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Brad Pitt and Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds and Aldo Ray

Continuing at Huff Po is another small minded review of Inglourious Basterds http://tinyurl.com/nyeqfc (please bear with me until I learn...

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Tuesday, September 01, 2009

Brad Pitt and Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds and Aldo Ray Part 7

Continuing at Huff Po is another small minded review of Inglourious Basterds http://tinyurl.com/nyeqfc . This one is called: The Problem With Tarantino: He Has Nothing to Say where he goes on to talk about Tarantino's lack of morality. Does he mean preachy morality? So many criticisms of Brad Pitt's portrayal of Aldo Raine that my disgust increases.

Here's the deconstruction of Pitt's Aldo Raine. It is a moving, funny, tender memorial to Aldo Ray, a Hollywood actor who always turned in an excellent performance, and who rarely played the leading man. Aldo Ray was 18 in 1944 when he joined the Navy and was a Frogman and served in the battle of Okinawa. He was in many movies from the late 40's, through the 50's and 60's (see wiki link at bottom) and did radio but mostly disappeared in old age. When he died in 1991 at 64, his small town Crockett, CA. honored him but that was all the tribute he got. A major film of his was Miss Sadie Thompson with none other than Rita Hayworth. It was based on a story by Somerset Maugham titled Rain. He was known for his war roles and tough guy roles and gravelly voice. In later years he played redneck parts. And so we see how carefully and subtly Tarantino and Brad Pitt, without fanfare, constructed this memorial to Ray. The rope burn on Aldo Raine's neck probably is a sign for something, but I am not sure. The scalps probably refer to Pitt's role in Legends of the Fall.

What a lovely thing to do. People who have nothing to say don't do this. And without announcing it to accept applause, but quietly letting you learn how to decode a film on your own. And to make fun of film buffs in the know as the raison d'etre of a film is puerile pejorative rubbish.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aldo_Ray