An Inglourious Pick for the Best Film of the Year!

Rating: 10/10 (28 August 2009)

This summer, everyone I know waited for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. Me? I waited in great anticipation for the new film from my favorite director Quentin Tarantino, a World War II revenge epic entitled Inglourious Basterds. And, I will admit, it did not disappoint.
While Tarantino is known for his over the top violence, it's not the blood and gore that makes his films so good. It's the long sessions of dialog. While this may turn some film goers off (like my friends who preferred the aforementioned Transformers), to me it's what makes his films roll. If you pay attention, the dialog is very funny and entertaining. Plus, the action is more exciting and unexpected when QT sticks it in the middle of the conversation.
In his previous films, Tarantino used mainstream Hollywood stars for his films. However, with the exception of Brad Pitt and a cameo by a nearly unrecognizable Mike Myers (fans of The Office will recognize BJ Novak aka Ryan), you probably won't recognize nearly three quarters of the actors in the film. All of the foreign actors in the film are terrific, and they give a sense of realism to the film. Melanie Laurent, a French actress, is Shosanna, a young Jewish girl who plans to burn down her cinema with Nazi leaders inside. Among the Basterds are Til Schweiger, a sadistic German who kills Nazis in creative ways, and Michael Fassbender as a British war leader. As for Pitt, he portrays the leader of the Basterds, a hillbilly named Aldo Raine. Raine is an awesome character, and a role only Pitt could play. He leads his all Jewish team into France where they do "one thang and one thang only-(kill) Nazis". Myers's cameo is small, but you can't believe how unrecognizable he is. Hopefully, Myers gets his career back on track after duds like The Love Guru and The Cat in the Hat (easily one of the worst films ever). Eli Roth, best known as the director of Hostel, is on hand to portray Donnie, a Bostonian Jew who beats Nazis with a baseball bat. Roth is not only a good director, but a good actor as well. He previously cameoed in Tarantino's Death Proof, and hopefully more roles are on his way. But Christoph Waltz steals the show as the crazy Nazi general Hans Landa. Waltz speaks every language in the movie, and portrays Landa perfectly. You really can't like Waltz since he portrays a Nazi, but hopefully some better roles are headed his way. Some film goers will recognize Diane Krueger, who portrays German actress Bridget von Hammerstark, a spy working for the Allies. Krueger is best known for portraying Nicolas Cage's love interest in National Treasure. There, she seemed pure American. In this film, she speaks her native German perfectly, showing her versatility.
So, as the summer ends, I have to say I came in with a bad attitude about the summer of 09 (movie-wise anyway). However, with films like Basterds, The Hangover, and District 9, I think film goers will remember 09's movies for long to come.