And I want my scalps! - Inglourious Basterds (now with SPOILERS)

DevoutlyApathetic

It's a Tarantino flick and not bad by any means.

It is not the standard summer action movie it was advertised as and the story is not especially good for a Tarantino flick.

Caedere

DevoutlyApathetic wrote: »

Cantido wrote: »

Wow this movie had a lot of talking in it. Goddamn I hate people sitting around shootin' the shit. I hate doing it in real life and I hate it in mai movies. I walked out of the bar scene to take a break. All other parts, (and I mean all of them) were awesome. But that part was a whole lotta tedious nothing.

Don't ever invite me drinking.

Also, I was cackling like a motherfucker when the fire started.

Tarentino is probably not your director in this case. He loves to have characters sit around and shoot the shit. I actually love that about him because his dialogue is a joy to listen to but if it's not your thing then all of his movies are going to have a fair amount of "dead space" for you.

I liked the movie quite a bit. It wasn't any deep meaningful experience but it was well shot, well acted and the story was good enough excuse to watch horrible things happen to nazi's for a couple hours.

Christoph Waltz stole the movie for me. Just an absolute joy to watch him screw with people.

I appreciate the shooting the shit in this film because it all happened under incredibly horrific circumstances, with tons and tons of tension underlying it.

Case in point, from Chapter One:

Spoiler:

You just knew the farmer was harboring Jews from the get-go, and you knew that Landa knew. The whole conversation was incredibly tense for me, and masterfully done.

All of the "talky" scenes in the movie were like that for me - incredibly tense, and in a lot of ways more dramatic than the out and out action.

SniperGuy

I liked it. A friend of mine thought it was miserably bad, because he didn't see the point in it. I tried to explain that the point I saw in it was to show a view of how horrible the Nazis were. How slimy and horrendous of a people they were, even the ones that were relatable. The single German character that is even mildly relatable is Keller, who also ends up being a total douche. Thoughts?

Kyougu

Enjoyed the movie, but man, the middle could have used some cutting.

Johnny Chopsocky

Caedere wrote: »

All of the "talky" scenes in the movie were like that for me - incredibly tense, and in a lot of ways more dramatic than the out and out action.

I LOVED the bar scene. I loved all the conversations. This isn't just people shooting the shit, it's verbal chess. Someone knows something or suspects something and they're trying to get the other guy to either let it slip or just outright give it away.

And like I said earlier, Waltz's character was MASTERFUL. Like a spider wearing a human's skin, drawing people just far enough into his web before he gets exactly what he's looking for.

Kaputa

Elki wrote: »

musanman wrote: »

This movie was really cool. If you didn't like the Kill Bills you wouldn't enjoy it even a little though, because he uses many of the same camera angles, music, and pacing.

Kill Bill's different parts fit together much better than this.

I agree. I just got back from seeing it, and Inglourious Basterds felt really aimless and confused up until the end. I still enjoyed the movie, but it's definitely my least favorite Tarantino film. Ending was really good though.

gigEsmalls

Fluffy, Our Beloved Flopsy Bunny Friend wrote: »

gigEsmalls wrote: »

No way I can convince my gf to see this movie...

Get a new gf.

If breaking up with girls over a movie was so easy But have no fear her friend wants to see it so we may all watch it together next weekend!!

Caedere

Johnny Chopsocky wrote: »

Caedere wrote: »

All of the "talky" scenes in the movie were like that for me - incredibly tense, and in a lot of ways more dramatic than the out and out action.

I LOVED the bar scene. I loved all the conversations. This isn't just people shooting the shit, it's verbal chess. Someone knows something or suspects something and they're trying to get the other guy to either let it slip or just outright give it away.

And like I said earlier, Waltz's character was MASTERFUL. Like a spider wearing a human's skin, drawing people just far enough into his web before he gets exactly what he's looking for.

I about shit myself when he ordered a glass of milk at the restaurant.

Can_Calyx

I liked it. A friend of mine thought it was miserably bad, because he didn't see the point in it. I tried to explain that the point I saw in it was to show a view of how horrible the Nazis were. How slimy and horrendous of a people they were, even the ones that were relatable. The single German character that is even mildly relatable is Keller, who also ends up being a total douche. Thoughts?

No, not at all. There were multiple instances of Nazis acting humane, perhaps moreso than some of the Basterds, without backstabbing. Hans Landa, no, but then again, the Bear Jew wasn't exactly hero quality (aside from the viewer's preconcieved delight at watching a Nazi's head busted in with a baseball bat).

