Inglourious Basterds

Hey all,

The new film from Quentin Tarantino is out after 8 year of work. I saw it today, but I have to admit that I was disappointed. With a running time of over 2 1/2 hours, the film felt long. The opening scene really drags and is loaded with dialogue. It's supposed to be dramatic and increasingly suspenseful, but I felt that it failed in this regard. These moments occur a few times throughout the movie, but they tend to be anti-climatic and wasted screen time. Honestly, I expected a fast paced action movie which I knew would be gory and violent, but the action was usually abbreviated which left me unfulfilled. And, for anyone who thinks that I just don't like Tarantino, I love Pulp Fiction and like Reservoir Dogs and, while the dialogue in those movies seems interesting and witty, it feels wasted and drawn out in this movie. I had incredibly high hopes for Inglourious Basterds, but it didn't live up to its expectations for me. On imbd.com, it's rated at 8.6, so I may have not watched it in the right mood. For any one who wants a synopsis, I'll discuss the beginning of the movie.

It starts in France with a character who is hiding Jews and gives them up (this must have taken at least 10 minutes if not 20) which introduces you to two of the central characters. Then, you meet the Basterds. They are a Jewish American force lead by a part-Native American lieutenant played by Brad Pitt. He's excellent in this role just like most of his movies. Honestly, he is probably the only face you'll recognize in the movie unless you know who Eli Roth, Sam Levine, or B. J. Novak are. The Basterds only have one mission, and that's to kill Nazis. Lieutenant Aldo (Pitt) also wants his men to scalp their enemies, and they oblige their leader. At this point, a short back story is provided for a couple of the Basterds. As the story advances, a German war hero takes a liking to a young woman who is a Jew that escaped execution at the beginning of the movie. This German has a movie about himself that he wishes to show in her cinema, and she eventually comes around to the proposition simply because she has no choice. This premier is such an opportunity for propaganda that many of the High Officers will be at the showing, and a plot begins. I won't tell you anymore. It's entertaining but not great. 6/10