The film, Inglourious Basterds, is a realistic fictional film directed by Quentin Tarantino. It takes place in Nazi occupied France and details the actions of Nazi high command, an American squad referred to as the Inglourious Basterds, and a theatre owner alongside her loyal projector operator. The inclusion of these different storylines appears random in the beginning parts of the film, however their purpose is revealed near the end.
There are many different storylines going on in the film that all intersect at the climax. In the beginning they all seem so separate, however, through the passing of time the destiny of all these storylines becomes more and more apparent. They all converge and have effects on each other when it matters most: they share the same climax.
The character Colonel Hans Landa, played by Christoph Waltz in the film, is a character that carries with him lots of iron. His presence commands attention and keeps the audience on the edge of their seat. His demeanor is calm, but his actions are rarely representative of that. He monologues many times throughout the film; these speeches are cruel and spine chilling. Through the use of symbols, the anticipation and suspense felt by the audience is amplified greatly. He is responsible for many deaths seen in the film and takes the role of the main antagonist. He, even though Adolf Hitler is a character in the film, comes to symbolize the cruelty and immorality of the third reich.
There are select moments in the film where racism among the Nazi’s is explored. These scenes display gut wrenching hatred for those that are all but different than the Nazi’s slanted perfectionist views. Jews are referred to as rats and Africans are seen as inferior, both despicable interpretations. There is one scene in particular where some spies are playing a game with a Nazi Major. This game involves having a card with a famous name on your forehead and guessing the name on the card based on questions you ask the group. The Nazi Major had King Kong on his forehead, however, his guess (based on racist interpretations of the answers to his questions) was “the negro in America” (Tarantino).
There are some moments of comic relief in this mostly serious film. Two of my favorite moments are once before and once during the infiltration of the film premiere event. Prior to the infiltration, while the Americans are planning their roles, Lieutenant Aldo Raine tells Omar that he will pose as the cameraman’s assistant because he speaks the third most italian. This is comical in a superiority theory distinction because Omar doesn’t speak any italian; Lieutenant Aldo Raine tells him to “keep [his] fucking mouth shut.” He continues on to say, “In fact, why don’t you start practicing now?” (Tarantino). The second instance of comic relief that I took a liking to was during the infiltration of the premiere. Lieutenant Aldo Raine, disguised as the prominent italian stuntman Enzo Gorlomi, says, “Bonjourno” to SS Colonel Hans Landa. Lieutenant Aldo Raine does this in a deep American country accent, but Colonel Hans Landa doesn’t question it. This represents the incongruity theory of humor; the audience does not expect Lieutenant Aldo Raine to be so terrible in his attempt to replicate an italian accent, and this incongruity instills humor.
The structure of the film is very much like Quentin Tarantino’s other works. While I was watching the film I noted how similar it is to Kill Bill. First of all, this film has a chapter structure. This I see as reminiscent of of the film Kill Bill film. Other characteristics of the film that hinted to Quentin Tarantino’s work are the long dramatic pauses and music choice. Important scenes are highlighted with classical, Western, or fast paced pop style music.
The theme of this film is one that extends further than even the broadness of World War Two. It is most easily derived from a scene near the end of the film. In this scene, an array of Nazi high command militants are watching a film about a german soldier who kills many American soldiers with ease. They are all cheering and laughing at the misfortune of the Americans. Some time passes and then the tables turn on the Germans; The inglourious basterds and theatre owner start an assault on the Nazis in the theatre, killing them with ease. This puts the audience in the same position as the Germans before the assault: watching a film about their people killing other people and enjoying it. This transition between the Nazis watching a film about them killing Americans and the audience watching the film where Americans kill Nazis puts the audience in a precarious situation. The plot points a finger at anyone who was appalled by the Nazis seeing a film about killing Americans, but satisfied by seeing the Americans gun down the Nazi moviegoers. This leads me to believe that the theme of this film is, “A thirst for revenge depletes humanity”. With revenge in our bloodstream we are blind of the fact that we are all humans, seeing the death of some as good and the death of others as bad.
This film is a timeless classic. It includes great acting, clever cinematography, and a good hearted theme. As such I rate this film as Good-Good.
No comments:
Post a Comment