“Attack
Force Z” is an Australian movie that is most known for starring young future
stars Mel Gibson and Sam Neill.It was
directed by Tim Burstall and was filmed in Taiwan.The movie was premiered at Cannes, but after
that was only shown briefly in Australian theaters.It was a flop.It was based on a true story.There was a Z Special Force which was an
elite unit of Australian volunteers that was part of Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s
army in the Pacific.It conducted
missions behind enemy lines and was similar to the OSS.The movie claims to be an “honest retelling”
of one of those missions.
The
movie opens in January, 1945 as five commandoes land on an island via kayaks
launched from a sub.They are led by
Capt. Kelly (Gibson).Their mission is
to rescue the survivors of a downed plane. An early encounter with a Japanese bunker
results in the wounding of one of them and his subsequent stoical dispatching
by Sgt. Costello (Neill).These guys
mean business.They hook up with a local
resistance leader who uses martial arts against a Japanese patrol.Is this the first use of kung fu in a war movie?There are some problems, but they eventually
locate their targets which turn out to be an American government official and a
Japanese defector who holds the key to a quicker Allied victory over the
Japanese.A romance is thrown in between the top billed
John Philip Law and a native girl.Queue
the sappy music.In the climax, the
village stands against a Japanese unit to aid in the escape of the commandoes.In a crescendo of violence, the movie lives
up to its “who will survive?” nature.Answer:20 %.
“Attack
Force Z” (also unknown as “The Z Men”) is a low budget resume white-out
target.The acting is not the
problem.Gibson and Neill show promise,
but Law (who had achieved fame as the blind angel in “Barbarella”) shows that
he is properly obscure.The plot is
shaky.Parts make no sense and it would
be best to not think too much while watching it.A Japanese defector who wants to reveal
important secrets?Ridiculous.There is some low budget action movie
violence that should keep the combat porn demographic happy.The deaths are not silly and they are fairly
graphic.It certainly goes out with a
bang (but not a loud bang because the heroes use silencers on their sub machine
guns).
As to the claim
of historical truth, I’m afraid I’m going to have to call “shenanigan” on that
one.The movie is clearly based on
Operation Opossum.In 1945, Z Special
Force was tasked to rescue the Sultan of Temate.Thirteen members landed on the island on
orders from MacArthur.They made contact
with the Sultan, but the next day had to defeat several boatloads of Japanese
soldiers that landed near the village.The Japanese were wiped out in a firefight.The Australians lost only their
commander.The Sultan and his family
were evacuated by PR boat and taken to meet MacArthur.
Forgotten
gem?Appropriately forgotten and
certainly not a gem.
Has it been four years? Time flies. I went back to my first post and did not know whether to laugh or cry. My plan was to review one of the 100 Greatest per week and be done with my project in two years. Well, it has now been four years and I am still not done yet! In my defense, I did not originally plan to review other war movies as well. I certainly do not regret that decision. I like the variety I have managed on this blog. And truthfully, I think subconsciously I am reluctant for this amazing journey to end. However, one more to go. Then all I'll have left is all the war movies I have not reviewed yet and the compilation of my own 100 Best War Movies list. That should keep me occupied for another four years. I would like to thank all the people who have come along for the ride and I hope you will continue to frequent this site.
#2 -Paths of Glory(1957)
BACK-STORY:“Paths of Glory” was Stanley Kubrick’s first
great film.The fact that he also
directed several other movies on the 100 Greatest list (“Spartacus”, “Dr.
Strangelove”, “Full Metal Jacket”) makes a case for his being the greatest war
movie director.The movie was based on
the novel by Howard Cobb which was published in 1935.The teenage Kubrick had read the book in his
father’s study. Kubrick had trouble
getting funding because of the depressing nature of the plot.This problem was solved when Kirk Douglas was
brought on board.His production company
took on the task and Douglas was paid 1/3 of the approximately $1 million
budget.He was not in it for the money
as Douglas was committed to the project in principle.The movie was a critical smash, but only a
modest success at the box office and predictably did not do well in
Europe.In fact, it was banned in France
for two decades.Incredibly, the movie
received zero Academy Award nominations and is not on AFI’s 100 Greatest Movies
list!
