As many of you can infer from what I've written before, I love Quentin Tarantino. He is by far one of the most absolute best filmmakers in the business today. Without a doubt, Pulp Fiction is one of my favorite films of all time. However, in 2009, Inglorious Basterds was released, and it was argued to be the next best film Quentin's ever made. Is it?
When the Nazi Party had occupied France, there is a group of eight Jewish-American soldiers, lead by another man, Lt. Aldo Raine (Brad Pitt). They had been selected so they can frighten the Nazis, and make sure no Nazi survives by murdering them, and scalping each one after. Soon enough, they receive attention from the Nazis and help a woman, Shosanna Dreyfus (Mélanie Laurent) whose family was shot brutally by Col. Hans Landa (Christoph Waltz), who is currently one of my favorite modern villains.
As with all the hype that went with it before its release, it lived up to it and more. Despite the conversations sometimes being a bit apathetic, the rendezvous at the tavern and most of the climaxes in each act were exciting and make you feel more ebullient in a certain way. The performances were astounding, each character feeling so fresh and distinct, especially by Waltz and the Basterds. Each one stood out uniquely and seeing them ferociously murder a Nazi is just so pleasurable. Quentin Tarantino, once again, created another terrific ensemble.
Out of everything, the script is what steals the show. Every little part of each dialogue is ingeniously written and makes you head-over-heels throughout every act of the film. What stands out the most is the conversation at the beginning of the film, with Hans Landa talking to a dairy farmer (Denis Menochet) about hiding Jews. After that very scene, Waltz was sure to win the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, because he was superlative the whole way through.
This movie is great. Maybe I'm biased towards Tarantino, but his filmmaking contemplation is unrivaled. For every film he makes, it just insults how bland and dull cinema can be, whilst making them surpassingly entertaining, much like the way films made by Stanley Kubrick were. Needless to say, I predict this film will be considered a modern classic for all the right reasons. Inglorious Basterds receives a 3.5/4.