In a Word, Crass

Rating: 2/10 (28 August 2009)

Let me be upfront in saying that this is not my kind of movie. For some reason, I fail to understand the hilarity in mass murder and graphic depictions of violence. There is some flaw in my character that lacks the ability to cheer as I witness a hundred people gunned down in a burning building with no means of escape. So I admit that I am pre-disposed to well...LOATHE this movie.
But let us pretend that I'm a Buddy Holly glasses wearing hipster who loves this kind of movie on principle (you know--it's violence I can cheer for cuz it's like, ironic, man). Even in that case, this movie, well...blows. Here's why:
1. The title characters of the film (the Ingloourious Bastaaerds however weird ironic way you want to spell it) are completely superfluous to the entire movie. Indeed, it would be a much more interesting, cohesive film without them, as they only serve to detract from the power of Shosanna's story (incidentally, the only actual character in this whole cartoon of a movie).
2. Schizophrenia, thy name is Tarantino. Is it a spaghetti western? A post-modern comedy? An homage to name-your-impressive-pop-culture-reference-here? Or even (snort) a serious wartime drama? Who knows? Hell, I sat through all 2 and a bloody half hours and I can't even tell you what that purpose of the damn film was, let alone its genre.
3. And the most galling point of all appears in the abhorrent disrespect shown to a dismal time in our world's history as well as the people who experienced it. Tarantino makes an absolute farce of the Nazi regime and the terrors of World War II. The audience cheered and laughed as people were violently murdered and disfigured and their corpses violated throughout the film. It's so completely dehumanizing, it makes me think that our own real life gladiator days are close on the horizon. Indeed, some might say that in trivializing death and suffering in such a callous manner, we can't be that much better than the Nazi followers themselves.
So overall, I left the theater sickened and more than a little pessimistic about the state of empathy in our society. Perhaps I'm not "cool" or "ironic" enough to appreciate such a "masterpiece" (okay, sarcasm quotes off now), but I'm glad of it.
Bottom line: If you have a heart, don't see this movie.