OPENING:The movie is set on the Western Front in France
in 1916.A narrator summarizes the
futility of the war up to that point.It
is a stalemate.French Army Chief of
Staff Gen. Broulard (Adolphe Menjou) visits Gen. Mireau (George MacReady) at
his chateau.Broulard orders an attack
on an impregnable German position called the “Ant Hill”.Mireau is at first against the insane,
suicidal assault, but Broulard uses flattery and promotion bribery to bring him
around.He does not have to remind
MacReady that he will be safely witnessing the attack from a bunker.
SUMMARY:Mireau visits the trenches to get some face-time
with his beloved cannon fodder.In an
amazingly long tracking shot with no cuts, he buddies up to his men by
repetitively asking them “Hello, soldier, ready to kill more Germans?”When he encounters an obviously shell-shocked
soldier, MacReady huffs that there is “no such thing as shell-shocked” and he
slaps him ala Patton.Mireau meets the
regimental commander Col. Dax (Douglas) in his bunker.(Douglas gets his obligatory shirtless
scene.)He informs the skeptical Dax of
the attack.Mireau is optimistic that
the casualties will only be around 60%!That figure is arrived at by adding 5% from their own barrage + 10% in
no man’s land + 20% through the German wire + 25% taking the position.The men will “absorb bullets and shrapnel and
by doing so make it possible for others to get through”.Dax explodes and quotes Samuel Johnson:“Patriotism is the last refuge of a
scoundrel.”When Mireau suggests that
Dax take a furlough, Dax backs down and promises to take the “Ant Hill”.
A night patrol is ordered to reconnoiter
the position.Lt. Roget (Wayne Morris)
takes two men with him and then proceeds to panic and kill one in a friendly
fire incident.The steaming dead body of
Lejuene is the only graphic shot in the movie.Afterwards, Cpl. Paris (Ralph Meeker) confronts the drunken Roget, but
is apprised of the fact that officers hold all the cards.Roget:“ Who’s word do you think they are going to believe- or accept?”
The attack the next day is one
of the great combat scenes in war movie history.It begins with another long tracking shot as
Dax moves through the trench like Mireau did, but without the faux
bravado.The assault is a tour de force
in battle cinematography as a camera on a dolly tracks Dax and the cannon
fodder through a hellish landscape.It
is obvious to everyone, except the spectating Mireau, that the attack has no
chance of success.Dax leads the men
across no man’s land.(It took 60 men,
eight cranes, and three weeks to turn a German farm into the scarred landscape
of trench warfare.)That 60% figure is
looking optimistic as men go down left and right.It is futile like many an attack in the war.Roget’s unit does not even leave the
trench.Mireau orders the French
artillery to open fire on them, but the battery commander refuses without a
written order.The incensed general vows
revenge for the failed assault.“If
those little sweethearts won’t face German bullets, they’ll face French ones!”
Follow this whistle, dogs
At the chateau, Broulard, Mireau,
and Dax negotiate how many men need to be court-martialed for cowardice pour encourager les autres. Broulard:“There are few things more stimulating than seeing someone else
die.”Mireau is talked into being
reasonable and accepting only three sacrificial lambs - one from each
company.Broulard is in a jocular mood
throughout and Dax is aghast.The scene
foreshadows “Catch-22” and “MASH”.
Roget tabs Paris to get rid of
the eyewitness to his cowardice.Arnaud
(Joe Turkel) is chosen by lottery.Ferol
(Timothy Carey) is chosen because he is a social misfit.Dax volunteers to be their defense
attorney.The trial is held in the
chateau.A no-nonsense general serves as
judge and it is apparent he is set on the end result with as little court room
theatrics as possible.Each patsy gets
his time on the stand, not that it will make any difference. Ironically, none
was a coward and even Paris (whose unit did not leave the trench) had wanted to
attack, but was knocked unconscious by a corpse falling on him.Dax gives an impassioned closing argument
which includes the line “miscarriage of justice”.Guess what the verdict is.
The trio now have doom hanging
over them like a muddy trench coat.Paris ruminates about how a cockroach has a better future than him,
resulting in Ferol smashing it and deadpanning:“Now you have the edge on him.”When a priest comes to visit, Arnaud attacks him. Paris intervenes and
punches him, resulting in a skull fracture.A doctor repairs Arnaud enough for him to be executed.After Dax is informed about Mireau’s attempt
to bombard his own men, he confronts Gen. Bourland to attempt blackmail.It is unclear whether this ploy will
work.Surely they won’t execute these
innocent men.
