Inglouriously uncomfortable

Rating: 7/10 (28 December 2009)

This is not a film that you can pleasantly enjoy, you can appreciate the technical expertise of the film but Inglourious Basterds is a juvenile and ill-judged plot.
Firstly the film has a good beginning, well shot with the tension built up well and a fine introduction to Colonel Hans Landa played brilliantly by Christoph Waltz. However, after this start begins a mish-mash of genre styles which are confusing. What was with the western music? It did not at all fit with the film, and the way Inglourious is divided into chapters was odd and certainly unnecessary.
Inglourious Basterds is spattered with impressive camera shots and there is no denying Tarantino's strength with dialogue. However, scenes are too lengthy and drag on. Some of these scenes are too brazen or bloodthirsty and many of the peripheral characters are largely dolloped in a comic-caricature style. Brad Pitt for this deliverance does not fit the build for Lieutenant Alan Raine, and falls short of offering a character of any vividness. However its comic exuberance does bring momentum when the film is heavily burdened and stagnated with discourse.
I understand that the film was meant to have a comic-like feel, as I have implied so far but it is thwarted by its infantile development, which at times was distasteful and uncomfortable. The lengthy scenes are all embellished for the finale, and this was the worst misjudgment. The final scenes are over done, and over-cooked it is an ugly and uncomfortable end.
Inglourious Basterds is technically good but the story is black and distasteful, the comedy edge is not well-judged and for all its bravado it cannot hide its fundamental flaw, being its inability to provide satisfaction from its setup to its ill-conclusion.