The entire movie was about propaganda- some would say was propaganda- showing something that proports to be one thing, but is entirely eschewing reality in its favor. Almost every character proported to be someone else at some point in the film, at times concurrently with another character attempted the exact same deception. This is what made the varying scenes of lengthy dialog worthwhile, because it provided tension, and, in the end, an overarching theme.

hyperpower

Heh
Loved this film so, so much - especially the wonderful dialogue and over the top accents. Mike Myers was awesome

Now I want to play Wolfenstein

Toma

Caedere wrote: »

Johnny Chopsocky wrote: »

Caedere wrote: »

All of the "talky" scenes in the movie were like that for me - incredibly tense, and in a lot of ways more dramatic than the out and out action.

I LOVED the bar scene. I loved all the conversations. This isn't just people shooting the shit, it's verbal chess. Someone knows something or suspects something and they're trying to get the other guy to either let it slip or just outright give it away.

And like I said earlier, Waltz's character was MASTERFUL. Like a spider wearing a human's skin, drawing people just far enough into his web before he gets exactly what he's looking for.

I about shit myself when he ordered a glass of milk at the restaurant.

I actually thought the payoff for the tavern scene

Spoiler:

(the frat party and standoff)

was bigger than the finale of the film. It didn't feel like any of the dialogue was wasted, and

Spoiler:

at least our audience had a good reaction to the King Kong gag.

Also, I liked how that even though the Basterds were only on screen 25% of the time, they had a presence the entire film. I don't know if I could see them put into the film any more, other than just more violence for the sake of violence.

verpakeyes

My Facebook status before I went to the movie was: going to see some bastards being inglorious and kill some Nazis.

I say this so its clear I was expecting a movie where I was able to enjoy the somewhat wanton slaughter of hilliariously bad people.


Instead I got an absolutely masterful work on what irrational hate does to people. A beautiful, poignant, piece about becoming a monster, when you fight monsters for too long. And most importantly an amazing reflection of the audience's own hates and ability to stereotype a perceived enemy.

I was a little disturbed by the amount of cheering in my theater at the end of the film.

Spoiler:

when the radio operator was shot, and Hans was permanently "uniformed"

I think there was a very strong message in Brad Pitt's desire to have the people he hated all wear the same uniform.

Elki

verpakeyes wrote: »

I was a little disturbed by the amount of cheering in my theater at the end of the film.

Spoiler:

when the radio operator was shot, and Hans was permanently "uniformed"

That one, with the sudden casualness of it, looked like it was shot for laughs.

Kaputa

I thought that, if he had gone a little further, Tarantino could have done something really interesting by making the audience cheer when the Bastards do horrible unjustifiable things to their enemies, just because it's happening to Nazis. I got that vibe at a few points, and if he had gone farther with it the movie could have been a pretty cool social experiment kinda thing.

verpakeyes

Kaputa wrote: »

I thought that, if he had gone a little further, Tarantino could have done something really interesting by making the audience cheer when the Bastards do horrible unjustifiable things to their enemies, just because it's happening to Nazis. I got that vibe at a few points, and if he had gone farther with it the movie could have been a pretty cool social experiment kinda thing.

I think he had one scene that was absolutely like this.

Spoiler:

When the "Jew Bear" beat the shit out of the german commander for refusing to turn on his countrymen.

I felt really bad for the german when


*prods Iron cross* You get this for killing Jews?

I received it for bravery

*Beats the german's head in*

But In general I think I agree with you, THe whole movie long I couldn't tell if QT realized what he was doing. Sometimes he seemed to totally get it

Spoiler:

Hans Landa: Some would even call it a terrorist plot!

And then the end scene( for example) would seem to indicate he didn't have a clue.


Most intellectually stimulating movie I have seen in well over a week!

Elki

Because I sometimes miss things, it's been just pointed out to me Pitt's final line is probably Tarantino talking.

Spoiler:

"I think I've finally made my masterpiece."

Should've realized it from everything I read before watching the movie.

CmdPrompt

Caedere wrote: »

DevoutlyApathetic wrote: »

Cantido wrote: »

Wow this movie had a lot of talking in it. Goddamn I hate people sitting around shootin' the shit. I hate doing it in real life and I hate it in mai movies. I walked out of the bar scene to take a break. All other parts, (and I mean all of them) were awesome. But that part was a whole lotta tedious nothing.

Don't ever invite me drinking.

Also, I was cackling like a motherfucker when the fire started.

Tarentino is probably not your director in this case. He loves to have characters sit around and shoot the shit. I actually love that about him because his dialogue is a joy to listen to but if it's not your thing then all of his movies are going to have a fair amount of "dead space" for you.

I liked the movie quite a bit. It wasn't any deep meaningful experience but it was well shot, well acted and the story was good enough excuse to watch horrible things happen to nazi's for a couple hours.

Christoph Waltz stole the movie for me. Just an absolute joy to watch him screw with people.

I appreciate the shooting the shit in this film because it all happened under incredibly horrific circumstances, with tons and tons of tension underlying it.

