The magnificent basterds

Rating: 8/10 (20 February 2010)

QT is a unique director, and you just know that whatever subject matter or cinematic genre he tackles, it is going to be unique within that genre. This especially true of Inglourious Basterds. QT has crafted a wonderfully entertaining tale that doesn't seek to aim for historical accuracy, or even political correctness for that matter. But my lord is it gripping, entertaining, and plain fun. the characters do however display a mercilessness and ruthlessness; a real brutality that can be off putting, yet this is just a personal issue i had with the film.
The opening scene is a great example of the feeling, the atmosphere, and the suspense that will pervade the film for all of its 2 and a half hour running time (which incidentally, as the great films do, makes that time fly by). We meet a pivotal figure, Hans Landa, an SS super sleuth who is one of the most menacing, yet at the same time most cordial and charismatic interrogaters the screen has ever seen. his conversation with a french farmer who is hiding a Jewish family under his house, is amazing. the two men exchange pleasantries and meaningless banalities, all the while both know exactly what the other is thinking. you can see LaPadite thinking frantically, how firstly he can hide the jews, and also how he can protect his family. when it become apparent that Landa already knows every detail of his hiding, he wilts and gives up the jews in exchange for his families safety. One family member does escape however, the beautiful Shosanna, played by Melanie Laurent, who will get her revenge ultimately, but at a high price.
You could talk for hours about the first scene in the movie, such is the mastery with which its handle by QT, and such is the movie as a whole, with many memorable, and especially suspenseful scenes that would be the envy of Hitchcock. The bar scene in which Bridget von Hammersmark (played by the gorgeous Dianne Kruger) and a few nazi double agents are under suspicion by a shrewd gestapo officer is another incredibly well crafted, suspenseful scene. Once again, as he has made his trademark throughout his career, Tarantino provides great dialogue with which to ramp up the tension little by little until it reaches a boiling point. Scene by scene, the care and craft that have gone into the movie's structure elevate it above the dreck that pervades contemporary American cinema.
A small element within the film that made me uncomfortable was the ruthlessness and cruelty of the films characters, especially the Basterds. they're supposed to be the heroes of the film, yet they cruelly kill and maim their nazi foes, and show no honour nor any mercy. Eli Roth has a few brief scenes, and true to form, all his scenes revolve around gratuitous violence, whether it be bashing a nazi soldiers head in with a baseball bat, or mowing down a room full of nazi moviegoers in machine gun fire. Not to mention the role of aldo rayne was so completely overacted by Brad Pitt, his portrayal of Rayne showed the character as a slightly retarded, bloodthirsty redneck, with one of the worst southern accents I've had the displeasure of hearing. and also the backstory of Stiglitz wasn't adequately explained - a nazi officer who for some reason decided to go a homicidal rampage and start killing every gestapo officer he could find? no explanation was given for his motive and i found this really bugged me. and the other 5 or so basterds were given no story nor any screen time, so they were essentially props. So in short, as you can see, the basterds were the weak link of the movie in my opinion.
But overall, this is but a small part of an otherwise excellent production. The exquisite acting of Kruger, Laurent, Waltz, Bruhl, and most of the European cast was a joy to behold, and i was once again enamored with Tarantino's unique directorial vision. Huge recommendation from me, QT has done it again.