Glory, Thy Name Be INGLORIOUS BASTERDS. Tarantino's Latest - Reviewed!

INGLORIOUS BASTERDS Review:

- Are we sure that Quentin Tarantino isn't Jewish? I ask this because in some ways, his latest work, Inglorious Basterds feels like a movie that a young Jewish kid might have dreamed up while sitting in Hebrew School learning about the atrocities of the Holocaust. Because, yes, the Holocaust was horrible, and yes, we must never forget the *truth* of what happened to the Jews and others at the hands of the Nazis. But ... there is that "what if?" scenario that we all can't help but wonder about. That question that I, as a young Jewish boy, would ask myself while learning about the lives of Anne Frank and Eli Wiesel and all of the other figures that one learns about when studying this time period. The question sounds almost taboo, given the horrible circumstances surrounding this time period, given the ruthlessness and overpowering force of the Nazis, given their sudden and somewhat unexpected rise to power in Eastern Europe. But for, say, a twelve year old boy learning about all this - that boy can't help but wonder: "where were all the badass Jews?" Where were the take-no-prisoners, school-of-hard-knocks Jews who would rise up and be the great heroes of the war? It's funny because even in the fictional world of wartime pop culture, young Jews like Joe Simon and Jack Kirby and Siegal and Schuster had secular superheroes like Superman and Captain America punching out Adolf Hitler on the cover of comic books, but it was always the Jews being liberated by some great outside savior. So yeah, as much as a kid like me was struck by the horror and tragedy of the Holocaust, you couldn't help but also get a slight desire to fantasize about some unsung squadron of badass Jewish heroes taking up arms and kicking Nazi ass.

Well, with INGLORIOUS BASTERDS, Quentin Tarantino has created one hell of a "what-if" scenario, an alterna-version of World War II in which a squadron of revenge-seeking Jewish-American soldiers terrorizes Nazis deep behind enemy lines. He's created a world in which a teenaged Jewish girl survives Nazi slaughter and, under the guise of a new identity in France, transforms herself from meek farmer's daughter into a Nazi-hatin' glam-rock femme fatale. This is what Inglorious Basterds is on one level - a story about the righteous anger and punk-rock fatalism that the Nazi's atrocities ultimately inspired, an anger that in this universe ultimately becomes their undoing. While this spin on events is obviously film fantasy, it is fascinating, thought-provoking, and yes, in the end, catharctic on an almost primal frequency.

But on another level, forget all that ... on another level, this is simply Quentin freakin' Tarantino at his absolute rockstar best. If you're looking for the lowdown on this one, here it is: Inglorious Basterds is one hell of a movie, right up there with the writer/director's best. Despite a two-and-a-half hour running time, this one will have true movie lovers giddily smiling for the duration. The movie is expertly directed, filled with memorable performances, striking images, and dialogue that absolutely crackles.

It's an exciting and unique blend of styles and genres - par for the course for Tarantino, but hey, it's been a while now since we've seen a full-fledged QT movie, and it's still pretty shocking to see just how much fun he has with the possibilities of cinema. Watching a Tarantino movie is sometimes like watching some kind of ultimate movie remix, and with Basterds, some of the juxtapositions are just plain punch-to-face awesome. It's a movie filled with random asides, sudden bursts of on-screen titles in Kill Bill-style fonts, subtitles interweaving between several different spoken languages, and a glam rock music video-like sequence sublimely set to David Bowie's "Cat People." And oh yeah, random character origins narrated by Samuel L. Jackson. Certainly, this is the most rock n' roll WWII movie ever made.

But it isn't all flash, either. Inglorious Basterds contains scene after scene in which QT goes for the slow burn, Hitchcock-style tension-building. And it's remarkable, because he builds up tension to almost unbearable levels, but to see that classic sense of suspense working in tandem with the kind of meaty dialogue that QT is known for- well, like I said, I had a stupid smile across my face for most of the movie. It's not restrained, nothing is held back, QT goes for broke with every scene, every *line* of dialogue. But through it all, you can't help but smile and think "oh man, this is *good*."

