00s Movie Review - Inglorious Basterds

Director: Quentin Tarantino
Genre: Action/ Thriller
Runtime: 152 minutes
Year: 2009
Starring: Brad Pitt, Diane Kruger, Mélanie Laurent, Christoph Waltz, Daniel Brühl, B.J. Novak, Eli Roth, Til Schweiger, Mike Myers, Samuel L. Jackson, Michael Fassbender, Cloris Leachman, Gedeon Burkhard

Description: In Nazi-occupied France during World War II, a plan to assassinate Nazi leaders by a group of Jewish U.S. soldiers coincides with a theatre owner's vengeful plans for the same.

Review: When the name Quentin Tarantino os on a movie poster, I’m in! He is probably my favorite director of all time and he has a fantastic resume (all but one film). His style is unique, his dialogues are memorable and quotable and the characters are unforgettable. “Inglourious Basterds” is definitely one of my favorites.

“Inglourious Basterds” shows an alternative history of World War II. In this version there is a group of infiltrating soldiers called the Basterds. It’s their task to scare the occupants by killing Nazis in the most brutal ways. They are led by Aldo Raine and all of the men are Jewish Americans. During their quest, the get together with the German actress Bridget von Hammersmark, who also works as a spy.

This film is again filled with amazing characters. It’s a bizarre potpourri of people, that are hard to believe to be real, but are convincing anyway. Brad Pitt portrays Aldo Raine in the most fantastic way. Hilarious even. Mélanie Laurent is a great newcomer, as Shoshanna Dreyfuss, who wants revenge for the death of her family. But Christoph Waltz is probably the greatest discovery of the ‘00s. As Hans Landa is manages to scare you, charm you and disgust you at the same time. What a fantastic performance and also one of Tarantino’s best characters ever.

Like I stated before, Tarantino knows how to write great dialogue. And that’s no different here. The dialogues are long, but never dull. The conversations stay interesting and the situations original.
“Inglourious Basterds” is a film that I can enjoy every single time, even due to the length of the film. It’s a must for every Tarantino fan. No, for every movie fan. Last correction: it’s a must for everyone!

Rating: 5/ 5

10s Movie Review - The Infiltrator

Director: Brad Furman
Genre: Drama/ Crime/ Thriller
Runtime: 127 minutes
Year: 2016
Starring: Bryan Cranston, John Leguizamo, Diane Kruger, Benjamin Bratt, Jason Isaacs, Amy Ryan, Olympia Dukakis

Description: A U.S. Customs official (Bryan Cranston) uncovers a money laundering scheme involving Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar.

Review: In the late autumn 0f 1993, Pablo Escobar, the biggest drug lord of all time, was shot dead when he was arrested. At the height of his power, the Escobar cartel was running sixty million dollars a day. To control El Patron’s trade, a meshed network of intimidation, bribery, corruption and infiltrators was set up. The efforts of U.S. customs detective Bob Mazur eventually led to the taking down the network. Mazur, who wrote down his experiences as an infiltrator in a bestseller, focuses on the money laundering system Escobar was using to cover up his practices. The attack seemed to be the best defense in this case. Together with his partner Emir Abreu, Mazur wanders the cemeteries of Florida in search of suitable alter egos for their undercover operation. T eventually became the late Italian Roberto Musella who formed the cover-up for Mazur.  
In Brad Furman’s film adaptation of Mazur’s book, Escobar walks by in a hotel lobby at the very end. In this crime-thriller based on true facts, he’s mainly interested in uncovering the network that facilitated the services of Escobar and other drug lords. Escobar is the boss who stays out of the picture. Mazur is a family man whose job is difficult to reconcile with his home situation. When Mazur is about to plunge into the life of the fictional aviation magnate Bob Musella, his wife sighs that this really should be the last job. In reality, Mazur continued his secret operations for a few more years. His alter ego Musella is a pathetic Italian who does jobs for the mafia and thus easily wins the trust of the Colombians. However, Mazur is constantly on his guard and the practices with which he hopes to unmask the cartel are inventive but at times also messy. Tactics is not only to win the trust of the drug lords, but also to admit them to his carefully constructed private life. Quick thinking and flexibility are highly necessary. As soon as Mazur, during an intimate treat from a stripper, reveals that he engaged, and inexperienced fellow agent has to show us as his fiancée.
Furman gives us an unparalleled insight into an environment that revolves around false trust, good suits, overpriced jewelry, shady deals and striking people with hidden agendas. The environment of the mid-eighties forms a strange mixture of nostalgia and brutal crime. Furman succeeds in portraying this quite boldly, but it is precisely the seriousness of the crimes with which the cartel is involved that is not really apparent. Mazur plays a slick guy who dos play a role, but also likes it all. He jeeps a constant eye on the purpose of his mission, but we get disappointingly little so see, for example, how dangerous work affects his private life. The policeman knows how to separate the two worlds well and without wanting to violate reality now: it would have been better for dramatic effect if the realities had come together and created an impossible conflict.
The filmmaker also loses himself in a messy scenario, that seems like a sequence of strong stories and doesn’t always excel in subtlety. Mazur experiences few setbacks in his mission and if there are any, they are very easily put aside. Yet there are moments when Furman excels in his acting directing. Precisely because there are so many opposing interests and everyone has to constantly look over his shoulder, fascinating dilemmas arise that are dealt with intelligently and in an exciting way by leading actor Bryan Cranston. He is assisted by experienced actors like John Leguizamo, Benjamin Bratt and Diane Kruger. “The Infiltrator” is an entertaining and artisanal ‘true crime’.

