Movie Review: Inglourious Basterds

Title: Inglourious Basterds
Director: Quentin Tarantino
Starring: Brad Pitt, Melanie Laurent, Christoph Waltz
Release: August 21, 2009
Rating: R
First Viewing: August 29, 2009

Plot Synopsis

A group of soldiers is charged with the task of striking fear into the heart of the Third Reich by brutally killing any Nazis they come across. These "Inglorious Basterds" take their task seriously, knifing, beating, shooting, and scalping their enemy. Simultaneously, a Jewish woman who escaped the massacre of her family now runs a cinema in France. Both parties want Hitler dead, and they have a plan to assassinate him.

My Thoughts

Flipping awesome! For 2.5 hours I was excited, horrified, saddened, disgusted, and in general entertained. At its heart, this film is a revenge fantasy, and I was carried right along, inwardly cheering as a brave (yes, he was) Nazi soldier is beaten to death with a bat. The violence, the bloodshed, the skin-slicing, brain-bashing images were oddly satisfying.

Christoph Waltz, playing the Jew Hunter, stole the show, and I felt a little thrill every time he was on screen. He made a despicable character absolutely enjoyable. His careful way of acting the part was impressive. Every move, every twitch seemed perfectly deliberate. The other actors also did a greta job, and may I say that I am most fond of Brad Pitt when he is playing farce.

The film was divided into five chapters, and while each offered something special, I have to say that the opening sequence was my favorite. The viewer's entrance into this film is slow, smooth, and stunningly shot and acted. The light playing over the hiding Jews' eyes, the simplicity and starkness of the glass of milk in the hands of a truly evil man, the tortured eyes of a milk-farmer trying and failing to be a hero, these are images that stuck with me even after the vivid and emotional ending.

Rating: 5 out of 5 bags of popcorn