QUICK THOUGHTS: I guess we should get used to Quentin Tarantino films being released on home video without any kind of stand-out special features as this is the fourth Tarantino film in a row to feature little to nothing exciting to report outside the film itself. That said, I love this film and love Universal’s fantastic Blu-ray transfer. Inglourious Basterds is not only one of my favorite films of the year, Robert Richardson’s cinematography makes it one of the best looking films of the year. Both of these factors play highly into the film’s overall value on the high definition format.
SUPPLEMENTS: While limited in interesting special features, that isn’t to say this Blu-ray is entirely devoid of stuff to watch. In fact there is a lot to spend your time with here, but very little stands out as being all that “special.” Perhaps “standard” is the best way to look at it. The package begins with three deleted/extended scenes, most interesting is an alternate opening to the Nation’s Pride premiere and I actually would have enjoyed seeing left in the film.
It was of mild interest to watch the full version of the film-within-the-film, Nation’s Pride, directed by Eli Roth, and there is also a short in-character mockumentary making-of featurette for the propoganda pic that instantly turned me off. Actor Rod Taylor (plays Winston Churchill in the film) gets two featurettes and there’s a 30-minute roundtable discussion with Tarantino, Brad Pitt and Elvis Mitchell which adds little value to the overall package, and seems like an addition only due to availability.
My two favorite features offer zero information on the film overall. The first, “Quentin Tarantino’s Camera Angel,” is a montage of Quentin’s clapperboard girl delivering several one-liners for a period of three minutes. It makes little sense to include it, but that’s really what makes it so great on top of its comedic appeal. Next is “Hi Sallys,” which is another behind-the-scenes look at the production in which Tarantino and his cast offer up a series of “hellos” to Tarantino’s longtime editor Sally Menke. It’s good for a laugh or two.
Finally, some love is offered up for Enzo G. Castellari’s original Inglorious Bastards, which Tarantino’s film gets its name from and I reviewed last July. Trailers, posters and a 60-question Inglourious Basterds quiz rounds out the package.
Two things are missing that would have made this a MUCH better package… An audio commentary and a picture-in-picture U-Control feature. Their absence is glaring making this pretty much an average array of special features. Considering Tarantino’s love for older films and his studies of film in general, you would think he would want to offer film fans a similar look at his films. I guess we’ll just have to wait to spend more money ten years down the line should Universal and the Weinsteins ever get around to giving QT fans what they really want.
FINAL THOUGHTS: Regardless of special features, this is a must buy in my book. I’m not sure where Inglourious Basterds is going to fall on my year-end top ten, but I can tell you now it will be near the top. This film gets better and better each time I see it and in high definition with a DTS audio track it can’t be beat. Brad Pitt, Michael Fassbender and most notably, Christoph Waltz deliver performances to remember and I recommend you plunk down the necessary dollars to add this to your collection.