Rating: 3,5 / 5

00s Movie Review - Inglourious Basterds

Director: Quentin Tarantino
Genre: Action/ Thriller
Runtime: 152 minutes
Year: 2009
Starring: Brad Pitt, Diane Kruger, Mélanie Laurent, Christoph Waltz, Daniel Brühl, B.J. Novak, Eli Roth, Til Schweiger, Mike Myers, Samuel L. Jackson, Michael Fassbender, Gedeon Burkhard

Description: In Nazi-occupied France during World War II, a plan to assassinate Nazi leaders by a group of Jewish U.S. soldiers coincides with a theatre owner's vengeful plans for the same.
Review: When the name Quentin Tarantino is on a movie poster, I’m in! He is probably my favorite director of all time and he has a fantastic resume (all but one film). His style is unique, his dialogues are memorable and quotable and the characters are unforgettable. “Inglourious Basterds” is definitely one of my favorites.
“Inglourious Basterds” shows an alternative history of World War II. In this version there is a group of infiltrating soldiers called the Basterds. It’s their task to scare the occupants by killing Nazis in the most brutal ways. They are led by Aldo Raine and all of the men are Jewish Americans. During their quest, the get together with the German actress Bridget von Hammersmark, who also works as a spy.
This film is again filled with amazing characters. It’s a bizarre potpourri of people, that are hard to believe to be real, but are convincing anyway. Brad Pitt portrays Aldo Raine in the most fantastic way. Hilarious even. Mélanie Laurent is a great newcomer, as Shoshanna Dreyfuss, who wants revenge for the death of her family. But Christoph Waltz is probably the greatest discovery of the ‘00s. As Hans Landa is manages to scare you, charm you and disgust you at the same time. What a fantastic performance and also one of Tarantino’s best characters ever.
Like I stated before, Tarantino knows how to write great dialogue. And that’s no different here. The dialogues are long, but never dull. The conversations stay interesting and the situations original.
“Inglourious Basterds” is a film that I can enjoy every single time, even due to the length of the film. It’s a must for every Tarantino fan. No, for every movie fan. Last correction: it’s a must for everyone!

Rating: 5/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2017 - # 75: Mr. Nobody

Director: Jaco van Dormael
Genre: Drama/ Romance/ Fantasy/ Science Fiction
Runtime: 138 minutes
Year: 2009
Starring: Jared Leto, Diane Kruger, Sarah Polley, Rhys Ifans, Juno Temple

Description: A boy stands on a station platform as a train is about to leave. Should he go with his mother or stay with his father? Infinite possibilities arise from this decision. As long as he doesn't choose, anything is possible.

Review: What if you made a different decision? Your life would be different right now. With every choice you make, and alternative is lost. So if you count all the choices you have made in your life, your could have had a thousand different lives. “Mr. Nobody” uses this concept. A 120 year old man looks back at all those lives he could have lived. How different the lives are, they all end in death and all you need is love.
The result is a big mish mash of scenes, which switches constantly in timelines. It’s an intelligent film, with an original and promising concept. But it’s also a big mess and the film takes forever. I can see where the director wanted to go with this, but it’s all over the place.
It’s not the actors, the performances are good. And I do like the idea and the risk that was taken to make this film. But it’s not coherent and it never grabbed me.

Rating: 2,5/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2014 - # 15: The Host

Director: Andrew Niccol
Genre: Science Fiction/ Thriller/ Romance
Runtime: 127 minutes
Year: 2013
Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Diane Kruger, Max Irons, Jake Abel, William Hurt

Description: When an unseen enemy threatens mankind by taking over their bodies and erasing their memories, Melanie (Saoirse Ronan) will risk everything to protect the people she cares most about, proving that love can conquer all in a dangerous new world.

