Django et Sartana

Django and Sartana team up to fight back against two gangs of outlaws who are terrorising a lawless town.

The unique angle of this Italian western is in combining both the Django and Sartana characters together, both of whom had their own series of spaghetti westerns. Although it does have to be said that this distinctive aspect has to be set against the fact that both protagonists only resemble these characters in name and act decidedly differently than usual. Truthfully, it seems obvious that these names were only applied to the characters as an after-thought. Quite honestly, this is a very clichéd and derivative affair with stock characters such as an enigmatic bounty hunter and amoral villains aplenty. But despite all this, I found it overall to be slightly better than average for this kind of thing. It didn't descend into tedium too often and its sparse running time seemed like good manners on the part of the film-makers. So, while any seasoned fan of this kind of thing is highly unlikely to find anything new here, I still think it entertains more effectively than many others in the sub-genre.

The word 'Django' is really irrelevant in many westerns, as most have nothing to do with the original Franco Nero film "Django". It's NOT the same character and producers tossed the word into titles hoping to lure unsuspecting folks to the theaters looking for a Django film. Now, it's even more confusing with the recent release of the Quentin Tarantino film "Django Unchained"--yet another film that really is not about Django! As for "Django Meets Sartana", it's yet another non-Django film! Confusing, huh?!

The film begins with a new sheriff arriving in a town that hasn't seen the law in years. Not surprisingly, the place is overrun by bandits and Jack Ronson (aka 'Sartana'; Fabio Testi) has his hands full. When a bounty hunter named Django (Jack Betts) arrives soon after, Ronson has a new ally to help him get rid of the thugs.

So is this Django film worth seeing? Well, probably not unless you absolutely adore Italian westerns which are poorly written. The fight between Sartana and Django makes no sense at all--nor does their dialog in this scene. Plus, with the big shootout with the final group of baddies, one of the men has a clear shot at the Sheriff--but runs up some stairs in order to give the guy a chance to shoot him! The film also seems to have little in the way of unique plot--just one killing after another after another. Sure, there are some decent moments, but the film itself has little to differentiate it from several hundred other Italian westerns. Well, that isn't 100% true--it IS the only western I've ever seen where the Sheriff and the leader of the baddies arm wrestle to show who's the toughest hombre!!

By the way, although Jack Betts may not be a name you recognize, this handsome actor later became quite famous in soap operas. The reason you might not recognize him as the same guy is that in "Django Meets Sartana", he had brown hair--not his signature silver hair. Also, note the one battle where it's six against Django. Django's gun CLEARLY shoots more than six shots without reloading (he shoots one guy, the boss, twice)!! Not only is he cool, but he apparently has the ability to defy physics!!

Why I did not adore the original "Django", it's sure a lot better than this tripe. Not one of Italy's finer moments in the film world.

Fabio Testi takes a job as the new sheriff in a lawless town besieged by two ruthless gangs. Meanwhile, tough mystery man Hunt Powers also arrives to take care of some unfinished business. Considering the title of the film, you can pretty much guess who these two strangers turn out to be!

A derivative, so-so spaghetti western, One Damned Day At Dawn...Django Meets Sartana! has good atmosphere, production values, and two decent actors in the title roles, just not a very good script.

As in all three films I've seen from director Miles Deem, it's just too rushed and sloppy for it's own good, though not as bad as the other two.

I would recommend this only for people who have already seen everything else.

The small desert town called Black City is besieged by a brutal band of bandits led by the villain Bud Willer (Dean Stratford) and ruthless Mexican called Paco Sanchez (Benito Pacifico). The gang holds up the Tombstone bank and flees with his loot . Earnest Jack Ronson/Sartana (Fabio Testi) arrives in town to establish law and order . Mysterious bounty hunter named Django (Jack Betts or Hunt Powers) helps Sartana out. They also help Peter's Widow (Simonetta Vitelli or Blondell , Demofilo Fidani's daughter and starred several films of his father) who was murdered by a gang of vicious outlaws . As astute Django and an inexperienced Sheriff join forces to terminate a reign of terror carried out by a brutal band of criminals . But shrewd bounty hunter Django imprisons Sartana and after that , mysterious Django faces off a duel against the crazed Bud and then the Mexican Sanchez seeks vendetta . Stubborn and cunning Django along with saintly roving gunslinger Sartana take on Sanchez .

