Extraordinary fun.

Rating: 8/10 (12 May 2010)

I'm starting this review with a lot having already been said about it, so the natural response is to review, in sorts, what has been said.
The overwhelming criticism in those reviews which give this film less than 50% ratings seems to be based in the fact that suspension of disbelief is not so much demanded as shoved down your throat. To this I would simply say this: this an uber-revisionist film, which might, with the addition of a couple of capes, have made a decent pass as a superhero film. To say "but shouldn't there have been more guards? Why were all the Nazis assembled together?" without first demanding why Hitler was killed by vigilante Jews is to miss the point completely.
This is fantasy. It is comic. It is over the top. Quite frankly, for the most part, it is brilliant.
Much has been made of Waltz's sensational multi-lingual performance, and this is never more evident than in the breathtaking opening scene. suspenseful, with great dialogue, this is film-making at it's highest peak. The tone continues throughout, with some great set-pieces (most notably the basement scene).
The one criticism that I would entertain is that of the relative blandness of "The Basterds". But even in this sense, I feel criticism is overly harsh: that the poster makers would put Brad Pitt at the centre is inevitable, whilst criticism of Eli Roth, who plays an almost mute character whose only trait IS his brute strength, is frankly baffling.
Overall, however, I think that people may well have missed the point. It isn't realistic. It is totally devoid of morality. But it is tremendous fun to watch. The acting is good, the set pieces are of the highest dramatic standards, and I did laugh. A lot.