Review: After the Twilight saga ended, author Stephenie Meyer had one more book that could be turned into a movie. Andrew Niccol, who we know from “Lord of War” and “In Time” was given the task to direct “The Host”.
The story is set in the future where mankind is taken over by parasites called Souls. They mean well and are convinced to help people in times of war and hunger. Melanie Stryder is one of the last humans, but is also taken over by one of the Souls. But the human in her is still very strong and she finds a way to work together with the Soul.
Like “Twilight” the young actors have the biggest roles in the story and a love triangle is present. That makes this movie more like a paranormal version of “Twilight’. The storyline is like “Invasion of the Body Snatcher”, but it never grabs you like the 1978 movie did. The movie is slow at times, because they are trying to create some character development. They never succeed in making us love the characters.
Saoirse Ronan plays her role well, but that annoying voice-over in her hear is a real burden. Unfortunately it’s necessary for the story. Diane Kruger and William Hurt don’t disappoint either, but the rest of the actors are forgettable.
“The Host” is the victim of a badly executed scenario, which already wasn’t strong as a novel. There is absolutely no tension and this movie feels like it takes forever to end. At some points it was so boring and ridiculous, I just wasn’t entertained.

Rating: 1,5/ 5

In the Picture: The Characters from "Inglourious Basterds"

Quentin Tarantino is probably my favorite director and I already dedicated this item to one of his movies. This time I'm going to look closer at the characters from "Inglourious Basterds", which is an awesome movie.

Lt. Aldo Raine
Played by: Brad Pitt
Aldo is 2nd lieutenant in the US Army First Special Service Force and now the leader of “The Basterds”. Aldo's nickname, "The Apache", comes from his penchant for scalping Nazis. He’s determined to kill all the nazis he can get his hands on.

Col. Hans Landa
Played by: Christoph Waltz
Hans Landa is called “The Jew Hunter” and he carries that name with success. He is well known for finding Jews in hiding and eventually killing them. He’s a very smart man who can speak at least four different languages fluently. Landa is the main target for “The Basterds”.

Shosanna Dreyfuss
Played by: Melanie Laurent
Shosanna is a French-Jewish girl who’s entire family was murdered by nazi’s. She was the only one who could escape and now hides in Paris as a movie theatre owner that goes by the name of Emmanuelle Mimieux. Shosanna is strong, smart and out for revenge.

Sgt. Donny Donowitz
Played by: Eli Roth
Donny is Aldo’s right hand. His nickname is “The Bearjew” and he is ruthless. Donny is known for killing his victims with a baseball bat because he wants to feel the violence and the sensation of beating nazis to death.

Bridget von Hammersmark
Played by: Diane Kruger
Bridget is a popular filmstar in Nazi Germany and a spy for the Allies. Because of her beauty and charm, she often gets her way and she can easily win you over. But Bridget can be outsmarted though.

Fredrick Zoller
Played by: Daniel Brühl
Fredrick is a German officer and a war hero. He is pretty full of himself and is not shy to brag about his actions as a soldier. His affection for Shosanna, although she doesn’t really return it, is genuine. Everything he’s doing for her, he’s doing with the best intentions.

Sgt. Hugo Stiglitz
Played by: Til Schweiger
Stiglitz is an ex-Nazi and now recruted into “The Basterds” unit. He is knows as a maniac to both German and US forces, because of his cruel ways of killing people. Many people fear him.

Favorite Character: Shosanna Dreyfuss

Movie Tip #40 - Inglourious Basterds

Director: Quentin Tarantino

Starring: Brad Pitt, Eli roth, Diane Kruger, Melanie Laurent, Christoph Waltz, Til Schweiger, Daniel Brühl

Description: In Nazi occupied France, young Jewish refugee Shosanna Dreyfus (Melanie Laurent) witnesses the slaughter of her family by Colonel Hans Landa (Christoph Waltz). Narrowly escaping with her life, she plots her revenge several years later when German war hero Fredrick Zoller (Daniel Brühl) takes a rapid interest in her and arranges an illustrious movie premiere at the theater she now runs. With the promise of every major Nazi officer in attendance, the event catches the attention of the "Basterds", a group of Jewish-American guerilla soldiers led by the ruthless Lt. Aldo Raine (brad Pitt). As the relentless executioners advance and the conspiring young girl's plans are set in motion, their paths will cross for a fateful evening that will shake the very annals of history.

Review: Quentin Tarantino is one of the best directors in film history. He hasn't directed much, but when he does, it results in movies that we can (almost) call masterpieces. "Inglourious Basterds" is one of those films. He tells the story in a original way, like only he can. But this is the first time that the movie is fully chronological. There are some catchy flashbacks, like the one were Hugo Stiglitz is introduced. Great roles by Brad Pitt, Eli Roth, Til Schweiger and Diane Kruger. The ones that impressed me the most were off course Christoph Waltz, who won an oscar for his performance. And well deserved, because he steals every scene he's in. The other actor that caught my eye was Melanie Laurent, another name that we didn't know. She plays Shoshanna and her role is very strong and convincing. I hope to see more of her in the future. This film is great, but the ending is a little bit over the top and to 'American'. And the way the basterds caught Landa, no way that would happen. Landa is way to vicious and smart for that. But even then, this movie is a great experience for the eye.