Sorry, happy ending
insisters, for the good of the war effort and to avoid future mutinies (mission
not accomplished!), these dudes must die.The men are led to the posts.Actually, the unconscious Arnaud is carried on a stretcher.If you ever have to stage an execution by
firing squad, this movie acts as a good tutorial.
In the afterglow of the
spectacle, Broulard and Mireau eat heartily in the chateau.Bourlard:“This one had a certain splendor to it.”Dax arrives.On cue, Broulard
brings up the bombardment order.There
will have to be an inquiry.Mireau
realizes he’s not heading for promotion after all.He insists that he is “the only completely
innocent man in this affair.”OMGsomeone please slap that man!When Mireau stomps off, Broulard offers the
promotion to Dax.Dax fumes and calls
him a “degenerate.”Broulard’s riposte
is that Dax is an “idealist”.Oh, snap!
CLOSING:Dax gets word that the battered unit is heading
up to the front again.He passes by a
cantina where a German girl (the future Mrs. Kubrick) sings “The Faithful
Hussar” to a crowd of soldiers.The
hoots and catcalls are transformed to tears as the men hum along.There is still some humanity in this inhumane
war.
WOULD CHICKS DIG IT?Yes.It is
not your typical war movie.There is
only the one graphic corpse and there is no blood.The acting is stellar and Kirk Douglas takes
off his shirt.There is only one female
character, but she is significant and closes out the film.If your significant other enjoys bravura
movie-making, she will enjoy the visual treats the movie.
HISTORICAL ACCURACY:Howard Cobb was inspired by a newspaper story
about an incident in the war where four French poilu were executed for unit
cowardice.After the war, their families
sued and two families were rewarded one franc each and the other two got
nothing.It was not uncommon in the
French army and others (not including the A.E.F.) to execute men to strengthen
the will of others. The scenario in the movie is only indirectly related to the famous mutinies by French soldiers in the war. The refusal to follow orders to continue wasteful attacks occurred wholesale in the army in 1917 after Nivelle's Chemins des Dames offensive to win the war came far short of the optimistic palaver fed to the troops. There were some executions initiated by Petain as part of his otherwise empathetic diffusing of the situation. It is safe to assume that among the 10% of men who were court-martialed and executed, there were undoubtedly some who did not deserve death. The French government would have agreed with Mireau that the tonic might be harsh for a few, but effective for the masses.
the three men held reponsible for not taking the untakeable
CRITIQUE:This was only Kubrick’s fourth film, but you can
clearly see the style that made him one of the great directors.The cinematography by Georg Krause is
magnificent.“Bridge on the River Kwai”
took that Oscar, but you could argue that “Paths to Glory” is superior and
certainly deserved a nomination.Speaking of which, although it could be argued that “Bridge” is the
overall better film, no one in their right mind would say today that the
nominees “Peyton Place”, “Sayanora”, “Witness for the Prosecution”, and “Twelve
Angry Men” were more deserving than “Paths”.Especially those first two!The
movie is famous among film buffs for the long tracking shots (especially the
battle scene) and Kubrick’s abrupt cuts.He is not big on fades in this movie.The interior scenes with their baroque mise en scenes and the deep
focusing are a clinic.We also get a lot
of off centered shots.Disconcertingly
to modern war movie lovers, the film lacks the frenetic cutting used to add to
the fog of war.In “Paths of Glory”, you
know what is going on during a battle.You are not lost or confused.
The
musical score is sparse, but Gerald Fried (who went on to score “Gilligan’s
Island”!) encouraged the use of snare drums in war movies.The closing song was of Napoleonic vintage
and ends with the lines:“Oh please
Mother, bring a light /My sweetheart is
going to die”.Coincidentally, Louis
Armstrong had a hit with a version of it one year before the movie was
released.
The acting is outstanding.Douglas is his usual charismatic self, even
more so because he was passionate about the project.His Dax is one of the great anti-authority figures
in war movie history and ahead of his time in the genre.He runs the gamut of that stereotype.Sarcasm, slow-burns, seething, and finally
snapping.The supporting cast is not
intimidated.MacReady and Menjou are
all-time slimy.Morris (who was a highly
decorated ace in WWII) creates one of the great cowards in war movie
history.Ralph Meeker does his best work
in an underrated career.The most
fascinating character is Ferol.The
eccentric Carey plays him to the hilt and his scene stealing aggravated the
rest of the cast.For instance, when he
is being led by the Father to the execution and he bites into his arm - that
was unscripted and almost got him punched in the face by the bemused Emile
Meyer.Carey was fired towards the end
of the 64 day shoot and a double had to be used for the confession scene.