Case in point, from Chapter One:

Spoiler:

You just knew the farmer was harboring Jews from the get-go, and you knew that Landa knew. The whole conversation was incredibly tense for me, and masterfully done.

All of the "talky" scenes in the movie were like that for me - incredibly tense, and in a lot of ways more dramatic than the out and out action.

Exactly. Personally I find he's a bit hit and miss with those type of scenes (Grindhouse had me checking my watch a lot), but it absolutely worked here.

Incredible acting as well, and not just from Christoph Waltz and Brad Pitt.

Behemoth

Just got back from this.

Best movie of the summer. I loved the bar scene.

Spoiler:

I knew as soon as the British agent put up his fingers that he had given himself away. What a great detail.

DeMoN

Behemoth wrote: »

Just got back from this.

Best movie of the summer. I loved the bar scene.

Spoiler:

I knew as soon as the British agent put up his fingers that he had given himself away. What a great detail.

I knew too

Spoiler:

you could just see it on the nazi's face

I thought he gave himself away with the way he said 3 though. The actual reason was more interesting.


also, the hand guns that Donnie and the other Basterd used to punch the guards? So fucking cool.

jjbuck05

Fantastic movie, for all the reasons that have been stated.

My lone complaint is this:

Spoiler:

Landa's killing of Von Hammersmark becomes senseless in light of his subsequent decision to let the Basterds' plot succeed. He has no personal grudge against her, and he is far too clinical and rational for it to be explained by rage at her betrayal of Germany, especially since he immediately turns around and does the same.

msh1283

verpakeyes wrote: »

Kaputa wrote: »

I thought that, if he had gone a little further, Tarantino could have done something really interesting by making the audience cheer when the Bastards do horrible unjustifiable things to their enemies, just because it's happening to Nazis. I got that vibe at a few points, and if he had gone farther with it the movie could have been a pretty cool social experiment kinda thing.

I think he had one scene that was absolutely like this.

Spoiler:

When the "Jew Bear" beat the shit out of the german commander for refusing to turn on his countrymen.

I felt really bad for the german when


*prods Iron cross* You get this for killing Jews?

I received it for bravery

*Beats the german's head in*

But In general I think I agree with you, THe whole movie long I couldn't tell if QT realized what he was doing. Sometimes he seemed to totally get it

Spoiler:

Hans Landa: Some would even call it a terrorist plot!

And then the end scene( for example) would seem to indicate he didn't have a clue.


Most intellectually stimulating movie I have seen in well over a week!

He absolutely knew what he was doing. QT knows film and film theory and you can bet that there's not much in the movie that's unintentional.

Here's the main directorial themes/tricks I picked up on. Going to see it again soon so I can hopefully think on these some more and expand on the ideas

Spoiler:

Parallelling Hitler and the audience...we're identifying with the "heroic" bastards, laughing at their crudeness and inhumanity. This is really driven home by Hitler's uproarious laughter while watching the movie. I thought the treatment of the last two personal killing scenes (strangling and gunshots in the projection booth) really brought the violence that we'd been enjoying into a serious light. Everything gets really sober after that, then you see Adolf cracking up in the opera box.

It's a really old film theory convention...making the audience identify with the bad guy...think about how tense you are when watching Psycho and the car is sinking into the swamp (is it a tar pit? I can't remember). You're on the edge of your seat, almost hoping that the car starts sinking again.

The second one is about the historical limits of a story and directorial control...is it ok to rewrite history and kill Hitler? QT literally kills him with film!

Also, the

Spoiler:

glass of milk in the restaurant...had a few conversations about this, but haven't resolved it in my head. Was the milk directorial misdirection or is Col. Landa really that omniscient? Does he know what she's planning and let her go a second time? For that matter, why does he let her go in the first scene? He has men and vehicles, they could have easily chased her down.

CmdPrompt

msh1283 wrote: »

Also, the

Spoiler:

glass of milk in the restaurant...had a few conversations about this, but haven't resolved it in my head. Was the milk directorial misdirection or is Col. Landa really that omniscient? Does he know what she's planning and let her go a second time? For that matter, why does he let her go in the first scene? He has men and vehicles, they could have easily chased her down.

Spoiler:

Milk was almost certainly directorial misdirection, especially since it adds tension to the question he forgets.

As for why he lets her go, I'm guessing he wanted the thrill of the hunt.

lordswing

A minor question about Aldo Raine's habits

Spoiler:

Was it cocaine that he kept sniffing?

I also had the same question about the milk.

Amazing movie, and like others, I loved the bar scene.

Igpx407

hyperpower wrote: »

Heh
Loved this film so, so much - especially the wonderful dialogue and over the top accents. Mike Myers was awesome

Now I want to play Wolfenstein

I want to play Wolfenstein after seeing this too. I wish that game had turned out better than mediocre. But man that movie. I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. Not the best of the summer, but it's up there.

