Cinematic Storytelling: The Inglorious Bastards (1978)
A Twitter user (I can’t get used to X) made me aware of this Men-On-A-Mission movie that predated Tarantino's. It’d be more accurate to say he reminded me of this movie. I remember some Twitter buzz when Tarantino’s Inglorious Basterds was released. And Tarantino not only cast Enzo G. Castellari, the director of the original 1978 Inglorious Bastards, as a Nazi officer, but he also conducted a series of interviews with Castellari that became extras on the DVD/Blu-Ray of Tarantino’s film.
In time I forgot about the film, till a few days ago when a Twitter post by my friend brought back memories of this late 1970s Men-On-A-Mission movie. It starred Fred “The Hammer” Williamson, and was directed by Enzo G. Castellari. From having seen Street Law, Keoma, Bucktown, and Mean Johnny Barrows, I was immediately sold on it.
Having now watched it, I am reporting that I liked Enzo G. Castellari's version better than Tarantino's take on the same idea.
I appreciate what Tarantino did, but I prefer the leaner and more direct approach that Castellari used, where The Hammer and a rag tag bunch soldiers, including a Lieutenant, are sent to a French prisoners' camp for "war crimes." A Luftwaffe air raid grounds the convoy and throws the boys into a tense situation.
Their plans to sneak and fight their way to Switzerland are derailed when a confusing incident sends them on a mission to disguise themselves as SS officers and step in to a train full of Nazis to steal a component crucial to V-2 missile production.
The movie has no fat. The boys have to be constantly on the move through uncertain territory. When they run into people, it’s Nazis who shoot them on sight, or double agents that appear to look like American soldiers. They trek through a No Man’s Land where no one outside of themselves can be trusted.
The action scenes are grounded but exciting, intercut with scenes of them taking what few pleasures they find as they go.
The treat of the movie is the chemistry between Fred Williamson and Bo Svenson. They are awesome together, chomping cigars while cutting down Nazis. Charismatic leaders that guiding the men through their adventures.
The Hammer made a number of movies with Italian producers, like the Black Cobra series, but did not work with Castellari again. This is a missed opportunity. The Hammer would have made a great leading man for Castellari once Castellari’s working relation with Franco Nero ended with The Day of the Cobra (1980).
But we’re unfortunate to have The Inglorious Bastards. A great low budget, Italian-produced Men-On-A-Mission (which labels it as Macaroni Combat) that looks and feels more expensive than it is. It also delivers high budget entertainment.