Steal one more scene and maybe those won't be blanks
The movie is not subtle in its themes.It has been described as an anti-war movie,
but it is more appropriately labeled as an anti-command movie.The battle scene is certainly horrific, but
it is only seven minutes and no major character is killed.The real focus of the plot is the machinations
of the generals.Broulard and Mireau are
loathsome, but fairly representative of high command in the war.Obviously, French high command in particular
(Broulard resembles Joffre), but all of the belligerents in general.It is no secret that the tactics used in the
war were pigheaded, but the script enlightens about the use of court-martials
to “motivate” the common soldiers.A
related theme is the dominance of the officer class over the enlisted.Not only are most officers motivated by
promotion (as opposed to the grunts just trying to survive), they use their
position to wriggle out of culpability.The only caveat I have with the themes is the ending cantina scene tends
to dilute them.The movie would have
been better served ending with the executions.However, considering the rumors that Douglas had to prevent Kubrick from
giving the men a reprieve, it could have been much worse.Having a tearful singalong by the cannon
fodder signals that war goes on.By the
way, contrast the females at the end of “Paths of Glory” and “Full Metal
Jacket”.‘Nuff said.The songs have a similar vibe, though.
Kubrick: Okay, if I can't have a happy ending, at least I want to end with a scene featuring this chick I want to go to bed with.
How realistic is it in military matters?The trenches are a little too wide, but that
was to facilitate those awesome tracking shots so all is forgiven on that
score.The night patrol seems typical,
although fratricide by a cowardly leader was uncommon.The main battle sequence is so well done that
I show it in my American History class to prepare my students for their letter
from a soldier at the front assignment.(The other clips are from “All Quiet”, “Sergeant York”, and “The Lost
Battalion”.) Special kudos to the German police officers who were the extras
and did some of the better dying in a war movie. The sound effects bear
mentioning.The whining of the artillery
shells and the resulting explosions add to the impression of Hell on Earth.
CONCLUSION:“Paths of Glory” is one of the great war movies
and definitely belongs in the top twenty.I think #2 is a bit high, but I do not have a major problem with
it.It sets out to make an impression
and it succeeds perfectly.Kubrick plus
Douglas is a winning combination, as seen in “Spartacus”.It is more court room and behind the scenes
oriented than most war movies, but it does have one of the great combat scenes
to balance that.Considering some of the
laughable inclusions on the list, “Paths” is comfortably placed.I can see where it would be a movie that the
eclectic panel of military experts and cinema experts could agree on.
This is my 400th post.It sort of snuck up on me so I had to think
quick about what special movie I wanted to do.It seems not that long ago I chose “300” for my 300th.Unfortunately, there was no movie with the
number 400 in its title.So I decided to
go with my favorite war comedy.
“Tropic Thunder”
is an action comedy produced, directed, co-written, and co-starring Ben
Stiller.Stiller was inspired by his bit
role in “Empire of the Sun” and spent many years developing the script.Originally the idea was to spoof actors who
attend the actor boot camps to prepare for roles as soldiers.The idea was to have the actors suffer from
PTSD after their experience.That is a
funny idea.As it turns out, the
original idea evolved into a satire of war movies, prima donna actors, and
movie productions. Stiller and co-writers Justin Theroux and Eton Cohen decided
to construct the script around a movie within a movie concept.The movie was a big box office success and
was similar to Stiller’s “Dodge Ball” in its unexpected success.It was well-reviewed, but there was some
offense taken with the “Simple Jack” retard subplot and the casting of a white
man as a black soldier.The movie was
also daringly R-rated for a summer comedy.This was solely for language which can be quite raunchy, although a gratuitous shot of nudie pictures
was thrown in apparently to seal the deal.The violence is cartoonish – just like most recent war movies.