This below-average Ravioli Western packs thrills , action , brawls , crossfire and drags at times , balancing in ups and downs . The movie has the typical Spaghetti characters , as the violent facing , greedy antiheroes, bloody and spectacular showdowns, quick zooms , extreme baddies but being wretchedly directed . Here unite forces two mysterious heroes from Spaghetti Western : Sartana and Django , their history is the following : The first movie on Sartana as an avenger hero was by Frank Kramer (Gianfranco Parolini) interpreted by John Garco or Gianni Garco or Gary Hudson , besides it was starred by Klaus Kinski and William Berger . As always , the mythic personage appears elegant and dressed in black and with a killer look . After being continued by Alfonso Balcazar ¨Sartana non perdona or Sonora¨with Jorge Martin and Gilbert Roland . Miles Deem directed two Sartanas which are considered awful . Anthony Ascott (Giuliano Carmineo) realized several movies with George Hilton who replaces to Garco . Hilton plays more natural and roguish than Garco who was cold and peculiar . Garco starred various Sartanas with Carmineo as ¨¨Sartana the gravedigger'(69) , ¨Light the fuse Sartana is coming¨(71), among others.

After successful original ¨Django¨ by Sergio Corbucci with Franco Nero , it was followed by several imitations , rip offs and cheesy copies , such as : ¨Pochi dollar per Django¨ or ¨Alambradas De Violencia¨ (1966) by Leon Klimowsky starred by Anthony Steffen , Gloria Osuna , Frank Wolff ; ¨El Mio Nome e Django¨ (1969) by Ferdinando Baldi with Terence Hill , Horst Frank , George Eastman ; ¨Django Le Bastard¨(1969) by Sergio Garrone with Anthony Steffen , Paolo Gozlino ; ¨¨Django defies Sartana¨(1969) by Pasquale Squitieri with George Ardisson and Tony Kendall ; ¨Ein Pressen Fur Django¨ or ¨Barro en Ojos¨(1971) by Edoardo Mulargia with Anthony Steffen ; and the official sequel titled ¨Il Grande Ritorno¨(1987) by Nello Rossati with Franco Nero , Christopher Connolly and Donald Pleasence .

The picture was lousily directed by Demofilo Fidani or Miles Deem , considered to be the "Ed Wood of Spaghetti Western" and husband of Mila Vitelli Valenza ,a professional costume designer and father of actress Simonetta Vitelli , both of whom worked in various films of Demofilo . Fidani directed all kind of genres in low budget and exploitation pictures . He eventually had more pseudonyms than any working director in the world , similarly to Bruno Mattei . He followed shooting these taboo-breaking films with excursions into porno film , adventure , as ¨Karzan, Jungle Lord" and specially , Spaghetti as ¨Django and Sartana's Showdown in the West" , ¨Giù la Testa¨, "Sartana, the Invincible Gunman" , ¨El Sartana... l'Ombre Ta Mort¨, among others .

As with most of the follow-ups to DJANGO this bears all the signs of having been tampered with in post-production in order to accommodate the most tenuous of links to that successful series. In this case, however, the makers have decided to double their money, or hedge their bets, depending on which way you look at it, by attempting to cash in on not one but two series. Not having seen any Sartana movies I cannot comment on how well this has been accomplished but in the case of Django I have to say it bears little resemblance to Fulci's DJANGO THE RUNNER let alone Corbucci's original. I spent most of the film under the impression that the man in black would turn out to be Sartana but in fact he was Django and the most spurious of reasons was given for making Sheriff Ronson that Sartana character.

That aside what was the film like in itself? Well there was almost nothing about it to mark it in any way unusual. All the customary genre cliches were in place, with a few added touches to put it down as a shoddy spaghetti western: leering close ups, sweaty villains, sporadic violence, rudimentary characterisation, and so on. Unfortunately there was none of the sub-genre's visual flair to take your mind off the banality of the plot.