

Django, Kill... If You Live, Shoot! Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Django Kill... If You Live, Shoot! is a very unusual film which blends elements of classic western, horror, and exploitation. I was particularly impressed by Franco Delli Colli's cinematography and Franco Arcalli's editing, the latter in particular breaking all sorts of different genre standards. Unfortunately, the technical presentation is somewhat problematic. I would love to recommend this film as it is arguably the best one to come out of Blue Underground in a long time, but you should try to rent it first and see whether some of the issues described in our review bother you. RENT IT.