The Inglorious Bastards 1978 ***

Quentin Tarantino’s 2010 film took little more than the title from Enzo G Castellari’s classic ‘men on a mission’ WWII thriller, but the original is well worth considering in its own right. Fred ‘The Hammer’ Williamson and Bo Svenson are amongst the team assembled by General Buckner (Ian Bannen) after they escape from their fate as military prisoners. Convinced to go on a raid behind enemy lines. Bridges collapse, motorcycles fly, bodies pile up, and The Inglorious Bastards is a good example of how exploitation could cannibalise a studio genre (The Dirty Dozen, The Great Escape) and come up with something that offers even more entertainment value. The model-work in the final train explosion is a little on the home-made Hornby-rail-track side, but it doesn’t detract from a vigorous, exhilarating war flick.