‘Once upon a time in Nazi-occupied France…’

When asked about his long-awaited war epic, Quentin Tarantino said that he wanted it to be his “bunch-of-guys-on-a-mission” movie, but what he has made here goes far beyond any sense of simplicity as the acclaimed director creates a whole new vision of history where there are no rules, no conduct, and absolutely NO crimes behind enemy lines.

Forget about ‘Saving Private Ryan,’ forget about ‘The Longest Day,’ and forget about ‘A Bridge Too Far.’ You haven’t seen the true definition of combat… until you’ve seen it portrayed through the eyes of Quentin Tarantino.

Desperation in the face of evil called upon a group of heroes to save the world, but fate had another plan in mind. Europeans called them saviors, Americans called them prophets, but the Germans called them… “The Basterds.”

If you’re looking to be wowed by historical accuracy and elemental focus, you’re in the wrong theater. Aside from the concentrated structure of the period in which it takes place, ‘Inglourious Basterds’ is simply an exercise of alternative history.

At one point in watching the film, I wrote down in my notepad: this is what happens when you take a kid to the video store, and send him on a scavenger hunt through the war movie section.

The first professional critic who calls it ‘Pulp War Fiction’ will surely be praised for their dull-witted analysis of what Tarantino has accomplished here, but understand, this is not an all-out assault of a movie that runs on endless action and bloody violence.

Now, don’t get me wrong; there is action, and several instances where viewers will cringe at the very thought of what is about to happen, but as fans already know, the dialogue is where Tarantino’s heart lies. I read over the screenplay several times prior to viewing the film, and I can honestly say that this is his finest work since ‘Pulp Fiction.’ And for some, it might even be better.

Before any footage appears, the first thing we see on the screen is “Once Upon A Time in Nazi-Occupied France.” That phrase is bound to sell quite a few t-shirts in the long run as it becomes the primary tagline of the film, but Tarantino is in love with every single shot, and even when his actors have yet to show up, the man still finds a way to draw us into the twisted world of what we’re about to witness.

The cast of ‘Basterds’ is a solid ensemble all around, but the most memorable face of the equation is Christoph Waltz in his role as Hans Landa. Waltz won a “Best Actor” award at Cannes for his performance as the cold-blooded Nazi Colonel who is introduced as “The Jew Hunter.” Landa arrives unexpectedly at a French farmer’s home, and suspects the man may be harboring a Jewish family in his basement.

In the first dialogue driven scene, Landa and his troops convince the farmer to betray the Dreyfus family, and then after two cups of milk, we see the first big massacre of the film. However, one of the Dreyfus children escapes and flees the scene. Her name is Shosanna (Melanie Laurent), and as Landa watches her run off in the distance, we know as well as him, that the two will surely meet again at some point

We are then taken to another section of Europe where we meet Lieutenant Aldo Raine (Brad Pitt). He is a Tennessee native with a personal vendetta against the Nazis, and sporting a sharp mustache with a southern accent that will make you laugh at the very sound of it, Brad Pitt proves himself to be a worthy addition to this widely international cast.

Raine has organized a special team of Jewish American troops, and their mission is simple: kill the Nazis! More specifically, they wish to eliminate every member of the Third Reich, and through a series of brutal executions, we become entirely convinced that these “basterds” will stop at nothing to ensure that justice is served.

The Nazis may have forever earned their place in history as the cruelest beings to ever walk the earth, but in this film, they have met their match. Raine and his crew are as mean as a pit of rattlesnakes, and have only one response to any pleas for mercy: “we’re sorry, but if you look up “mercy” in the dictionary, it comes AFTER “Massacre!”"

The idea behind the character motives sounds almost like a cliché in the Hollywood realm of historical films, but what separates the “basterds” from the Jews of ‘Defiance’ and ‘Munich’ is that everything they do is inspired by the “what if” aspect. Tarantino doesn’t want us to believe any of this to be true; he just wants us to think about it as we watch the film. What if the Jews had fought back? And what if some of them had been given the opportunity to kill a German officer?

It’s difficult to comprehend several historical theories of vengeance, but in a stunning scene where Eli Roth is ordered to “oblige” a loyal Nazi, you can practically feel all the anger and strength of 6 million Jews combined as it rests on the swing of a baseball bat… “Watching you beat Nazis to death is the closest we ever get to goin’ to the movies.

Another crucial player in this web of war and deceit is a German undercover agent named Bridget von Hammersmark (Diane Kruger). Raine and his crew stumble upon Hammersmark through a random circumstance that might leave viewers squinting on its likelihood. But that’s not half as important as what she knows about the leaders of the Third Reich, and how all of them are planning to attend a special premiere at the Paris theatre. The bigger catch, however, is that Hitler himself will also be attending the show.

The “basterds” have undoubtedly reached a golden opportunity to change the face of history, but among the attending leaders is our old friend Colonel Landa, and little does he know that a certain young lady named Emmanuelle Mimieux is the theatre manager. I’m sorry; did I forget to mention that Mimieux is a Jewish refugee… formerly known as Shosanna Dreyfus?

Mastering the very technique that he created in ‘Reservoir Dogs,’ Tarantino structures the concluding act of this epic story into an ultimate showdown where all the key figures end up in the same location with their weapons fully loaded and ready. It is one of the finest action sequences I’ve seen in the last few years, and beyond the style of how it plays out, there is also a great deal of notable homages made to ‘The Dirty Dozen;’ a film Tarantino obviously treasures.

Clocking in at a solid 153 minutes, ‘Basterds’ flows in with the old Tarantino tradition of letting his films take their time, but the more crucial stylistic crossover is his fascination with a nonlinear narrative. Some people don’t understand it, and others just flat out CAN’T stand it, but Tarantino never fails to maintain a fresh element of surprise. You can’t predict where and when the next scene will take place, and even if you saw it several times, you probably wouldn’t remember which one is coming next.

One of the many things I have always admired about Tarantino’s work is that he truly is a one-man wrecking crew. When you watch one of his films, you know that every little bit came from his imagination, and no studio or production manager ever interferes with his sharp focus. This guy loves movies, has studied them tremendously throughout his career, and is not afraid to show us how vast his knowledge is. Some have even gone so far as to accuse him of being “too much” in love with his own style, but aren’t those the same people who would argue that it’s wrong for anyone to actually like what they do for a living?

How it compares to his other films will be up to the individual who can never decide which ‘Kill Bill’ is better, but on its own basis, ‘Basterds’ is by far Tarantino’s best example of a mise-en-scene achievement; whereas all the individual pieces combine into a masterpiece result that is certain to leave its mark on those who experience it.

All the characters are unique, the set designs are exquisite, the dialogue is every bit as catchy as we’d anticipate, and there’s not a single scene that feels any more or less valuable than the one that came before it.

I’ve often been accused of having too wild an imagination, but as I exited the theater, I had somewhat of an alternative historical vision myself: if they live to speak of their exploits in the aftermath, how would a group of renegades like the “basterds” confess their dirty deeds? Obviously Jews don’t talk to priests, but in Tarantino’s universe, I think anyone would believe it if they heard: “Forgive me Father for I have sinned. But understand, I was only “scalping” unto others as I knew they were murdering unto my people. Correction… unto my family.”

Hitler: “Nein Nein Nein Nein Nein!”

Raine: “Oh, YES YES YES YES!”

Grade: A

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Sep 4 2009. Filed under Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry