Author Topic: [Movie] Inglorious Basterds  (Read 3257 times)

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Offline TheOutlawXanadu

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[Movie] Inglorious Basterds
« on: November 21, 2009, 11:16:59 AM »
[Movie] Inglorious Basterds
Tarantino
2009

There are two types of great films.

The first type of great film touches you on a deeply emotional level that leaves your brain churning. Perhaps it leaves you with a profound sense of sadness, dampening the remainder of your day in the process. Or, maybe it leaves you with a rekindled optimism toward the world, changing the way you perceive your external environment for the better. And - last example - maybe it confuses and mind-fucks you so hard you're left pondering what just happened.

The second type of great film isn't as touching as it is simply a phenomenal time at the cinema. It's the type of picture you go see with friends on a Friday evening, and by the time the closing credits roll, you're left wondering whether or not you should even bother trying to do anything else that night because nothing's going to top the experience you just lived. You weren't just seeing a film; for two hours, you were having the time of your life.

Quentin Tarantino is the master of the latter. That's not to say his works don't leave you thinking or touch you on any level, but for the most part, they're just a blast. Inglorious Basterds, which I watched for the first time on opening night in August, recently re-screened at the local student theater, and after seeing it a second time, I can safely pronounce it one of his best movies ever and easily the best film of at least the past two or three years.

There's nothing one could want from a movie from an entertainment standpoint it doesn't offer. It's frequently hilarious; not chuckle or smirk funny but literally laugh-out-loud funny (Who thought Italian with a southern accent was even possible?). It's supremely suspenseful, nearly each chapter (It's split into five) featuring a moment of such implication you're clutching at the person next to you wondering what's going to happen. And, most importantly, it's interesting because of how intelligent it is. Despite the gore and vulgarity, there's not one scene that insults you as a viewer.

Two criticisms have arisen of the film I'd like to address.

First, the dialog. There's lots of it. A shit-ton of it, really. There's a scene in a bar that's essentially a half-hour of talking. Some have claimed it gets boring and drags the movie down, but I vehemently disagree. If it's not being humorous or used to flesh out a character (The Jew Hunter's monologue about Jews, for example), it's being used to make the scenes more suspenseful, which worked everytime. Some will disagree, but at both showings I attended, the seats were packed and during those long stretches, few in the crowd seemed restless and once the payoff came, people were gasping in satisfaction.

Second, Tarantino's pretentiousness in paying tribute to old films every which-way possible. Some have claimed the film is not original because Tarantino takes so many queues from his idols, which is a silly argument. When the Basterds break Hugo Stlglitz out of jail, how does the fashion in which Tarantino chooses to show it make it any less funny when, the entire time, all Stlglitz does is smoke a cigarette and nod his head? When The Jew Hunter begins conversing with the Frenchman at the outset of Chapter One, does it make it any less suspenseful that Tarantino chose to introduce the army heading for the Frenchman's home on a hill from a distance, a shot we've all seen numerous times?

Nah. It doesn't change anything. And if you still think it does, 88% of 250 critics at Rotten Tomatoes who've seen way more movies than you disagree.

(Not to claim RT is always right. There is no objective right and I frequently disagree with them. But if his paying tribute doesn't bother most of them as critics who've seen all the films Tarantino references and thousands more, why should it bother you?)

Bottom line is: Everyone I've talked to who saw Inglorious Basterds was skeptical going in. Especially when it becomes apparent ten minutes in there's going to be way more talking than action. But both shows I attended ended with rousing applause, and everyone I've talked to was more than pleasantly surprised by it. Such praise speaks wonders to Tarantino's genius; the way he allows for hardcore and casual viewers alike to enjoy his craft on the same level, and the way he devotes years of his life to projects so they can kick our asses for a couple of hours at a time.

Rating: **** (out of four)
:TOX: <-- My own emoticon!

Offline Valdor

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Re: [Movie] Inglorious Basterds
« Reply #1 on: November 22, 2009, 01:48:14 AM »
I totally agree with this review; Basterds truly was a phenomenal piece of cinema. I think the talking scene at the bar was actually my favorite. After all that tension building I nearly jumped off my seat when hell finally broke loose.  :eek

Rating:  :hefdaddy :hefdaddy :hefdaddy :hefdaddy (out of four)
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Offline Portrucci

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Re: [Movie] Inglorious Basterds
« Reply #2 on: November 22, 2009, 02:58:17 AM »
I totally agree with this review; Basterds truly was a phenomenal piece of cinema. I think the talking scene at the bar was actually my favorite. After all that tension building I nearly jumped off my seat when hell finally broke loose.  :eek

Rating:  :hefdaddy :hefdaddy :hefdaddy :hefdaddy (out of four)
This is my view too. 4 hefdaddys out of 5
on par with the anguish one would have from getting unconsensually bent over and buttloved.

Offline Scurvy!Dreams

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Re: [Movie] Inglorious Basterds
« Reply #3 on: November 22, 2009, 03:15:18 AM »
Great review.

The dialogue in this is amazing. Most of the scenes are insanely long, but it's only after the tension is finally relieved that you realize, "Shit! They were just talking for like 20 minutes!"

Offline GuineaPig

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Re: [Movie] Inglorious Basterds
« Reply #4 on: November 22, 2009, 10:25:51 AM »
The movie was one of the most suspenseful I've ever watched.  The plot went off in unexpected ways, which was really cool because I did not anticipate any of the the plot twists at all.  Really fresh and interesting cinema.
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Offline Space Invader

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Re: [Movie] Inglorious Basterds
« Reply #5 on: November 22, 2009, 11:06:07 AM »
I guess I need to see this movie then....
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