The
movie famously begins with fake trailers to introduce the four main
actors.Tugg Speedman (Ben Stiller) is a
fading action star like an Arnold Schwarzenegger.Jeff Portnoy (Jack Black) is an Eddie
Murphyesque physical comedian who is making millions off fart jokes.Kirk Lazarus (Robert Downey, Jr.) is an Oscar
winning method actor who really gets into his characters. Alpa Cino (Brandon Jackson) is a rapper turned movie star who is mainly interested in product placement for his energy drink called "Bootie Sweat".They are filming the story of American hero
“Four Leaf” Taylor (Nick Nolte) who was rescued from a prison camp in Vietnam
and wrote a book called “Tropic Thunder”.The movie opens with a gonzo battle scene that would be awesome in a
real war movie.Midway through the
mayhem a soldier takes a bullet in the head and the geyser of blood is the
first hint that this is going to be a no holds barred spoof of war films.This scene includes the first of the Vietnam
War movie parodies.I’ll list those in a
bit.It is, in my opinion, the funniest
scene in war movie comedy history.
Brooklyn, Motown, Four Leaf, Osiris, Fats, and the director
So
we now know the movie is going to make fun of war movies, but it also becomes
apparent it will make fun of actors and movie-making as well.The movie within the movie is being directed
by a novice Brit named Cockburn (Steve Coogan).This movie is not subtle.He is
freaking out in having to deal with his flaky cast and the production is way behind
schedule and way over budget.The
producer Les Grossman (Tom Cruise) threatens to shut down the production, so
Cockburn decides to take Tayback’s advice to make a guerrilla movie by dropping
the cast into “the shit” and getting them to improv the scenes while moving
through the jungle.The five leads are
dropped into the Golden Triangle of the heroin trade and quickly get the
attention of a drug gang called Flaming Dragon.The actors (except Lazurus) assume this is part of the movie.When Speedman gets captured and taken to the
gang’s camp, the others attempt a rescue.
tastes like blood flavored corn syrup
“Tropic
Thunder” won my March Madness 2012 tournament to determine the best war comedy
so obviously I like this movie.It is
the perfect war comedy in my opinion because it makes fun of war movies and the
making of war movies.It is funny on its
own, but if you are a war movie buff (especially Vietnam War movies), it is
hilarious.It is clear that the writers
have seen some key Vietnam War movies and have lovingly poked fun at them.Here are the references that I picked up:
1.The opening chopper ingress is similar to that
of “We Were Soldiers”, but choppers navigating through dense jungle foliage and
hilly terrain is pretty standard.
2.The combat scene has Speedman
reenacting the Elias death scene from “Platoon”.
3.In that scene, Sgt. Lincoln Osiris
(Downey) uses the line “Ain’t nothin’ but a thang”.This is an obvious reference to “It don't mean nothing, man. Not a thing” from "Hamburger Hill".
4. The opening combat scene closes with a napalming nod to "Apocalypse Now"
5.At the party to celebrate
one week of filming, there are dancers like the Playboy bunnies of “Apocalypse
Now”
6.When they land in the
jungle for the guerrilla filming, there is the tail of a downed plane like in
AN
7.The panda scene is a take-off of the
tiger scene from AN
8.Osiris is a saucier in an homage to
Chef in AN
9.Speedman gets tortured similar to
Rambo is “First Blood II”
10.The water buffalo from AN has a cameo
11.Motown (Brandon Jackson) and Sandusky
(Jay Barachel) infiltrate the camp like Willard in AN
12.Speedman channels Brando’s Kurtz
13.Tayback does his version of flame-throwing
like DeNiro in “The Deer Hunter”
14.The aftermath of the RPG targeting of
the truck has a “Saving Private Ryan” sensory deprivation homage
15.The bridge explosion is reminiscent of
“Bridge on the River Kwai”
Did I miss anything?
The
movie does more than mock famous scenes.Some of it is more subtle, like the inclusion of a character named
Brooklyn (Sandusky) to poke fun at the presense of someone from Brooklyn in virtually every small unit movie and another named Motown (“Hamburger Hill” has a character
by that name).There are some funny
references to the fact that only Sandusky went to the boot camp.The movie also makes fun of the faux soldier
lingo that is put in clueless actors’ mouths in most war movies.Speedman says “load and lock”, for instance.Here are my two favorites from “Fats”
(Black):
“If our asses don’t get fragged in this valley, first thing I’m
doing is paying my two bucks so I can watch Brooklyn bust his cherry on a sweet
little mama-san’s dinky down poon-tang”.
