We all remember sitting in History class at some point learning about World War II. Most of us yawned and asked questions like, "Who cares?", and "Why do we have to know this at 7:30 in the morning?" But we made it through with knowledge of how World War II came to pass. And we all know, surely, how Hitler died and subsequently how The War was ended. OR DO WE.....
Quentin Tarantino's reimagining of Nazi occupied France during World War II in Inglourious Basterds is by far the best in recent years. It is also, by far, furthest from the truths that history has taught us. But it is wildly entertaining. Basterds is laced with satire, violence, humor, gore, and impecable dialogue a la Tarantino. Yes, he's a great director but he's a writer first and foremost. His talent for character creation and interaction through the spoken word leaps at you in every scene. And the cast chosen to relay his pen was simply put...perfect. Basterds is a summer must see. It's Kill Bill meets World War II. It's the greatness and weirdness of Pulp Fiction meets Adolph Hitler. It's fantastic!
Basterds begins with a punch to the heart as you meet a seemingly unassuming French farmer named LaPadite. It is here that we meet Col. Hans Landa (Christoph Waltz) known to the masses as "The Jew Hunter." Landa is a German officer who fancies himself a world class detective sent by the Furher himself to hunt down and kill or capture every last Jew in France. He arrives at LaPadite's farm on rumors that he is hiding a family of Jews under his home. Waltz masters this character with impecable timing and a larger than life sadistic portrayal that comes off at times cruel but mostly over the top and humorous in the most twisted yet delightful way. Waltz won the Best Actor award at Cannes and should be a shoe in for a Best Supporting Oscar nod. Quite frankly he is the glue that holds the storylines of all of the characters together. You know Tarantino...the stories all may be different but there is always a central theme or character that intersplices them all. In Basterds it is most certainly Christoph Waltz. This glue is what brings us back to LaPadite's farm. Huddled under the wood floors of his meager cabin hides the family of little Shosanna. Col. Landa's boots slam loudly on the floor above as the family awaits their impending murder. Curiously, Waltz interrogates LaPadite with an eery air of politeness and a very sadistic dash of friendly. But you know he's a killer...The Jew Hunter will not show compassion. Which brings us to Shosanna.
Under a hail of gunfire ripping through the wooden planks of LaPadite's floor, little Shosanna finds her way out and covered in mud and blood makes her way to the safety of the nearby forrest. All the while our Col. is watching, laughing, and yelling at her to run faster. He smiles as he points his gun at her and you think it's over...but Tarantino has other plans. The Jew Hunter lets this one live; only to run into her as an adult. Again...it's the glue that Waltz seems to possess throughout the film.
We next meet the film's namesake...the Inglourious Basterds themselves lead by our favorite underrated actor, Brad Pitt.
Pitt brings the goods and the laughs as Lt. Aldo Raine, a straight shootin' southern boy who leads an elite squad that come to be known by the Nazis as simply the Basterds. Just as Waltz carries the nickname "Jew Hunter", Pitt's men have aliases just as worthy; "Jew Bear" being one of them. Most of his men have been wronged by Hitler or at the very least have Jewish roots and have become very good at exacting their revenge. There are no hostages in this group...they live to kill. Pitt dives into his character just as he does in every film he appears in. His good ol boy accent is downright hilarious and extremely out of place in Nazi occupied France. But this only serves to make him even more likable. It doesn't matter that he's scalping Nazis...he sounds hilarious while doing so. The audience is guaranteed a laugh every time he speaks. It seems Pitt along with Tarantino's writing have found a way to make WWII funny somehow.
From here the film involves a plot to kill all the highest ranking Nazi officials while they are in a movie theater watching the premiere of the latest propaganda film Nation’s Pride. The plan is simple: two Basterds and a British undercover agent will infiltrate the event with double agent and actress Bridget von Hammersmark skillfully played by Diane Kruger. The party's top officials will be there and Adolph Hitler himself is expected to show. Who owns the theatre? You got it...little Shosanna all grown up. Of course, now she has a new name and new identity to go with it. And she is seething with revenge. How fitting that the star of the propaganda picture falls in love with her instantly and how wonderful to feel the hatred and tension emminating from her when confronted with this soldier turned star, Fredrick Zoller (Daniel Bruhl). And even better? The glue of Christoph Waltz returns as Col. Hans is selected as head security detail of the movie's premier in little Shosanna's cinema. Tarantino weaves the perfect web of emotional close up shots and dialogue when these characters come together. Here, Tarantino and his cast make you question history. Will he REALLY lock Hitler in a theatre along with all of the top Nazi players and burn the place down killing every last one of them? Will Shosanna get her revenge? Will he really laugh in the face of history? Well, it's Tarantino which makes every question nothing but rhetorical.
When Quentin Tarantino makes a movie you can expect a few standard "Tarantinoesque" things. One thing you're sure to get is over the top gorey violence. This film is definitely no exception. Whether it is the Basterds scalping Nazis or the brutal fights where anyone, anytime can die, the violence and the trademark ill-fitting music is there. You also get the trademark "Chapters" that seem to mark each scene with a different title. The comic book-esque fonts, weird Kill Bill soundtrack that does everything except fit the time period and place, and fight scenes that are so over the top it's almost ridiculous all drip of Tarantino and all serve to make Basterds #1 at the box office so far.
The cool factor is all around. Tarantino took his style and paired it with some really tight acting. Most of the cast, including the lovely Ms. Kruger, is German. The language and accents coupled with the crisp SS uniforms bring an immense amount of realism to each scene they appear in. Needless to say Tarantino has a way of introducing an outlandish idea with just enough realism to make the audience buy it.
Tarantino's version of history is, in my opinion, much better than what really happened. ;) The cast is solid, the cinematography is classic, the dialogue is both important and fun but perhaps the BEST part of the film is the idea that this scenario COULD HAVE actually happened. For my money I'd say Inglorious Basterds is one of the best films of the summer. It's a must see no matter what your position is on World War II or Tarantino. To take from Mr. Pitt..."Sounds Good!"
Cast: Brad Pitt, Melanie Laurent, Eli Roth, Christoph Waltz, Diane Kruger, Daniel Bruhl, Michael Fassbender, Gedeon Burkhard, Til Schwieger, Jacky Ido, Sylvester Groth, Martin Wuttke, Mike Myers
Rating: R
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