The Movie
I enjoyed the cheesy charms of The Inglorious Bastards when I had the chance to watch the Blu-ray this past summer, a disc which included a lengthy, obsessive Quentin Tarantino interview with that 1978 film's director, Enzo Castellari. So I was surprised at the drastic changes made for Tarantino's meticulously produced revenge fantasy Inglourious Basterds. A few details remain; a German defector, the beautiful blonde heroine of the French resistance, The Big Plan; yet everything is different, too.
It's the same war, but this time a team of O.S.S. operatives codenamed "The Basterds" has been dropped into occupied France, 1944, tasked with killing and scalping 100 Nazis each. These anti-heroes of dubious lineage, led by Lieutenant Aldo Raine (Brad Pitt) are absent for much the two-and-a-half-hour running time, but we are more than consoled by the frequent appearance of S.S. officer Colonel Hans Landa, a star-making performance by Christoph Waltz. Superbly balancing charm, levity, and seething menace, Waltz's Landa also speaks four different languages like a native, a supremely capable monster who will likely inhabit our nightmares in the evenings ahead.
The movie offers traces of Tarantino's past works, many of the tricks that made him a "name" director are on display here, and yet the dialogue and pacing show a great formality, often a slowness, and a self-conscious flair that evokes the Westerns of yesteryear. We laugh too, sometimes when we least expect to, as once again over-the-top bloodshed can be quite amusing. Without spoiling the final moments of the film, we learn that this is not just another lost chapter of World War II, it's something unique, which is nothing less than we've come to expect from one of Hollywood's most celebrated writer/directors.
Be sure to read Lexi Feinberg's review of Inglourious Basterds, too.
The Picture
The image quality is simply gorgeous, with a natural filmic appearance that delivers sumptuous detail in the landscapes, the costumes, the faces. Shapes and textures in the backgrounds can sometimes take on an artificial look in this digital medium, but not so consistently as to really compromise the experience. Small areas within the 2.4:1 frame can be a bit twitchy; a shadowy arch, a leafy tree in the far distance; but instances of video noise are few and far between. Little comes between us and Tarantino's precisely crafted cinema.
The Sound
The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 is a perfect vessel for the bursts of action throughout, the loud blasts of vintage guns, often from different sources simultaneously. The music--which appears to be all pre-existing tracks, not an original score--is often mixed across the entire soundstage, for an engaging effect that really pulls us into the moment. Discrete surrounds are also utilized for a knock, a champagne cork popping, etc., but the movie is also built around long stretches of simple dialogue, so it's terrific when it needs to be but not always thrilling, sonically.
The Extras
Two extended scenes and one alternate are revealed, eleven-and-a-half minutes total, in high-definition with Dolby Digital 5.1 audio. Nation's Pride serves up the entire Eli Roth production (six minutes, in SD), the movie-within-the-movie which is interspersed throughout Act III, deliberately comical at points and with its own faux "making of," too (four minutes, HD, with the Pride clips looking better here than in its full presentation). "Roundtable Discussion with Quentin Tarantino, Brad Pitt and Elvis Mitchell" is an extensive, chaptered on-camera interview by the noted film expert (31 minutes, HD). "Film Poster Gallery Tour with Elvis Mitchell" (eleven minutes, SD) is something of a misnomer, as it deeply explores the imagery and underlying themes used within the film.
"The Original Inglorious Bastards" celebrates Castellari's sorta-classic (seven-and-a-half minutes, SD), while "A Conversation with Rod Taylor" (seven minutes, HD, with text introduction) is paired with "Rod Taylor on Victoria Bitter" (three minutes more about the mutual respect between the popular actor and his director). "Quentin Tarantino's Camera Angel" (three minutes, SD) is a funny sequence with the clapboard gal, and "Hi Sallys" (two minutes, also SD) collects the little on-set shout-outs to film editor Sally Menke, toiling away back in her suite.
Disc 1 is BD-Live-enabled, including online support for the "Killin' Nazis Trivia Challenge," six "operations" with ten multiple choice questions each, with movie clips, our results ranked against other players. In addition, Inglorious Basterds supports the "pocket BLU" application, allowing select bonus features to be enjoyed on an iPhone or iPod touch, while also using the device as a remote control and virtual keyboard. Disc Two is a DVD-ROM carrying a Digital Copy of the movie for iTunes and Windows Media.
Final Thoughts
The Inglorious Bastards was never a runaway mainstream hit, so few moviegoers will likely be disappointed or even confused by these new Inglourious Basterds. Quentin Tarantino's distinctive take on Nazis is a movie all its own, one that no World War II film buff should miss.
Product Details
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