Rated R for strong graphic violence, language and brief sexuality. 
153 Minutes
Written and Directed By: Quentin Tarantino
Staring: Brad Pitt, Melanie Laurent, Christoph Waltz, Eli Roth, Michael Fassbender, Diane Kruger, Daniel Bruhl, Til Schweiger, Gedeon Burkhard, Jacky Ido, Omar Doom, and B.J. Novak
Each and every man under my command owes me one hundred Nazi scalps… and I want my scalps!. -Lt. Aldo Raine
Review
Inglourious Basterds is the best movie I have seen this summer and in my opinion one of the greatest Quentin Tarantino films to date. My favorite Tarantino film is Pulp Fiction. Many people claim that his films have too much dialogue, are foul and excessively violent. These are the exact reasons that I love them. I enjoy films that take you on a wild ride and allow you to escape which is exactly what Inglorious Basterds did.
I have had the wonderful opportunity to see this film twice in two different settings. My first time seeing it was the Saturday of its opening during a matinee showing by myself. Matinee showings are my preferred time to see movies because there are less people which equals less idiots in the theater. The second time was this past Friday where I was able to see an evening show with my wife. I love seeing a film a second time and seeing the response of people watching it for the first time. I must admit that Tarantino films do well with a large audience because they ellicit a lot of crowd participation. Unfortunately, that means some inappropriate participation.
Since this has already been reviewed I am going to skip the synopsis and go directly into my thoughts on the film as a whole. I loved the feel of the film and the chapter format that was used to nicely separate the film. The chapters helped with the flow of the film. I must admit that I was always anxiously awaiting any chapter that had Lt. Aldo Raines and his Basterds in it. The first chapter did a fabulous job of truly setting the tone for the film and reminding the audience (not that most needed it) that the Nazi’s were ruthless and truly thought of themselves as superior beings, as the master race!
Inglorious Basterds has a truly international cast with actors hailing from Spain, Germany and the United States. This gave the movie a true sense of reality because the actors did not have to stumble through horrible attempts at accents except for the times where their characters called for it. There are so many wonderful character actors as is par for the course. Just like all Tarantino films there some wonderful characters. Christoph Waltz was truly a scene stealer. His character is a nice mix of brutality and comedic relief and is so unique that I could see a movie revolving around his exploits. My personal favorite characters aside from the obvious Lt. Aldo Raines played by Brad Pitt are Sgt. Hugo Stiglitz played by Til Schweiger and Sgt. Donny Donowitz played by Eli Roth.
Til Schweiger has had some unfortunate roles in the past, all from Uwe Boll films. This is one of his biggest films in the United States since Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life and The Replacement Killers. I loved the brutality and violence surrounding his character. One of my favorite scenes with him
was at the bar for the rendezvous. His facial expressions were priceless. In fact, he has very few lines in the film but what he does say is priceless. During the scene where his character is first introduced I was happy to hear the soothing voice of Samuel L. Jackson as the narrator of the action.
Eli Roth reminds me a lot of Quentin Tarantino because he is multi-talented. His role as Sgt. Donny Donowitz has shown that he can add actor to his already full slate of credits. His IMDB bio is a pretty 
interesting read if you have the time, I would recommend it. The evil glint in his characters eye was perfect as the violence occurred at his hands. You can see that same look in his eyes in the picture to the left.
Lets get down to brass tax on what I liked and what I dont like about the movie. The film is wonderfully shot with superb lighting and rich colors that truly pop off of the screen. I loved the detailed costumes of the film. As you can see from the images the costuming is pretty awesome for this movie, each character has a unique pieces. I specifically loved the costumes of the Nazi soldiers and officers, such realistic detail was used. The music is phenomenal and expertly timed throughout the 
film adding an extra dynamic layer to the film. Ennio Morricone is a wonderful composer and his music gave a wonderful feeling similar to spaghetti westerns. For instance in the first chapter the music used made it feel like a standoff was about to occur. In addition, you have to love the David Bowie song used when Shoshana played by Melanie Laurent is getting ready. I loved the dialogue and how quick it was between the characters. My only complaint is that we could have seen more of Brad Pitt and the Basterds. I really would have loved to see more of them ambushing the Nazi’s.
This is definitely one of my favorite Quentin Tarantino films and the best movie that I have seen this summer. I am hoping that they will consider doing a prequel to this movie with more focus given to the Basterds themselves. If you love this movie and enjoy WWII movies I would highly recommend that you watch two of my favorite classic films The Dirty Dozen(1967) and Force 10 from Navarone (1978).
“Many people claim that his films have too much dialogue, are foul and excessively violent. These are the exact reasons that I love them.”
Well said, well said! I couldn’t agree more!
I think hands down this was the best movie of 2009 so far. Your review definitely got it right Jim!
i liked this movie pretty good and i don’t usually like war movies unless they are all epic style but then this didn’t feel like a war movie. the ending was the best part.
My girlfriend doesn’t really want to watch this because films about Nazi’s bother her. I really liked it and I might have to agree with it being one of the best Tarantino films I’ve seen. I also agree that there should have been more with the Basterds but Christoph Waltz was a great distraction when the Basterds weren’t on screen.
I’m not ashamed to say that I’m ass over teacups in love with Col. Hans Landa in this movie, who is hands-down one of the best movie villains ever. That aside, there are scores of other things I love about “Inglourious Basterds”: the music, the acting (Melanie Laurent, Brad Pitt and Eli Roth are GREAT), the film’s disjointed structure and, naturally, all the little Tarantino trademarks sprinkled throughout. This is easily one of QT’s best, and possibly might top “Reservoir Dogs” for me.
I think that his devilish smile is awash over his face as he knows he has solved the mystery. He truly thinks of himself as a detective and not a war criminal.
It’s the preposterous politeness that he just devours his prey with that intrigues me. He is a true opportunist and makes this film viciously delightful.
Thanks for being the first commenter of my first review @ Movie Mobsters!