I did not go see Inglourious Basterds to observe how it differed from the 1978 Italian film of the same name, nor did I go see it because I was interested in Quentin Tarantino's take on the Second World War. No, I went because the movie's trailer implied that the film would include scenes in which Eli Roth went to town on Nazis with a baseball bat, and I'm a lady who enjoys watching films that feature attractive dudes performing acts of extreme violence, much in the same way that other ladies like watching romantic comedies where guys make papier-mEché flowers and cry, or whatever the hell it is men do in romantic comedies nowadays.

That said, it is probably obvious that I'm a fan of Tarantino's work and consequently had high expectations for Basterds. Unfortunately, Basterds was a film as amateur as Hugo Stiglitz was a Nazi hunter according to Brad Pitt's character, First Lt. Aldo Raine.

Now, before we continue, allow me to clarify: Basterds was by no means a terrible movie. If it had been made by any other director, I would have considered it an above-average film. However, since it was directed by Tarantino, it ultimately came to represent for me Tarantino's tumble into an artistic rut. Over the course of the movie, I counted two musical tracks that were the same as those used in Kill Bill. Further, Tarantino divided the film into chapters-a technique that worked well in Kill Bill and Pulp Fiction, but which was ultimately unnecessary for this particular movie. And, maybe I'm nitpicking here, but the font used for the chapter titles was the same as that used for those in Kill Bill.

In my mind, there is a fine line between trademark and repetition.

But I digress. There were an assortment of other similarities between Basterds and Tarantino's earlier films (e.g., similar camera angles, death scenes, etc.), but unfortunately this latest work was missing the one common thread that should have been included: Tarantino's dark sense of humor and clever plots. Ultimately, the film felt like a series of excessively violent events connected by implausible revelations. For instance, a poorly executed gunfight that lasted approximately five seconds was prompted by a drunken soldier's observational skills-skills that would be impressive in a sober man and nonexistent in someone who was three sheets to the wind. The bloodshed was not the stylistic violence of other Tarantino films, but rather raw brutality included merely for brutality's sake. If I had to estimate, I would say 90 percent of the movie's "strong graphic violence" is either a) someone getting shot point-blank in the face or b) getting their brains bashed in with a baseball bat, which is less appealing than the trailers led me to believe.

And while the characters were memorable, some of their actions were just . well . stupid. While undercover, they sass superior officers of the opposite faction, and others loudly plot the demise of Nazi leaders while said persons chat in the next room.

The characters also lack any real depth; I felt like I was watching Fight Club, except it was Basterd Club and the first rule of Basterd Club is that you do not talk about yourself.

Want to know how First Lt. Raine got that scar on his neck? So do I, but we never find out.

Want to know why the eight Jewish-Americans composing the Basterds became Basterds? Me too, but Tarantino neglects to include any kind of backstory.

With regard to the cast, I felt as though the talents of a great many fantastic actors were wasted. Samuel L. Jackson is the film's narrator, but he had approximately two lines throughout the entire film. Further, only half of the Basterds had speaking roles, and while such excellent players as Harvey Keitel, Ludger Pistor and Christian Berkel had cameos, I only discovered this as I read the cast list after viewing the film-good luck finding them while you're actually watching the movie.

What I found particularly disturbing (rather than simply unlikely or annoying) about the movie, though, was Tarantino's sympathy for Nazi soldiers and distortion of Allied forces. At one point, the film's primary Jewish protagonist ruthlessly threatens an innocent civilian at knifepoint in order to achieve her revenge against the Nazis, while in another scene a Nazi soldier and new father who has been promised safety are gunned down by an ally of the Basterds.

They say familiarity breeds contempt, and perhaps I have just watched a few too many Tarantino works a few too many times. Thus, in the few remaining lines I have left, I will touch upon Basterds' good points:

I had recently come to regard Brad Pitt as a pretty face and little else, but I was pleasantly surprised by his abilities as a comic actor and his portrayal of First Lt. Raine. And Eli Roth not only swings a mean bat but is also an excellent player, although his character, Donny Donowitz, is predominantly shown committing acts of violence and doing little else. The few lines Roth is permitted to deliver are imbued with a passion that many of the other characters lack despite the film's heavy subject matter. Indeed, I would say Basterds is worth seeing just to view Roth's efforts not only as an actor but as the directorial force behind the film-within-a-film, A Nation's Pride. The standout actor, however, was Christopher Waltz in his turn as Col. Hans Landa, a self-serving member of the Waffen-SS.

It should also be noted that the last half hour of the film and the movie's ending are incredible but not worth getting excited over if you've already seen the trailer for Basterds. In regard to this, I would like to conclude with a statement aimed at the creators of movie trailers:

Stop including footage of a movie's ending in the trailers. Midway through the film, when you realize that you already know what's going to happen in the closing stages because you inadvertently saw the conclusion on television, it is quite distressing.

So just stop it before I snag a baseball bat and go Donny Donowitz on your ass.