Inglourious Basterds Review: I’d Make That Deal

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Inglourious Basterds. Wow. What a movie. Quentin Tarantino has created another masterpiece, combining adventure and comedy perfectly. The premise of the movie is interesting, but it’s what occurs during the film that makes this such a worthwhile watch. The title card paints a pretty clear picture, but this movie is nothing like 1917 or Dunkirk.

Set during World War II, Inglourious Basterds details the adventures of a group of Jewish-American soldiers as they attempted to kill every nazi they run into. They are opposed by a man who is looking to track down every Jewish person in France, Hans Lada.

The movie opens with what is essentially a monologue with Col. Hans Lada, and I was glued. The dialogue was fantastic, every word placed with meaning, either then or later, and the atmosphere that Tarantino was able to generate through one set of scenes was incredible. Quite quickly, the audience learns everything they need to know about Hans Lada and the style of Inglourious Basterds.

Christoph Waltz is the perfect man to play Col. Hans Lada, playing the role with precision. The mannerisms, cheery with an aggressive edge, were quite interesting to watch, albeit offputting. From the very beginning, it is clear that Hans Lada is not a man to mess with, although Waltz’s performance makes the audience wonder if there are more layers to the despicable genius.

The character gets more fleshed out as the movie progresses, but it was really impressive to watch a character develop in less than 20 minutes using one conversation. The camera angles, the sound effects, the acting, and every piece of cinema came together in that opening to generate the right atmosphere.

The Basterds are also cast impeccably, Aldo Raine and Donny Donowitz being my two favourite Basterds. Aldo Raine, played by Brad Pitt, is a stereotypical American with a heavy accent and a love for violence. He is the leader of the Basterds and such a great character. He’s funny, violent, and charismatic. Tarantino leans heavily into stereotypes in this movie, and it works flawlessly.

This dark comedic relief works really well in between the immense amounts of on-screen violence, creating balance. Above all else, Brad Pitt is also the perfect actor for this role. His facial expressions ooze this calm confidence that borders on cockiness, and his accent is great.

The other basterds all have backstories of some kind that have led them to a life of Nazi killing in France, and I love the details put into each. That is the best part of this movie, it seems to move so quickly, yet everything is shown or explained. It’s an interesting movie, but it’s not a complicated movie. Although the run time is 2:30, it feels so much shorter than that.

The plot bounces around from story to story, between the Basterds, The Cinema, and The Nazis, in such a way that everything feels fresh. You leave one story wanting more, and then 10 minutes later you get some more. It’s a great feedback loop that kept me engaged and intrigued with all of the stories going on, regardless of which I preferred.

The biggest surprise of Inglourious Basterds was the violence. Not even the violence, but the gore shown on screen. When Aldo starts talking about scalping Nazis, I didn’t imagine they would start doing it on screen almost immediately. Everything is shown, no punch is pulled, and that adds a feeling of authenticity to the movie that I quite enjoyed. It also adds some gore that is kinda hard to watch, so be warned.

The rest of the visuals are really, really good. Even the gore is great, it just might be a little bit much for certain audiences. The different camera shots and locations brought the story to life and made an already interesting movie better. The production of a short film within this larger film, detailing Fredrick Zoller’s Nazi war efforts, was an incredible detail. Not only do you see this movie within Inglourious Basterds, but it’s available to watch as a stand-alone within the Extras on the Blue-Ray disc.

The ending of the movie was fantastic, bringing the story to a close in a chaotic, eventful way that represented the rest of the story well. The movie goes out with a bang, not a whisper, and I really enjoyed that.

Inglourious Basterds is one of the best movies I have seen to date. The viewing experience is spectacular and the story is great. I loved the mix of dark humour and serious moments to create an off-balance flow that made the movie interesting. Every step is uncertain, but the movie provides enough detail that it is the curiosity you will feel instead of confusion. I enjoyed this movie, and it’s one of Brad Pitt’s best performances. Would I trade about 10 Netflix movies for another one with this cast? I’d make that deal.