Impressive

Rating: 9/10 (1 January 2017)

I've waited a long time before I watched this movie. It was clear to me that this would be heavier stuff, not so light-footed like Pulp. In this case I wait until I'm in a certain mood, a moment, where also Viscontis Damned', Herzogs Aguirre' or 'Apocalypse' would be fine. And now after watching 8' I have to say, yes this moving picture is also about the damned and it's drawn perfectly and consistently. It is definitely entertaining, disturbing and shocking at the same time and never boring or implausible. For me that's pure art.
Perhaps there are some in the US they don't like the picture because it's about dark facts of a supposedly great era in history. I recently read about the Trail Of Tears, the Seminoles, the role of Afroamerican People in that conflict and later in the civil war. Yes that's not all glorious events and I can understand some people don't like to be remembered. I had that feeling while watching Inglorious', because my Grandfather was a German Soldier. And even I know he hated the Nazis (he helped Jews to escape in his trucks) I had some difficulties to accept how partially stupid the Germans where shown in Bastards'. But - who could blame anybody to do so?!
There are countless other massacres in human history and nobody knows if we really will not experience something terrible again. Fear and hate are spreading out all over the world like never before the last 70 years.
There is this wooden Jesus statue in the movie and I guess that's not a coincidence. He told us to meet the stranger like meeting him. This movie is about people who do not trust, who dominate and hate each other. So this rough movie is about bloody hell, visually and mental.