In any case, you have to love QT having fun with so many classic cinema conventions. Any student of film will instantly see some of the scenes in Basterds and think of Hitchcock's old "bomb theory" principle - that an ordinary scene of two people talking becomes infinitely more interesting - and infinitely more suspenseful - if it is revealed shortly after the start of the scene that there is, in fact, a bomb under the table. In Inglorious Basterds, there are lots of people talking, but also lots of proverbial (and sometimes literal) bombs under the table. But man, when those bombs go off - duck and take cover. Sure, Tarantino is known for his extended scenes of characters exchanging witty dialogue ... but as we know from Kill Bill, the man can also hit you with some of the most explosive and visceral action around. But that's what so great about Basterds, when the screen does on occasion explode with rapid-fire violence, the emotional and contextual build-up makes the payoff all the more satisfying.

I also think it's worth noting that Inglorious Basterds is a hilarious movie. Yes, there are moments of true drama and deep tragedy, and there is imagery that is absolutely haunting. But man, this is a drop-dead funny movie as well, probably more so than anything Tarantino's done to date. It's over-the-top, it's absurd, it's witty, and it's very much self-aware. There are moments when QT is clearly speaking directly to the audience via his characters, and there are moments that are as darkly absurdist as anything you'll find in a typical Coen Brothers farce.

All of that humor, and all of the great dialogue that triggers it ... is mostly pulled off to perfection by the film's stellar cast. I admit, on paper, the cast of Basterds looked like a Bizarro World assemblage of random actors. But in practice, it comes together quite well. For one thing, a lot of the standouts in the movie are European actors who are, or were, largely unknown in the US. That said, some of the European talent completely steals the show. First and foremost is Austrian television star Christoph Waltz as the Nazi Col. Hans Landa. Waltz is just awesome here as the passive-aggressive Nazi known as The Jew Hunter - a cunningly evil snake of a man, who leisurely sweet-talks his prey even as he moves in for the kill. Waltz is both funny and intense-as-hell, and he makes Hans Landa into one of the most memorable on-screen villains we've seen from Tarantino to date. There are so many little things that Waltz brings to the table here - his effortless knack for building tension in a scene, his quick transition between multiple languages, his overall presence on screen. It's just a great, great performance.

Similarly great is French actress Melanie Laurent as Shoshana Dreyfus - the aforementioned girl who flees Landa's group of Jew hunters as a teen, and then sets up a new life in France under a forged identity. Some may be surprised to learn that Shoshana turns out to be the central figure of the movie, more so than any of the titular Basterds. And yet, you can almost think of her as an honorary Basterd of sorts, because she shares the same determined desire for violent vengeance against the Nazis. When we meet back up with Shoshana a few years after Landa has had her family exterminated, she is a quiet and jaded young woman who owns a popular movie theater in France. Ironically, the theater and its owner have attracted the interest of Frederick Zoller (very effectively played by Daniel Bruhl) , a young German soldier who has become quite the war hero - so much so that a propganda film has been made about his exploits, in which Zoller plays himself. When Zoller suggests that Shoshana's theater be used to host the premiere of his movie, to be attended by all of the top Nazi brass and perhaps even Hitler himself ... well, you can probably guess the possibilities that race through Shoshana's mind.

In many ways, Shoshana's part of the story is one about the power of movies. On one hand, there is the burgeoning Nazi propaganda-fueled German movie industry (and QT even includes segments of a faux-propaganda film directed by Eli Roth, who also plays one of the Basterds). On the other hand, there is Shoshana, who uses film and uses her theater as a weapon. And not just a metaphorical one, either. Did you know that old film-stock is highly incendiary? If not, you will after this movie.

In any case, Laurent is extremely strong here - all bottled-up emotion and seething anger. It's a breakthrough performance, to be sure. Meanwhile, Basterds is basically bursting at the seems with noteworthy turns from all kinds of unlikely sources. And I know, I haven't even talked about the Inglorious Basterds yet - the misfit band of Jewish-American soldiers who run rampant through Europe scalping Nazis and instilling fear and dread in the hearts of their enemies. So let's talk for a second about Bradd Pitt. Depite his leading-man status, Pitt is always at his best when playing slightly offbeat and/or insane characters. Look at Fight Club, 12 Monkeys, or the Assassination of Jesse James, to name a few. And here, Pitt is once again pretty damn awesome, playing Lt. Aldo Raine, a quirky, southern-fried badass with a violent hatred of Nazis. He is hilarious as the over-the-top Aldo, and is just endlessly entertaining as a sort of parody of the all-American redneck hero. Aldo has that polite, good ol' boy charm, but he's also a violent killer who kills and scalps some Nazis (Apache-style), or else lets them live but brands them with a swastika across the forehead. Suffice it to say, when Pitt's Aldo eventually crosses paths with Waltz's Lando, it's a meeting of the minds for the ages.

