Thursday, September 30, 2010

McElvaine Inglourious Basterds



A major theme in the movie, Inglorious Basterds, is the portrayal of Nazis as obnoxious,
over the top, characters. All of the Nazis that we focus on in the movie are seen as obnoxious or
ridiculous in some way. For example, Hans Landa, Frederick Zoller, Joseph Goebbels, the Nazi
officer in the bar, and Adolf Hitler all play not only villainous but also somewhat obnoxious,
goofy, and comical roles. This approach serves to eliminate the traditional perception of Nazis as
fearsome, inhuman, intimidating, powerful people. The film allows the audience to view the Nazis
as people. Rather than fearing the villains in the movie one can't help but raise their eyebrow when
one of them speaks. They all take themselves very seriously but the protagonists in the movie
find them quite idiotic.
The film achieves the portrayal of these villains as obnoxious by frequently showing a villain
in the frame with another character. We frequently get a profile shot or a shot in which the villain
and the character they are sharing the scene with are featured equally. They do this because the
other character's reaction to the villain is equally as important as what the villain himself is saying.
Tarantino makes sure that we not only see the villain but that we see the other characters's reactions
to the villain so that we feel justified in out reaction.

What is the major theme of I.G? Choose a scene that illustrates the major theme, and do a mise en scene analysis to support your interpretation of the major theme.

1 comment:

  1. You need to learn to align your blog. Further, you need a label for the blog with your full name in it. If one could call a nazi comical, Tarantino makes them look parodic. You need to do a much more specific mise-en-scene analysis. You don't really do one at all

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