INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS (The Weinstein Company)
Written & Directed by Quentin Tarantino

The overused saying, ‘practice makes perfect’, takes on an entirely new meaning with Quentin Tarantino’s newest film, INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS. For years rumblings of this so-called war epic was in the works by the famed director and yet, nothing ever surfaced leading fans to wonder if it would ever happen. For nearly 10 years, Tarantino worked on this script, writing and re-writing to the point where he had to put it down and make ‘other’ films like KILL BILL: VOL. 1 & VOL. 2 and DEATH PROOF. So, to simply say this film was important to him is a huge understatement, as for Tarantino, nothing would be missed or excluded for what he dubbed his “ultimate masterpiece in the making.” And after seeing this film on DVD finally, it’s hard to argue its not leading me to believe it was well worth the wait and a strong contender to be covered in gold come Oscar night.

As with any Tarantino film, the story is anything but basic, here jumping back in forth between a set of five chapters, all individually titled and part of a bigger plan of two primary stories which merge toward film's end, in true World War II spirit. It all opens in France where SS Colonel Landa (Christoph Waltz) is led to a farm where Jews were allegedly being held in secret, a crime very much punishable back in the 40's. After an enlightening and all too revealing discussion with the home owner, Perrier LaPadite (Denis Menochet), Landa calls his men into the house, where he instructs them to shoot down at the floorboards. Several rounds later, the hidden family of Jews were all killed, with the exception of Shosanna (Melanie Laurent), who Landa let get away for reasons unknown. Meanwhile, somewhere in Italy, Lt. Aldo Raine, a.k.a. “Aldo the Apache” (Brad Pitt) recruits a team of eight Jewish-American soldiers to hunt down and scalp any Nazi they ran into. And their claim to fame, outside the scalping of Nazi’s, were to let one prisoner escape, so he could go back to headquarters and tell his command what took place. A dirty game, yes, but one Raine and the Basterds loved to play, eventually striking great fear into the opposition.

Back in Paris, Shosanna had established a new identity as a local cinema owner by the name of Emmanuelle Mimieux After meeting a celebrated German marksman by the name of Frederick Zoller (Daniel Bruhl), she is convinced to hold the premiere of a new Nazi propaganda film, in which Zoller starred in. The film, dubbed Stolz de Nation, was set to be a big hit and one almost every high ranking Nazi official, including Hitler, would be attending at Emmanuelle’s cinema opening night. Seeing this as a perfect opportunity for her revenge, she compiles a plan to bring down the ones responsible for her family’s death. But, shortly after the premiere began, another plan emerges, one devised by the Basterds, with help from Bridget von Hammersmark (Diane Kruger), a famed German film star working undercover as a double agent. So, as both plans start to work alongside one another, the end result was anything but pretty, as this Nazi gathering was set to blow in more ways than one.

I guess any cast with Brad Pitt is worth mentioning, but for the first time in a long time it didn’t really matter all that much. I know that might be a shock to some, but this film really didn’t require any one star primarily, as the story in itself was able to hold its own quite well. In fact, despite one amazing performance by Christoph Waltz, the rest of the cast pretty much settled into their roles quietly. And maybe that’s what Tarantino wanted, as Waltz clearly was meant to be the one piece to this cast you remembered the most from his story. So credit Waltz for coming through when it mattered, as his recent awards suggest, but know that without the amazing script from Tarantino, none of it would have been possible. Maybe that’s a given, but to me it often gets forgotten how important a well-crafted script can be, especially one written by Quentin Tarantino, who doesn’t always lay out the easiest of dialogue. Yeah, his dialogue is lengthy and sometimes he gets too carried away with it, but I love it and can always tell a Tarantino movie by the way his characters tell stories. Good thing here is his cast never missed a beat, falling right in line with the story he was trying to tell, which is all I can hope for when it comes to any film, much less one as dynamic as this one.

I would bet if you asked any average moviegoer how many Quentin Tarantino films they had seen , the answer would be less than five almost every time. And what’s amazing about that fact is how large this guy’s name is and how much weight it carries in Hollywood. He literary became a living legend after his second major motion picture, PULP FICTION, and ever since then the draw and intrigue behind Tarantino films hasn’t stopped growing. For me, this couldn’t be truer, as I have yet to be pulled away from his everlasting stranglehold he tends to place on you with his films. To this day, I can remember where I was and the feeling I had after watching PULP FICTION, and the same could be said for his other films. To me, that’s special and why I look forward to anything this guy does, no matter how ludicrous or offensive it might look on the surface. That’s what makes this guy who he is and the more films you watch by him, you start to understand the methods behind the madness at which he writes and films.

INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS is a perfect example of that, as it ranges from one level of emotion to the next, almost seamlessly making you wonder why you are laughing at something that truly is not intended to be funny. That’s Quentin Tarantino at his best and in this film he doesn’t flinch with some of the most intriguing and dramatic shot sequences between stories and/or chapters. Sure, there are times where he might irritate you with how he is telling the story, but I guarantee there’s a good reason for it and if you don’t pick up on it this time, you will the next. That’s what makes him so unique and such a rare commodity in Hollywood, because too often we find writers and directors that lack originality, something that quite frankly will never be associated with Tarantino.

If the title INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS doesn’t get you to watch this film, knowing Quentin Tarantino directed it should. And if you’re like me, you will watch the DVD for both reasons, and be treated to one of the best from 2009. I know I was and at first wasn’t too sure what kind of film I was even getting myself into, but the more I watched, the more I liked and by films end, was ready for more. So, call it what you will, but to me it’s already a winner, no matter what happens at the Oscars several weeks from now.

A-