Never Not A Nerd

I know this is a bit late but I wanted to formulate a solid review for Quentin Tarantino’s new film Inglorious Basterds so here it goes. Inglorious Basterds is a Tarantino film that is worth the wait. He talked about doing this movie before Kill Bill and he delayed it with Grindhouse but now it is here and it is sick. I want to warn everyone who still has not seen this film; this is not your ordinary Quentin movie. The movie is not beefed up on quirky dialogue and bad guys with guns. Instead he tells a war torn fairy tale full of revenge, love, and of course blood. If you are a strict fan of his filmmaking and will not tolerate change, this film is probably not for you.

Inglorious Basterds contains two stories that parallel each other until they reach the same gore-filled climax. The first story is about a young French-Jewish woman named Shosanna (Melanie Laurent) who is on the run from Nazi Colonel Hans Landa (Christoph Waltz). She evades capture and inherits a small cinema which is chosen to host the premiere of the Third Reich’s new propaganda movie. The other story is typical Tarantino. It follows a group of blood thirsty Jewish-American soldiers led by Lt. Aldo Raine (Brad Pitt) who pillage, maim, and kill their way through Nazi occupied France. During their savage campaign, they are assigned to sabotage the premiere of a new war film produced by Hitler himself. Though you can see where the film is going, you simply have no idea what is in store for you until you see it.

YAY:

• Christoph Waltz is the best part of this film as Colonel Hans Landa. The character itself is written to be a vile and evil uniform who is supposed to make your skin crawl at the very sight of him, but Waltz just takes it to a whole new level. The opening of the film shows just how fickle, ruthless, and intelligent he really is but how his story unfolds is just cool.
• Though Christoph Waltz steals the entire movie, Melanie Laurent gives an amazing performance here as Shosanna. Though many people will see this film for Brad Pitt and his Basterds, Shosanna’s story is the real heart and soul of this movie and would not have been so powerful had Laurent not been as good as she was. Not to mention she gets a lot of help from Waltz who is already the flagship of this movie.
• How Tarantino chooses to tell his fairy tale is quite unusually straight forward. Unlike most of his other films, he keeps the story linear and in line. He even divides the story into 5 chapters (which is what he usually does but in order? That’s not like him!). It was kind of refreshing to see him do this as I think even he realized that this film is a whole different kind of monster from his previous outings.
• The Basterds are an awesome bunch of brutality. However, there are those that shine brighter than all of the others. Yes, Brad Pitt is entertaining as the leader and he gives a performance that is memorable. However, Eli Roth comes out of nowhere and literally hits his role out of the park (or off someone’s head). His role as the unstable “Bear Jew” Sgt. Donny Donowitz is awesome and he takes it to Scarface-areas of insanity. You’ll know what I am talking about when you see the interrogation scene and you see his reaction. And I can’t deem this a sufficient review without mentioning Til Schweiger and his portrayal of Sgt. Hugo Stiglitz. If there is any character in the movie that makes you bow down because of their sheer awesomeness, it is Hugo Stiglitz and Schweiger totally gets into the role perfectly.

NAY:

• Mike Myers is terribly miscast. I understand he does a great COMEDIC impression of a Scottish accent and it comes off as god awful in this movie. When you see Mike Myers playing a British General, you can not help but laugh and think of the baby-eating fat man or a really horny secret agent. It totally takes you out of the experience.
• The same goes for Diane Kruger. She may be the eye-candy of the movie but thank god she is only in it for about 25 minutes. She has a pretty forgettable role and does not even try to liven it up at all. Her character’s demise is just as entertaining as Brad Pitt’s take on the Italian language.
• I am not quite sure if I can site this as a “nay” but I’m putting it down here anyways. Walking out of the film, I felt like I came out of a great Tarantino film but on the way in I could not help but think I was going into a Brad Pitt vehicle. I understand he is a selling name but he in no way deserves to be the face of this movie. There are some moments where I was wondering why they did not spend more time with the Basterds themselves on the billboards instead of Brad Pitt and Diane Kruger. In all of Quentin’s former films he advertised them as an ensemble movie. With Inglorious Basterds, Brad Pitt is the advertising point. This sucks as it cheapens the greater performances that wait for the audience in the theater.

All and all Inglorious Basterds is a great Tarantino film and deserves to be a part of his portfolio. Do not trust the marketing or campaigning for this film, it is a phenomenal ensemble fairy tale that does one thing extraordinarily well- leave you wanting a whole lot more. Like his other movies, I do not think we will be seeing a sequel for this one, but maybe sequels are a fad that Quentin should stay far away from.