No Cars Go

It was Snuff that he was sniffing.

tofu

It was alright. I thought the Basterds plot really dragged it down though, I think it would have been a fantastic movie without them.

Although Brad Pitt was pretty entertaining he didn't make up for how awful Eli Roth was.

Professor Snugglesworth

I caught this last night with a couple of friends. The theater cheered and clapped several times, including every single time Brad Pitt opened his mouth. Who'd have thought Nazi brutality could unite so many people together?

But yeah, movie was awesome, despite a really long, Tarintino-tentious middle. I would've liked to see more Basterd hijinks and a shorter chapter with the french woman, but the payoff was more than worth it. I consider this Tarintino's best movie, and Brad Pitt needs an oscar for his role.

Spoiler:

although that would keep Wikus from getting one.

tofu

An Oscar, really?

Professor Snugglesworth

Why not?

tofu

Because he wasn't that good.

Professor Snugglesworth

I respectfully disagree.

SniperGuy

tofu wrote: »

It was alright. I thought the Basterds plot really dragged it down though, I think it would have been a fantastic movie without them.

Although Brad Pitt was pretty entertaining he didn't make up for how awful Eli Roth was.

...what?! Eli Roth was basically the best part. That sneering grin he has during the "briefing" is fucking fantastic.

Kaputa

Elki wrote: »

Because I sometimes miss things, it's been just pointed out to me Pitt's final line is probably Tarantino talking.

Spoiler:

"I think I've finally made my masterpiece."

Should've realized it from everything I read before watching the movie.

Which is weird to me, since I liked both Kill Bills, Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs, and Death Proof more than this.

Radikal_Dreamer

jjbuck05 wrote: »

Fantastic movie, for all the reasons that have been stated.

My lone complaint is this:

Spoiler:

Landa's killing of Von Hammersmark becomes senseless in light of his subsequent decision to let the Basterds' plot succeed. He has no personal grudge against her, and he is far too clinical and rational for it to be explained by rage at her betrayal of Germany, especially since he immediately turns around and does the same.

Spoiler:

I think that was highlighting just how fucked up his character really is. He just enjoys killing things for the sake of it. It isn't that he hates the Jews or anything that he hunts them. Hell, he even states he doesn't think calling them rats is an insult at all. He really is just an animal on the hunt. At this point in the movie he got his prey, and that was all.

Also, he didn't know that the U.S. would take his offer before he took Aldo and Little Man away and talked to them, so he would have needed to kill her if they didn't give him any deal and he needed to be the hero that foiled the American plot. And if they did agree to his terms afterwards, leaving her alive would be too big of a risk. If he left her alive she could somehow stop the mission, because she knows that he knows.

Aside from that stuff, I think the killing was primarily a bit of directorial misdirection. It really makes you think Aldo's being taken to be tortured or something. It ratchets up the intensity a ton.

Toma

So, just read a summary of the (pre?)Cannes version ending...

Spoiler:

The ending was a bit different, since the two basterds left in the theater don't gun down hitler (and instead he just blows up by the hands of Landa) and Donny dies in a bathroom shootout with a German that recognizes him. Additionally, Shosanna's shooting of her BFF and herself is triggered by the gunfight instead.

Not sure how true that is, but wonder if they'll include it in extras if that is how it went down.

Zombiemambo

jjbuck05 wrote: »

Fantastic movie, for all the reasons that have been stated.

My lone complaint is this:

Spoiler:

Landa's killing of Von Hammersmark becomes senseless in light of his subsequent decision to let the Basterds' plot succeed. He has no personal grudge against her, and he is far too clinical and rational for it to be explained by rage at her betrayal of Germany, especially since he immediately turns around and does the same.

Spoiler:

He seems like the kind of guy who would kill you for causing him any trouble. One can assume his original intent was not to defect and allow the Third Reich to be destroyed, but he later finds that he can leverage the knowledge of the plot to kill Hitler to benefit himself - to a greater degree than if he simply stopped the explosives from ever going off.

Speaker

I think I'll be going to see this on tuesday.

Caramel Genocide

Where does this movie fall on the Quentin Tarantino Movie Violence scale?

Zombiemambo

Caramel Genocide wrote: »

Where does this movie fall on the Quentin Tarantino Movie Violence scale?

Spoiler:

There are a few violent scenes in it, but overall it's not really Nazi carnage like the trailer would have you believe.

Grendel72

Loved it.
The whole revenge/propaganda thing was awesome, but one thing I found amusing that I haven't seen mentioned:

Spoiler:

One thing I found amusing was the whole subplot with Shosanna and the German soldier- he behaves in a way we've seen in every romantic comedy ever, and it's fucking creepy.
A movie in many ways about propaganda takes on a different sort of propaganda...