“Listen,
you cherry fuck, you call in that snake n’ nape and get us some boom-boom now!”
The acting is very strong.It shows you what kind of director Stiller is
to see how he allows his cast to outshine him.I guess this balanced his tough directing style.Downey is absolutely brilliant and deserved
his Supporting Actor Oscar nomination (he lost to Heath Ledger).His character Kirk Lazarus undergoes a
“pigmentation alteration” to play a black man.This was slightly controversial, but the ultimate way to lampoon method
actors like Russell Crowe.He also stays
in character throughout (in fact all the way through the DVD commentary – which
is hilarious, by the way).One reason
the movie rewards repeat viewings is to catch his facial expressions.The real revelation is Tom Cruise.He earned back a lot of good will due to his
very game performance.He even developed
the character, including the look and the dancing.Nick Nolte also deserves special mention.He is perfect as the real Tayback.I haven’t even mentioned Matthew McConaughey
as Speedman’s agent.There are no false
notes from any of the performers.
The movie is well-made as it should be
for a $90 million comedy.Kudos for the
studio putting that amount of money in a risky project.The Hawaiian locations are lush and
appropriately jungley.The
cinematography by John Toll is excellent.The sound-track has some great choices to remind of Vietnam and push the
story.Any movie with “Sympathy for the
Devil” is on the right track.The score
joins in the mocking of action films.The special effects are noteworthy with the opening scene coming off as
a modern war combat film.There is the
massive napalm explosion and assorted other explosions courtesy of the
pyrotechnical Cody Underwood (Danny McBride). Obviously aimed at pleasing the people who are
unaware that they have wandered into a comedy.Speaking of which, the movie does a great job blending comedy and
action.Keep in mind that only one
character dies in the movie (and it is one of the most unexpected deaths that
you will see).
Damn, that dude can act!
For this review, I watched the
director’s cut (which has 14 more minutes) and two commentary tracks.I was still laughing the third go-around.Incidentally, the extended cut is better than
the theatrical version.Most of the
restored cuts were edited because of time constraints and the longer version
fleshes out the characters and includes some funny stuff that did not deserve
the cutting room floor.This is worth
mentioning because the theatrical version is the funniest war movie comedy
ever.Keep in mind that this is the
opinion of a war movie lover who does not mind hearing a guy tied to a tree
offer to perform oral sex to be set free.
Not everyone will find that sort of thing funny.
Does it crack my 100 Best? What do you think?
Bonus line:Osiris – “What would have happened in ‘The
Great Escape’ if Steve McQueen and those dudes had turned tail and ran?”
Once
upon a time in Western cinema, there was a little Italian movie that had been
buried and forgotten.Then along came a
famous director who had fond memories of it and was inspired to make a movie of
the same title (sort of).This highly
renowned director urged people to get their shovels out and enlighten
themselves.It turns out the shovels
would serve double duty (dooty).The
undead movie is entitled “The Inglorious Bastards” and was directed by Enzo
Castellan.It is now probably the most
famous example of a subgenre called “macaroni combat”.Macaroni combat films first appeared in the
mid-60s.These movies were Italian
made.They were characterized by low
budgets and over the top violence.Many
of them starred a has-been American actor.Another characteristic is they all were greatly improved if viewed while
ingesting copious quantities of alcohol and in the company of male friends who
were not missing a Mensa meeting.
The
movie is set in France in 1944.A group
of misfits are being transferred to a military stockade when a fortuitous
strafing allows them to escape.One of them
tells an MP “arrivederci” and the subtitle tells the target audience that this
means “see you later”.Here are our
dirty five:
1.Nick (Michael Pergolini) -the Italian thief in charge of comic relief
2.Berle
(Jackie Basehart) -the cowardly
deserter in need of redemption
3.Endfield
(Fred Williamson)-the black justifiable murderer
4.Tony
(Peter Hooten) -the wiseass mutineer
who is a racist
5.Yeager
(Bo Svenson)-the fighter jock who refused to kill
civilians
Yeager assumes
leadership of the motley crew and they head for Switzerland.On the way they add a
German deserter misfit.Along the way they get to kill a bunch of
Nazis with blazing machine guns (no rifles for these guys).And we get to see an encounter with some
German nurses who are bathing nude in a stream.This movie has everything a macaroni movie male could ask for.In one of their firefights they accidentally
kill (no one gets wounded in this movie) an American commando team.The team was on a mission to steal a
gyroscope for the V-2 prototype from an armored train.Col. Buckner (the vaguely recognizable Ian
Bannen) needs a new team for his suicide mission.Where can he find five guys willing to risk
their lives in order to expend a lot of ordinance?Buckner and Yeager disguise themselves as
rocket scientists (ironic right?) to accomplish the mission and change the
course of the war, naturally.
