Review #1,345: 'The Inglorious Bastards' (1978)

Not to be confused with Quentin Tarantino's deliberately misspelt men-on-a-mission movie Inglourious Basterds from 2009, Italian director Enzo G. Castellari's correctly spelt The Inglorious Bastards from 1978 is pure exploitation, featuring a number of familiar faces from the genre and plenty of humour, explosions and dick-measuring to appease fans. The World War II setting is almost an afterthought, merely an excuse to round up a collection of colourful characters in one setting and provide an endless roster of faceless bad guys to be blown away without the need of explanation. The Inglorious Bastards is one of the most fun B-movies around, boasting some impressively staged action in spite of its obvious budget constraints.

Taking its cue from The Dirty Dozen, our heroes are a rag-tag bunch of rebel soldiers whose crimes include everything from theft and desertion to murder and mutiny. They are transported to a camp near the Ardennes in France where they are to be executed, but their vehicle is soon attacked by German bombers and only a handful escape with their lives. These include Canfield (Fred Williamson), Tony (Peter Hooten), Nick (Michael Pergolani), Berle (Jackie Basehart), and the proud Lt. Yeager (Bo Svenson), who attempt to put aside their differences to make it through hostile territory to the safety of Switzerland. They may be roughnecks but they are still ready and willing to fight, proving themselves efficient at it when they tear through various bands of Nazis along the way. After they accidentally gun down a squad of Americans dressed as German troops, the bastards have no choice but to complete the fallen soldiers' mission to steal a weapon from an armoured train.

Barely ten minutes go by without a slice of action, making Castellari's movie one of the most fast-paced examples of the genre. Of course, its bloodless and mostly without any real consequence, with many of the actors firing their guns into the ground, but it's fun and exciting nonetheless. If you're looking for historical accuracy or realistic warfare then this isn't the movie for you, but if you appreciate over-the-top exploitation with a sense of humour and an overbearing sense of machismo, then there is plenty to enjoy here. Williamson and Svenson get most of the screen time, with Williamson clearly enjoying being the only black face in a relatively all-white war, but supporting players Hooten and Pergolani are most impressive as two of the most ethically-questionable members of this strained band of brothers. It isn't difficult to see why Tarantino swiped the name for his own project (even though the two films share little in common), as The Inglorious Bastards is just as entertaining as its title would suggest.


Directed by: Enzo G. Castellari
Starring: Bo Svenson, Peter Hooten, Fred Williamson, Michael Pergolani, Jackie Basehart
Country: Italy

Rating: ***

Tom Gillespie