In one sentence: Inglourious Basterds is the shiz. Quentin Tarantino’s latest film has received a crazy mix of love (gripping dialogue, spectacular performances, great script, ‘Tarantino’s the master’) and hate (too much dialogue, stodgy performances, unoriginal script, ‘Tarantino’s losing his touch’ … blah blah blah … my ass) from the media – a reaction not uncommon when the cult film director is up for debate. I watched Tarantino’s latest with high hopes and the film most certainly did not disappoint.
It was always a great idea to subvert the outcome of World War Two by making an African American, a Jewish woman and a band of Nazi-killing Jews led by an American gentile hailing from the mountains of Tennessee, the ones to destroy Hitler and his psychotic entourage. The escapades of the Nazi-scalping Jews (aka “The BastErds”), fronted by Lt. Aldo Raine (Brad Pitt) aka Aldo the Apache (a name coined by Nazi soldiers referring to the scalping methods adopted by Raine from the Native American Apache tribe), were enthralling to the
max! Even the antics of the lady in the seat next to me, who covered her head with her jersey and emitted rodent-like squeals when a scalping or beating took place, did not deter my attention from what was going down on screen.
Tarantino’s exaggerated characterisations, pop-culturalised violence and intensely funny dialogue are accentuated by a sterling cast, with Austrian actor Christoph Walz (Col. Hans Landa), winner of the Cannes award for best actor, leading the way in awesomeness. A host of spectacular supporting performances by the likes of Michael Fassbender (Lt. Archie Hicox), Martin Wuttke (Adolf Hitler), Eli Roth (Sgt. Donny Donowitz aka “The Bear Jew”) and Diane Kruger (Bridget von 
Hammersmark) bolster the enormity of primary cast members Walz, Pitt and Melanie Laurent (Shosanna Dreyfus). Look out for some great scenes involving a French dairy farmer, apple strudel, a ‘Mexican stand-off’ in a beer hall, a beating meted out by the Bear Jew, Hitler ranting, three Americans speaking ‘Italian’ … okay … pretty much every scene.
Tarantino uses stereotype to comment on the religious and cultural prejudices that were magnified in World War Two. The director’s art is always offensively satirical, expect nothing less. But do expect to be reminded, with tears of hysteria in your eyes, of the predomination of racism (of all kinds) that exists in society 64 years after the world went to war to fight the injustices and oppression associated with dictatorial thinking. The genius of Tarantino is inherent in his ability to make astute observations in a brilliantly entertaining manner and Inglourious Basterds, absolutely and magnificently, lives up to the director’s rep.
