Inglourious Basterds (2009)
I adore the relationship between Zoller and Shosanna because it makes you, as an outsider, uncomfortable. Who is the good guy? Who is the bad guy? This is such a classic question triggered by WWII, and nothing befuddles the answer more than Tarantino’s presentation of predator and prey. We’re supposed to loathe Nazi Germany. But Zoller, the representation of Nazi Germany, is the sweet, good intentioned character. He wants nothing more than to dote on Shosanna and tries to do so gently and genuinely. Shosanna, the representation of the Jews, is, cold and mean in return. She refuses to see him as a person, he very thing she hates the Nazis for doing to her. Is directing this hatred at Zoller justified? I could not make up my mind. Every scene between them constantly pulls the viewer from one side to the other. The second you decide Shosanna is in the right, Zoller exposes his kindness, and the moment you’re won over by him, Shosanna reminds you that he aided the German cause. This manipulation is present not just in their initial scene, but all. As we grow to see their characters rounded out and like and dislike them all the more for it, the dynamic between them swings, pendulum-like, constantly. Ultimately Tarantino demonstrates ethics we can apply to all of WWII: no one is the good guy, no one is the bad guy.
“And there is this aspect that all these people were trying to kill Zoller, he’s just the one who won. And everything he’s doing he’s doing with the best intentions. He’s screwing her up so bad it’s not even funny, but he doesn’t know that. And to me, at the end, there’s an almost Romeo and Juliet quality to their end. And in a different time, things could have been different.”
- Quentin Tarantino on Shosanna Dreyfus/Fredrick Zoller (X)
“Because there was something about Zoller. He really liked her. Everything Zoller did that ended up fucking her up and putting her in this situation, he did with good intentions. His biggest crime was liking her. I think of that scene as a romantic scene. It’s Romeo and Juliet. Those bullets? That’s them consummating their relationship. In any other time in the 20th century, they could have been in love. Except for that one time.” (X)
I suggest you try Vichy. {a Fredrick/Shosanna fanmix)
{Tracks}
01. Lucha de Gigantes – Antonio Vega 02. Fiume Azzurro – Mina 03. The Flood – Take That 04. Allí donde solíamos gritar – Love of Lesbian 05. Fly me to the moon – Frank Sinatra 06. Pregúntale al polvo – Zahara 07. Butterflies and hurricanes – MUSE 08. Somethin’ Stupid – Robbie Williams & Nicole Kidman (cover) 09. Don’t speak – No Doubt 10. Paroles, Paroles – Alain Delon & Dalida (cover) 11. Olor a mandarinas – Zahara 12. La vie en rose – Louis Armstrong (cover) 13. La chica (a la que todos escriben canciones) – La Banda Municipal del Polo Norte 14. Somewhere only we know – Keane 15. Goodbye kiss – Kasabian
