Rating: R
Starring:
Bo Svenson as Lt. Robert Yeager
Peter Hooten as Tony
Fred Williamson as Pvt. Fred Canfield
Michael Pergolani as Nick
Jackie Basehart as Berle
Michel Constantin as Veronique
Debra Berger as Nicole
Raimund Harmstorf as Adolf Sachs
Ian Bannen as Col. Charles Thomas Buckner
Peter Boom as German Officer on Train
Manfred Freyberger as SS Commander
Joshua Sinclair as The Sergeant
Mike Morris as Colonel Hauser
Special Features:
“A Conversation with Quentin Tarantino and Enzo G. Castellari”
“Train Kept A Rollin”
“Back To The War Zone”
“Inglorious Reunion at The New Beverly”
“Enzo’s 70th Birthday in L.A.”
Audio Commentary with Director Enzo Castellari
U.S., Italian, and German Theatrical Trailers
Other Info:
Widescreen (1.85:1)
Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound
Running Time: 99 Minutes
The Movie:
The following is the official description of the film:
“‘Inglorious Bastards’ is more than just the inspiration for Quentin Tarantino’s long-rumored next movie; this 1978 international smash remains perhaps the biggest and most badass war movie in EuroCult history! Exploitation legends Fred ‘The Hammer’ Williamson and Bo (‘Walking Tall,’ ‘Kill Bill’) Svenson star as the leaders of a gang of condemned criminals who escape from an Allied prison camp with a plan to blast their way to the Swiss border, only to find themselves ‘volunteering’ for a suicide mission deep inside Nazi occupied France. Academy Award® nominee Ian Bannen (‘Flight Of The Phoenix,’ ‘Braveheart’) co-stars in this explosive action epic from director Enzo Castellari (‘Street Law,’ ‘The Big Racket’), now fully restored from original vault elements for the first time ever in America!”
“The Inglorious Bastards” is rated R.
Mini-Review:
Just in time for the remake by Quentin Tarantino, “The Inglorious Bastards” is released on Blu-ray. I was curious to check it out before the remake hit theaters. But having just seen the trailer alone, I can already tell the two films are quite different. In the original, they don’t go after Hitler. They aren’t Jewish. There isn’t the splatter gore. About the only thing that have in common is the WWII setting and the idea that they’re a bunch of prisoners recruited for a suicide mission.
This is very much a 1970’s B-Movie, so it has everything you might expect to go with that. It has dated music, dated cinematography, and dated costumes. It has cheesy violence, poor acting, and a thin plot. It has gratuitous nudity, in this case naked German women with machine guns. The entire film is dubbed, so the dialogue rarely matches the actor’s lips. The production design is also frequently low budget. For example, a bombed out truck is simply a truck with the tire and nearby grass spray painted black. So you don’t really watch this for the quality. In fact, you watch it because it is so bad.
Despite the low production values, there are a few shining moments. Many of the actors do their own stunts. We’re not talking Jackie Chan stuff here, but it’s still more than you see many actors do. Fred Williamson jumps from a bridge on top of a moving train. Bo Svenson and many of the other cast slide down a rope from a quite high balcony. It was impressive. There were also a few miniature shots that were very detailed and pretty well done considering the low budget of the film. The explosions were very cool.
The cast isn’t particularly noteworthy, but Bo Svenson and Fred Williamson are known for their Italian movies and exploitation films. When I saw Peter Hooten as Tony, I was amazed at how much Cole Hauser looks like him.
If you’re curious about the upcoming Quentin Tarantino film or if you’re into exploitation films and B-Movies, then this is a Blu-ray you’re going to watch to check it out.
The bonus features are pretty comprehensive. “Train Kept A Rollin” is a feature length documentary on the making of the film. They interview Bo Svenson and Fred Williamson as well as director Enzo Castellari and a number of the other cast and crew. “Back To The War Zone” is a brief featurette showing Enzo Castellari returning to a number of the locations they shot at. “A Conversation with Quentin Tarantino and Enzo G. Castellari” is more like “Quentin Tarantino talking to Enzo G. Castellari.” Tarantino goes on and on while Enzo nods, but he eventually gets some words in edgewise. “Inglorious Reunion at The New Beverly” shows Bo Svenson and Fred Williamson attending a recent screening and doing a Q&A. “Enzo’s 70th Birthday in L.A.” is pretty self explanatory and shows Bo Svenson and Fred Williamson attending the party. Rounding things out are an audio commentary with Director Enzo Castellari and U.S., Italian, and German Theatrical Trailers.
