He Said, She Said: Inglourious Basterds
By D. James Ruccio III
September 8, 2009
BoxOfficeProphets.com

Do you think his body will run around after I chop off his head?

He said...

Inglourious Basterds is the newest offering from critically acclaimed director Quentin Tarantino.

The films of Tarantino's improbable career pay homage to cinema, (specifically B-movies), movie history, and oddball characters. All of these aspects are on display in this film. Most of the directorial flourishes that one expects from a Tarantino film are sometimes impressively/sometime indulgently in evidence. It is a competent and sometimes successful entry in his filmography. Inglourious Basterds, from the very title, which is taken from an Italian Dirty Dozen knock-off of 1978, feels like the genre mash up style we've come to expect. It simultaneously and episodically tells the stories of a Jewish girl in occupied France, a band of American soldiers tasked with terrorizing the German army and the opening night of the Nazis' newest propaganda film.

The history of Inglourious Basterds is nearly as interesting as the film itself. It has been in process for many years. Tarantino has creating nearly a trilogy's worth of material with, by all accounts, three finished versions of the script. The production was put on hold so he could direct Kill Bill, and also because there was a slate of other World War II
themed movies being filmed at the time. By 2005 he was ready to pick up where he'd left off. It is his belief that the film is one of his bests. He is quoted as saying, "That will really be my Spaghetti Western but with World War II iconography. But the thing is, I won't be period specific about the movie...I can have rap, and I can do whatever I want."

Inglourious Basterds is sometimes less a whole movie than a series of languid scenes that off feel like short, mostly unconnected movies until later. Most of the time it works, but occasionally the two hour and 33 minute film feels just slightly too long. One of the most impressive talents Tarantino possesses, however, is the ability to start a scene and let it play out slowly, the tension slowly boiling. He then ends with a characteristic orgy of gore and viscera filled violence. There is an early scene featuring a Jewish Family being hidden in an isolated farmhouse that demonstrates Tarantino's ability. It happens again when American soldiers behind the German Lines pose as Nazi Officers only to be questioned by a suspicious German officer with a talent for linguistics. Both scenes methodically build the tension, showing the contest (and triumph) of will and then explode literally into a burst of ultra violence. The characters of all different types of importance are killed unexpectedly and with extreme brutality. He does both of these things several times with maximum effect and clearly has this down. he simply does it better than any one of his contemporaries. It mostly works here but occasionally the movie could have benefited from a few trimmed minutes in several places.

Once again, Tarantino presents interesting malcontents that brim with quirky danger and/or who live either willingly or unwillingly on the fringe of society. He clearly relished the casting sessions as he chose people with interesting faces, mannerisms or the ability to project some personal oddity. The standout of the cast, however, is Christopher
Waltz, who plays the fiendishly evil Col. Hanz Landa, "The Jew Hunter". Tasked with speaking seven languages in the film, Waltz dancers around the dialogue and scenes with roguish glee. Every time he appears the movie, which is enjoyable on its own, it becomes just a bit more fun.

Unfortunately, Brad Pitt who I respect for his ability (his work from 1994 and 2001 I consider very strong) doesn't come off as well. The much discussed accent is distracting and unnecessary. But to some extent it's irrelevant as his character shares more with Steven Seagal's character in Executive Decision than anything else.

The film stocks the scenes with small, memorable secondary characters like Hugo Stiglitz, (played by one of my favorite character actors, Til Schweiger), a former German soldier who killed 13 officers and has now switched sides to work with the Basterds. Eli Roth plays Sargent Danny Donowitz, "The Bear Jew", a baseball-wielding head smasher who is mythologized by the German Army as perhaps a righteously avenging golem. There is also a surprise cameo by Mike Myers as a very proper English Officer which seems oddly out of place...as though someone from one of the Austin Powers movies time traveled and landed in a Tarantino flick. There is also a representation of Hitler that is clearly inspired by previous incarnations done by Mel Brooks and Charlie Chaplin.

The movie is replete with film references both obvious and subtle. From character names to billboards and conversations that mention directors and films, the movie nearly overflows with winks and nods to the "Filmagentsia". At one point he has a character respond, "I'm French...we respect directors." It can be a bit much, nearly crossing over to Shyamalan-ian self indulgence, but it's often clever enough to work and would make an excellent drinking game...or technique in a movie review.

The movie also features a new element for a Tarantino film, a healthy dose of satire as the subject of the Nazi propaganda film is an ordinary German soldier starring in a movie about...himself as he goes to Hell and back. He also shows the Nazi crowd cheering wildly during the exploits of the film, which mostly shows the grizzly deaths of American GIs. It's odd, then, that he finishes the movie with the largest of wish fulfillments possible.

With the introduction of Reservoir Dogs in 1992, Tarantino brought a fresh appreciation of the 1970s and their films. He continued that work with 1994's Pulp Fiction and 1997's Jackie Brown. It wasn't until 2003's Kill Bill that he began to explore slightly different material for influences and prove that his ability lent itself to a prolonged career. Since that time, he has solidified a defined style which liberally but appreciatively takes from various genres and infuses his works with creative storytelling and compelling characters. His love of seldom known films and the dark corners they inhabit is obvious and it is with this in mind that he approaches most of his creations. Inglourious Basterds is another mostly amusing homage to some of those films. It continues his trend of films that should be seen by anyone who appreciates the offbeat parts of film history or simply wants to see something slightly different.