Tarantino tribute to old-school cinema

Rating: 8/10 (28 August 2009)

Whether this is Tarantino's tribute to old school WWII film in the tradition of THE DIRTY DOZEN, or his way of paying homage to his trademarks using a war film setting, watching INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS makes me think the Weinsteins wanted to make sure the audience is not just the Tarantino fan base, but also older audiences who has their personal connection to stories set in WWII (whether from personal experience, or just from having grown up watching classic war films).
While Brad Pitt gets top billing, it is the European actors like Christoph Waltz, Til Schweiger, and Melanie Laurent, who really steal the show. This film, in fact, has more German and French dialogue than English. Christoph Waltz, in particular, delivers an amazing performance that is on par with Ulrich Muhe's in THE LIVES OF OTHERS. Every time the guy is on screen, the tension and suspense is so thick you could slice it with a knife.
If you're looking for Tarantino trademarks (including the abundance of trademarks from other movies and filmmakers that inspired those Tarantino has made himself known for), this movie is filled with them, and deviced and laid out so conspicuously that it's fit for a "spot the trade mark" drinking game. Whether there is any anti-war sentiment intended, it almost seems irrelevant - it's catharsis all the way through from start to finish. Any message is more of an inference the audience would need to create out of their own imagination and sentiments.
As with almost all Tarantino films, forgotten stars are brought back to the screen (e.g. Travolta in PULP FICTION, Pam Grier & Robert Forster in JACKIE BROWN, etc.). Whatever career boosts previous Tarantino films managed to bring to has-been stars, this one was just a nice touch with the cameo of 50's screen heartthrob ROD TAYLOR (who played lead-roles in the original TIME MACHINE, and Hitchcock's THE BIRDS) in a short scene as Winston Churchhill. The use of Ennio Morricone scores worked very well with the photography to remind everyone what made movies great before the age of CGI and video cinematography.
Now if only Brad Pitt could move away from his over-the-top mash-up of Southern accents that's reminiscent of Early Grayce (KALIFORNIA), the experience would have been more to my "satisFICation." Nevertheless, this is probably Tarantino's most Oscar-friendly work to date.