Tarentino's "Bastards" and Speilberg's “Saving Private Ryan” each have very different takes on what patriotism is. However, it is important to note that Bastards has nothing to do with patriotism to a country, it has to do with being patriotic to one's race. This state of mind is still very important to the events of the movie, however, the way the individuals react to these emotions is quite different.
In “Ryan” they are driven to do what is right partly by the chain of command, and partly to do what is right.All of the men initially joined the Army, either through the draft, or with a want to serve their country. John Miller most of all, understood the importance of following orders, no matter how “FUBAR” it seemed to be. He was also driven by a moral obligation to do what he felt was the right thing to do. Throughout the film, there are multiple instances in which he must remind his troop what the mission is, as well as how important it is. The goal of “Ryan” was for the group to save one individual, in contrast, the men of “Inglorious” were driven simply by revenge, and what better way to do that than to kill nazis.
In “Inglorious”, all of the Bastards are formed together by the drive to get back at the Germans who have wronged thir people (the Jewish). Although the Bastards use far more brutal and ruthless tactics to reach their goal, it cannot be said that they are not patriots fighting for a just cause. The goal of the Bastards has no direct end in sight, they are simply there, driven to kill nazis. They are under the command of Lt. Aldo Raine, a man from southern America who shows justt as much brutality towards the nazis as any of the bastards. There is no scene in which he must remind the other Bastards what their goal is, the men themselves are driven by their want for revenge for the atrocities the nazi's have caused.
As far as mise en scene goes, I think I will do the scene in which a group of the Bastards are in the very tiny German bar in a cellar. There is a scene in which the Bastards, in disguise, are sitting at a table with real german officers and they are playing a game in which they stick cards to their foreheads. The lighting is low, and the camera is fixed to a tight position, attributing to the trapped feeling the Bastards feel, knowing they are surrounded by men who would kill them if they knew their true identities. The interesting thing here is that they are all playing a game in which they have to “guess who they are” based on the cards on their foreheads. The only contrast in color is Von Hammersmark, whom the Bastards are there to extract. She is in a white dress, whereas everyone else in the room is clad in drab hued military uniforms. This shows that she is the important element in the scene.