"Can you believe this piece of crap is going to inspire a future auteur?"
If
Quentin Tarantino ever invites you to an Italian restaurant and suggests you
try some exotic dish, think twice.Just
because a hipster recommends something that he remembers fondly from his
childhood does not mean it’s guaranteed to be good.It should be noted that as much as Tarantino
loved the movie, his “remake” has absolutely nothing in common with the original. Thank God for that!There are no redeeming features to
Castellan’s movie.Other than the naked
ladies.The acting is horrible, but
Svenson (who appears in the “Nation’s Pride” movie within a movie in
“Inglourious Basterds”) is suave and appears to be enjoying the pay check, but the
rest of the cast is so bad that they make Svenson seem like Brad Pitt.Williamson makes Jim Brown look like a
thespian.That, by the way, is a very
appropriate analogy since the character was plagiarized from "The Dirty Dozen"..His character's name
is Fred which means they did not want to make things too confusing for the ex-football player.(The movie was
recut as a blaxploitation flick called “G.I. Bro” with Williamson’s character
bumped up to leading man. The tag line became:“If you’re a Kraut, he’ll take you out.”) Two of the misfits (Tony and Nick) are
grating and I hated them (partly because the actors are abysmal).The loathsome Tony even gets a romantic
subplot!And Nick is put in Steve
McQueen’s motorcycle-riding shoes with vomit-inducing results.
“Inglourious
Basterds” is Quentin Tarantino’s addition to the suicide mission subgenre.He specifically mentioned “Dirty Dozen”,
“Where Eagles Dare”, and “Guns of Navarone” as examples of what he was shooting
for.However, he chose a movie on the
opposite end of the subgenre for inspiration.The original “Inglorious Bastards” was an Italian spaghetti war
movie.This was a creative process
reminiscent of his “Django Unchained”.One has to wonder about Tarantino’s self-esteem due to his choices to
“remake” movies that the kids on “Super 8” could improve on.Of course, he had to put a Tarantino spin on
the subgenre.Most critics liked the
spin and the movie was nominated for eight Oscars including Picture, Director,
Original Screenplay, Cinematography, Film
Editing, Sound Editing, and Sound.It
was a box office success which is quite an accomplishment for a war movie these
days.Maybe audiences need something
different from the genre.Compare this
to the tepid response to the more traditional “Monuments Men”.New School versus Old School.One has to give Tarantino credit for
perseverance as it took him ten year to get the film done.It was the ending that was part of the
holdup.It looks like he got that right
in the long run.
The
plot is from the alternative history arena.It opens in occupied France in 1941.A suave Gestapo agent named Landa (Christoph Waltz) and nicknamed “the
Jew Hunter” makes a visit to a farm searching for a Jewish family in
hiding.In one of the great war movie
scenes, Landa ferrets out the rats (his description of Jews).At one point Landa pulls out a comically huge
pipe ala Sherlock Holmes in a typical bit of Tarantino humor. The impact of the
scene develops a tremendous amount of goodwill for the film and won Waltz a
Best Supporting Actor award, among many other accolades.One member of the family, Shoshanna (Melanie
Laurent), escapes and thus begins one of the primary threads of the movie.
The
other thread involves a commando unit created by an OSS agent named Aldo Raine
(Brad Pitt).The unit consists of Jewish
soldiers and the mission is to drop behind enemy lines and do as much damage to
the Nazis as an R-rated Tarantino movie will allow.This includes scalping their victims.One of the members is the baseball
bat-wielding Donowitz (Eli Roth) who becomes known even to Hitler as the “bear
Jew”.As though the plot is not defying
reality enough already, the unit is joined by a Gestapo-killing psychotic
German soldier.