The other Basterds are an oddball mix of quirky comedic actors and other unusual casting choices. You've got The Office's BJ Novak, Freaks & Geeks' Sam Levine, and horror director Eli Roth as "The Bear Jew," a fearsome lug from Boston who slugs his enemies' heads with a baseball bat. A Nice Jewish Boy he is not. Most of the Basterds don't have a particularly large role, and yes, you do almost wish QT had made an adventure movie solely focused on their wartime exploits. But the movie is about much more than just the revenge-squad antics of Aldo and his men, and there is a certain charm to the fact that we only know bits and pieces about this unusual group of surprisingly brutal soldiers. In retrospect, there is a certain brilliance to the casting though. There's something about the slim, dry-humored, sunken eyed BJ Novak scalping Nazis as part of a hit-squad of Jewish soldiers that is both fascinating and sort of hilarious. Seeing Novak, Levine, etc, in a pathetic looking role-call before Pitt's Aldo Raines is, certainly, a sight to behold.

And as I mentioned, there are countless smaller roles that are in very capable hands. Diane Kruger is dynamite as German film star Bridget Von Hammersmark. Not only does she look like she stepped right out of the appropriate era, but she delivers an absolutely great, memorable performance. How about Til Schewiger as Hugo Stitlitz, a German defector who ends up as one of the Basterds? Stitlitz, perpetually seething with barely-concealed rage, is yet another memorable character in the film. And, you know how Tarantino has that knack for taking out-of-favor actors and reminding you why you liked them so much in the first place? Well, he does that here with Mike Myers. With one extended scene, I forgot all about of that Love Guru crap and remembered why Myers is the man.

There are a lot of moving parts in Inglorious Basterds, but what really impressed me is that the movie works as a singular story. In the end, it all comes together, and you're left with a great movie that delivers on almost every possible level. The opening scene, with Hans Lando interrogating a farmer he suspects of hiding a Jewish family in his home, kicks things off on a tension-filled high-note. While I won't spoil the ending, I will say that it's one hell of a finale, that nicely parallels the opening. Tarantino doesn't just make any old World War II movie - he makes "Quentin Tarantino's Definitive Take on the WWII Movie," and you can see the care and precision that went into every word, every detail, every bit of action. There are all of the flourishes that Tarantino is known for - the impeccably chosen soundtrack, the references to other works and other genres (the spaghetti western, the men-on-a-mission war movie, the revenge film, the Hitchcock-esque suspense thriller, etc), and the random bits of craziness that most filmmakers wouldn't dare insert into their movies. But Tarantino relishes playing in that pop culture sandbox. So much of what he does seems to be derived from the question: "Wouldn't it be cool if ...?" And more often than not, the answer is yes - yes, that would be pretty freaking cool.

Like I said though, Inglorious Basterds isn't all flash and rock n' roll. There IS a real depth and subtext to this movie, more so than any previous Tarantino film, I think. And that's why some of the criticisms I've read ring false (Newsweek just ran an article condemning the movie for having Jews behave as violently as Nazis, for example). This is a movie that is very funny, over-the-top, and that has a lot of fun with its catharctic central premise. But at the same time, these characters are, like the title says, inglorious. This is a war movie, and in war movies characters, even the so-called heroes, do things that in other contexts one might find reprehensible. I commend Tarantino for not shying away from this. He has fun with his characters but never makes them out to be true-blue heroes. In fact, so much of the movie is about how the horrors of the Nazi regime have bred this group of otherwise-unassuming killers. It's something to think about. It's something that does provide moments where you root for the Basterds to kick Nazi ass. But it also leaves you unsettled. This isn't a black and white movie, and why should it be?

At the end of the day, though, I was fairly blown away by the sheer awesomeness of Inglorious Basterds. To think that it came only one week after the similarly mind-blowing District 9 is hard to fathom, given that it's late August, in theory the dry season for quality movies. I'm not sure where some of the mixed reviews are coming from. Maybe it's that people are so increasingly ADD that they can't stomach a long, dialogue-driven movie anymore? Maybe it's that some thought QT jumped the shark with Death Proof (don't agree) and are no longer giving him a fair shake? I don't know. But to me, Basterds is every bit as vital, as original, as entertaining, and as powerful as Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, or Kill Bill. That to me puts it at or near the top of the list of 2009 thus far. Because with Inglorious Basterds, Tarantino has once again achieved cinematic glory, and I'm just glad I was there to see it.

My Grade: A