An incohesive film made by an inconsistent basterd.

Rating: 6/10 (23 August 2009)

In the 1st 10 minutes of the films, Tarantino used about 10 different fonts for various on screen titles. Might not seem like a big deal to most folks, but it is an early example of the films' sloppy inconsistency. QT has always liked to mix genres, most successfully in the Kill Bill films, and I'm fine with that. But here, his A.D.D.-enabled multi-style style is at its most random and really doesn't work for what this film could've been. (I considered offering a list of all the inconsistencies, but my reviews are generally too long anyway.) What I had hoped for, and what the trailer seemed to promise, was a Dirty Dozen homage, where a team of badass characters are assembled with the mission of killing Nazis. Generally, in that type of group mission film (Dirty Dozen, Oceans 11, The Seven Samurai or even QT's own Reservoir Dogs), you'd get to know a bit about each of the members of the team, building some kind of relationship between the various characters and the audience. But QT doesn't take the time to do that. We never really get to know any of the people in the film. Instead, he spends a few slow 20 minute sections in ways that don't enhance our relationships with the characters, the story or the film overall.
So what's good? 1. The film does offer some fantastically funny and quirky performances. Brad Pitt is hilarious, and the film's main villain SS Col. Landa, played by Christoph Waltz, is as funny as he is batshit crazy evil. Pretty much all of the supporting cast, with the exception perhaps of 1 or 2 of the 'Basterds', are also noteworthy. 2. No one knows how to use music in films better than Q. 3. A bunch of Jews kick a whole bunch of Nazi butt in some particularly gratifying (and gruesomely violent) ways.
Final say? Disappointing, but worth seeing. Not for the kids or for people who don't like seeing Nazis die.