Fast
forward to 1944.Shoshanna is living in
Paris under an assumed identity and is the proprietor of a movie theater.She meets the German version of Audie
Murphy.Pvt. Zoller (Daniel Bruhl) wants
to hook up with the very reluctant Shoshanna.Zoller has preempted Murphy by starring in a film about his exploits
before the war is even over.Goebbels is
using Zoller for propaganda purposes and Zoller schemes to have the film
premiered at his potential girl friend’s theater.The debut of “Nation’s Pride” will be
attended by many Nazi bigwigs.This
gives British intelligence (represented by the distracting Mike Myers) the idea
of using Raine’s unit to assassinate the moviegoers.Churchill (Rod Taylor!) approves the
plan.A film expert/secret agent named
Hicox (Michael Fassbender) is sent to link up with Raine and make contact with
the German actress Bridget Von Hammersmark (Diane Kruger) who is an Allied
spy.With all these combined talents,
the mission should be a piece of cake.Right?
Hicox
makes contact with Bridget in a basement bar.The ensuing scene is masterful if you suspend reality (drunken Germans certainly
react quickly to totally unexpected danger).It includes a Tarantinoesque orgy of violence and complicates the plan
immensely.Raines’ role in the
assassination becomes a farce, but it is balanced by the earnest act of revenge
Shoshanna has cooked up.All of the
surviving players converge on the cinema with the addition of der Fuhrer
himself.If you have not turned off your
brain yet, do so now.Embrace the
implausibilities.Revel in the feel good
massacre.Be aware that this is not a
true story!
Never play games with drunken Germans
“Inglourious
Basterds” feels like the culmination of the suicide mission subgenre.It is a war movie that could not have been
made in the 20th Century.I
am not sure this is the direction I want war movies of this type to go in.As you will see with my updated rankings of
the subgenre, “Basterds” is not a pinnacle of these types.It is a worthy addition and does take the subgenre
into the 21st Century.Although the movie is very entertaining even to a purist like myself, it
has its flaws that make it a bit overrated.First the strengthes.The acting
is outstanding (with the exception of the stunt casting of Mike Myers).This is actually one reason why the film is
overrated.Waltz’ performance is so
mesmerizing that it overshadows some of the movie’s flaws.Without him the movie would have had a lot
less buzz.In fact, Tarantino would have
been unlikely to have made the movie if he had not found the perfect actor to
play Landa.The rest of the cast is
great with special kudos to the females.Strong females are so rare in war movies, they really stand out.Pitt appears to be the only actor that was
told that the movie is a comedy.He has
a lot of fun with the part and you want to wink back at him.
The
plot has some interesting twists and some shockers embedded.Don’t get too attached to any of the
characters.Speaking of which, the
characters are well drawn.Particular mention
should go to Zoller.He is not the
hissable villain you would expect from a sniper who killed a bunch of Americans.He even comes off as charming in his pursuit
of Shoshanna.The music is typically
eclectic for a Tarantino film.Some of
it reminds of a spaghetti Western which is obviously what Tarantino
intended.One long scene (the one in the
bar) has no music.The cinematography
(although nominated for an Oscar) is not pretentious or showy.The violence is not for the squeamish.If you like scalpings and knife carvings,
this is the movie for you.
It's not against the Geneva Convention if you win
I
am not a huge fan of the movie.I am not
interested in alternative history.The
actual events are interesting enough without people wondering “what if?”This is the reason why I thought I would not
like the movie when I first heard about it, but it is not the reason why I
think the movie is overrated.I actually
enjoyed it once I suspended my rational nature.The problem with the film is although it has some outstanding scenes,
they tend to be overly long.And this is
after Tarantino had to do some substantial editing.There are also some implausibilities that
grate even in a movie of this subgenre.On the other hand, I have to point out that the movie is so clearly a
fantasy that you would have to be a complete moron to think any of it is
true.That does not mean I’m not a
little concerned about asking my students how Hitler died.
It
is interesting to compare the two recent movies about assassinating
Hitler.“Valkyrie” (2008) was Old School
and very historically accurate.It cost
around $75 million and made about $200 million.“Inglourious Basterds” cost around $75 million and its box office was
around $320 million.It was New School
and was about as historically inaccurate as you can get.Based on these two films, it would appear
obvious what the movie-going public wants from 21st Century war
movies.I like both movies and as long
as the movie is well made and entertaining I can appreciate either school.
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