SYNOPSIS: In the first year of the German occupation of France, Shosanna Dreyfus (Melanie Laurent) witnesses the execution of her family at the hand of Nazi Colonel Hans Landa (Christoph Waltz). Shosanna narrowly escapes and flees to Paris where she forges a new identity as the owner and operator of a cinema.  Elsewhere in Europe, lieutenant Aldo Raine (Brad Pitt) organizes a group of Jewish American soldiers to perform swift, shocking acts of retribution. Later known to their enemy as "the basterds," Raine's squad joins German actress and undercover agent Bridget von Hammersmark (Diane Kruger) on a mission to take down the leaders of the Third Reich. Fates converge under a cinema marquis, where Shosanna is poised to carry out a revenge plan of her own....

REVIEW:  Lt. Aldo Raine: Each and every man under my command owes me one hundred Nazi scalps... and I want my scalps!

Lt. Aldo Raine: You probably heard we ain't in the prisoner-takin' business; we in the killin' Nazi business. And cousin, Business is a-boomin'.

I thought I had seen it all when it comes to Brad Pitt after watching his performance in Burn After Reading. He added so much to that movie with that quirky character, his performance alone makes it worth watching. Well guess what friends, he’s done it again. Brad Pitt is the man and he continues to amaze me. He plays Lt. Aldo Raine (refer to quotes above) and you just got to see it to believe it. He’s deadly serious but so incredibly hilarious at the same time, especially with that accent. Speaking of accents, Diane Kruger gets to speak her native tongue in this picture (German) which was nice to see and hear. Eye opening performances were delivered from these two as well as Christoph Waltz who plays the central villain, Col. Hans Landa. He could easily bring chills up anyone’s spine. Melanie Laurent also hits the bull’s eye with her character, a persecuted Jew, Shosanna. The overall cast was superbly selected and the acting by each of them was just as superb for this kind of flick.

But it’s not all about the actors and the cast, Quentin Tarantino has done it again also. Just when you thought you couldn’t be more turned off by his juvenile style of story telling, BAM! he comes out with this gem. By the way, that is if his juvenile style turns you off because I for one enjoy it. It is a unique movie style and it is a lot of fun to watch. But don’t worry, this movie pleases both schools of thought. Those that want some more of that classic Tarantino blood, gore, in your face, no holds barred stuff will not be disappointed. There is a good amount of that here too. You’ll get that typical music and sounds you only hear in a Tarantino film. Actually there are a few moments extremely reminiscent of Kill Bill as far as music, look and feel. There is even some Sam Jackson doing a little bit of the narrative. Those that are turned off by all that will be pleased to see a less juvenile Tarantino tackling a more serious subject matter with plenty of drama, intense moments and scenarios, deep stare downs, a more meaningful story, and excellent cinematography. My main critique of this film is that due to the more dramatic nature, some scenes seem to be a little slow. Keep in mind that this journey is about two and a half hours long, but very much worth the admission price. Oh yeah, there are some really funny moments too. Another interesting aspect is the use of languages. It flows between English, French, and German quite smoothly. Something interesting/funny that I noticed was that the subtitles would read “yes” and sometimes “oui”. Quentin is a character. As for his body of work, this is easily one of his best. If you are a Tarantino fan, this is a must see.

People Review Inglourious Basterds