Inglourious Basterds

Welcome to another episode of The "D" List.

Today's review is Inglourious Basterds. Written and Directed by one of my personal all time favorite filmmakers. Quentin Tarantino.

I remember writing in my District 9 review that it was by far the best film of the summer because of it's originality. I added a "however" to that statement because Ingourious Basterds hadn't come out yet. Well I can honestly say that D9 still holds the title of best original film of the summer because there's nothing original about Ingourious Basterds.

But that's not a bad thing because if you are going to a Quentin Tarantino movie, that's exactly what you want to see.

I think it's safe to say that everyone that has read my reviews has seen a QT film. Having said that you all know that he is without a doubt a master at the homage. Tarantino makes no apologies for "lifting" elements from other films that hold a special place in his heart and injecting them into his own work.

From the super cool robbers and hitmen in Reservoir Dogs and Pulp fiction. To the blaxploitaion nature of Jackie Brown to the White haired kung fu master Pai Mei taken straight out of the Shaw Bros library in Kill Bill: Vol. 2. Tarantino set a trend in his films of never forgetting the genre's that made him a film fanatic.

That trend continues with Inglouious Basterds.

The story takes us to nazi-occupied France during WWII. A very small elite jewish american army unit called The Basterds are assigned to spread fear throughout the Third Reich by eliminating as many nazi's as they can. The more public and exaggerated the displays of violence toward the enemy, the better. The Basterds are led by Lt. Aldo Raine played by a steely Brad Pitt. He treks along France taking out as many nazi's as he and his team can find. But that's not the entire story.

This is what makes Ingourious Basterds so great. Tarantino like in some of his previous films has combined several different plot lines that eventually become the body of the film. There are no throw away scenes or characters that send the story to a grinding halt. You may find yourself asking "Where is this going?" as the movie plays but when the big picture is revealed you are more than satisfied. And more importantly it was worth the wait.

This is what makes QT such a great director. Among his many other talents which I will get into, he has this remarkable ability to tease you with a glimpse of where his story is going only to close the curtain and make you wait until he's ready to continue that path of the story. I can compare it to reading a good book. You get so worked up after reading an action packed chapter that you can't wait to get to the next one. In fact QT's films play like a book, hence the chapter headings before each change in the narrative.

Another talent that Tarantino has is an eye for casting. He seems to always find the exact right person to play the roles he creates. To my knowledge I can't think of anyone that was miscast in any of his films. With the exception of wanting Warren Beatty to play Bill in Kill Bill (thankfully he hurt his back which allowed David Carradine to step in and kick a$$ in those 2 amazing pics.) The closest that comes to mind is maybe and this is a BIG maybe. De Niro as Louis Gara in Jackie Brown. Obviously I'm stretching here but you get my point. QT knows the right people to play his parts.

This once again is a high point in Ingourious Basterds. Obviously Brad Pitt was the marquee name to help sell this film and don't get me wrong, I thought he was great. But this movie without a shadow of a doubt belongs to Christoph Waltz as Col. Hans Landa. He is the resident baddie in Basterds. His performance was so scary and evil that he inspires more hatred for him than for Hitler. That's saying something when you wish more harm on a nazi that isn't named Adolf Hitler.
Landa is in charge of hunting down any remaining jews that still reside in France but his title and job description is not what makes Landa so scary. It's how he carries out his missions.

He interrogates people suspecting of hiding jews with this calm and friendly demeanor despite the fact he has full knowledge that the people he's talking to are hiding the jews. He just plays them like a fiddle until he decides to end the games and gets down to business. His character was so cunning that it was nerve wrecking to watch him carry out his missions and watch him break down the people he was trying to get information from. There was a scene that sums up Landa's brilliance and superior mind. I promise that it isn't too spoiler heavy. I will do my best to omit some details. If you wish to move past this section feel free. I will bold the entire section so you will  know when it's safe to continue on after that.

It's the final act of the film and Landa sees someone he suspects of being a traitor and when he goes to question them he's told a story that he knows is a blatant lie. Instead of getting angry and just arresting the person he just breaks out into a hysterical laugh. Now to most of the audience it appeared that he was laughing at the lie that was told to him because it was a funny story that was meant to inspire a moment of levity. In reality he was laughing at the fact that the person felt that the story was clever enough to fool him. In Landa's mind his intelligence was insulted and he felt it was hysterical that someone would actually think that the lie he was told would pass for the truth. Just a brilliant example of an "I know something you don't know" type of moment.

Landa added an element of fear and tension in a film that was chock full of it. This was another talent of Tarantino's that was in full display in Inglourious Basterds. There were several scenes that kept you on the edge of your seat with anticipation for what you KNOW is coming. He just leaves you there begging for that moment but it never comes until you come down for a lull then BANG! your hit with the climax of the scene. QT continues to be a master of pacing. He will set you up and tip his hand at what you're going to see. There are no surprises. You know what's coming and yet you are glued to the screen because he keeps you hanging on until the last possible frame. Brilliant!

The final talent of Tarantino's that shines in Basterds is the script. I contend that QT is one of the BEST writers in Hollywood. He has a gift of phrasing words creating the perfect line of dialogue. His characters are not there to explain the movie to you in idiot proof language. Exposition is not a word in Tarantino's vocabulary when it comes to his script dialogue and I applaud that. He's not there to hold your hand. He's there to take you on a ride that is meant to entertain.

That was the good and believe me there is A LOT of good in Basterds. There was some bad however and it was....

The score.

This is where QT's love for genre films fails him. The music in Basterds was comprised from scores from some of his favorite spaghetti western films. Specifically the work of Ennio Morricone. He scored many of Sergio Leone's western films and it was that tone of music that just doesn't play well here. You can hear the western feel to the music and it just doesn't fit in a WWII nazi film. The film plays like a spaghetti western but it's not. The music is a major highlight in a Tarantino film and here the ball was dropped. Morricone was supposed to record original music for the film but a scheduling conflict put the kibosh on that so QT went to plan B. Sorry playa but plan B gets an F.

On the 5 star scale. Inglourious Basterds gets 4.5 stars and a BIG TIME "Worth Every Penny" recommendation.

The music kept this film from getting the full house 5 stars but don't fret. This is still an amazing film that deserves to be experienced. Tarantino has once again reclaimed his powerhouse form after the disappointing Grindhouse.

That's all for today.

Next up will be Gamer. Starring Gerard Butler. Written and Directed by Neveldine/Taylor A.K.A the guys that made Crank 1 & 2.

Until Next episode...."I'll Save You A Seat!"

"D"