Il mercenario aka The Mercenary/A Professional Gun (1968)

[cigar joe]

Read the rumor that Hellbenders was going to be released by I think Anchor Bay or Blue Underground.

[bronsky]

To Stay away from List:

Django

Django was the biggest success of Corbucci. It inspired  really a  lot of other films. If you skip it you lose judgement. Django is the embittered hero whom we hadn't seen before.

The Mercenary is a favourite of mine, just like Companeros. The first can claim to be the original.

Read the rumor that Hellbenders was going to be released by I think Anchor Bay or Blue Underground.

Anchor Bay has it on its page. Release is supposed to be this fall.

[cigar joe]

Django is worth a look but its not worth buying at the git go, IMO, its essential to the Genre but it is not the film I would recommend to anyone trying to break/wean buddies, friends, relatives away from the master Leone.

Just as a hard core Leone fan who's willing to give other films a go and one who has been inpressed by Corbucci, I would say show them Companeros or The Mercenery, The Great Silence, once they are hooked go back and show them his earlier films.

[The Smoker]

Another thing ive been thinking about.
When Tarrantino wrote that ear cutting sequence into Reservoir Dogs back in 1992. I remember him name dropping Corbucci's Django as a inspiration. Can't remember the source exactly.
Name dropping like this does wonders for a forgotten so called 'cult' film.. well in the UK it did.
There was the first VHS release in the UK around 1995, previously it was banned out right.

[DJIMBO]

i think its important to stress here that however IMPORTANT as a film Django may be in the development of Spaghetti Westerns, it doesnt mean its any good. 

[cigar joe]

i think its important to stress here that however IMPORTANT as a film Django may be in the development of Spaghetti Westerns, it doesnt mean its any good.

exactly!

[Christopher]

A Professional Gun is the cut version of The Mercenary right? I was browsing the video store today and saw it on video and read about it. Is A Professional Gun worth watching or should I try to see The Mercenary instead?

[cigar joe]

The Mercenary, read the IMDb reviews they describe a lousy film transfer, get ahold of FrancoCleef on the SW in Amercica board (links page) he can burn an R1 version for you 

[The Smoker]

The Mercenary, read the IMDb reviews they describe a lousy film transfer, get ahold of FrancoCleef on the SW in Amercica board (links page) he can burn an R1 version for you 

See for your self.
The images i posted at the end of January (7th down on the 1st page) are from the Japanese MGM/Stingray Transfer is letterbox but it does look stunning.

[cigar joe]

You should do a few more 

[The Smoker]

No Problem. 
If you want screenshots for Spaghetti DVDs just ask, well of the one ive got. I can stick them to the relative disscussions on the forum. So people can get a feel for them.

[cigar joe]

great

[titoli]

How many similarities with DYS? Well many, I'd say. Useful to show all the difference between the master and the others.

[HEX]

THE MERCENARY IS CORBUCCIS BEST(NEXT  TO SILENCE)






DJANGO ROCKS!

[Poggle]

Without revealing any major plot points, what would you say makes Mercenary superior to Companeros?(Which I just saw today for the first time )?

Better acting, production design, cinematography, story, characters, etc.?