''The Real Inglorious Bastards'' is a Canadian television documentary film, directed by
Min Sook Lee
Min Sook Lee (; born 1969) is a Canadian documentary filmmaker, screenwriter, academic, and political activist.
Early life
Lee was born in South Korea and immigrated to Canada with her family at the age of three, growing up in downtown Toronto, wh ...
and released in 2012. The film depicts Operation Greenup, a real-life
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
mission in which the American
Office of Strategic Services
The Office of Strategic Services (OSS) was the first intelligence agency of the United States, formed during World War II. The OSS was formed as an agency of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) to coordinate espionage activities behind enemy lines ...
parachuted Jewish agents Frederick Mayer and Hans Wijnberg, and German Army deserter Franz Weber, into
Austria
Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
to spy on the
Brenner Pass
The Brenner Pass ( , shortly ; ) is a mountain pass over the Alps which forms the Austria-Italy border, border between Italy and Austria. It is one of the principal passes of the Alps, major passes of the Eastern Alpine range and has the lowes ...
.
Background
Following the success of her 2010 film ''The Real M*A*S*H'', which profiled some of the real-life staff of the 8055th
Mobile Army Surgical Hospital
Mobile Army Surgical Hospitals (MASH) were U.S. Army field hospital units conceptualized in 1946 as replacements for the obsolete World War II-era Auxiliary Surgical Group hospital units. MASH units were in operation from the Korean War to the ...
which had inspired the popular ''
M*A*S*H
''M*A*S*H'' (an acronym for Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American media franchise consisting of a series of novels, a film, several television series, plays, and other properties, and based on the semi-autobiographical fiction of Richa ...
'' media franchise, History asked Lee to make a similar film exploring a real story with connections to
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American filmmaker, actor, and author. Quentin Tarantino filmography, His films are characterized by graphic violence, extended dialogue often featuring much profanity, and references to ...
's recent hit film ''
Inglourious Basterds
''Inglourious Basterds'' is a 2009 epic film, epic war film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. It stars an ensemble cast including Brad Pitt, Christoph Waltz, Michael Fassbender, Eli Roth, Diane Kruger, Daniel Brühl, Til Schweiger ...
''.Michael Oliveira, "'The Real Inglorious Bastards' recounts war story reminiscent of Tarantino flick".
Canadian Press
The Canadian Press (CP; , ) is a Canadian national news agency headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Established in 1917 as a vehicle for Canadian newspapers to exchange news and information, The Canadian Press has been a private, not-for-profit c ...
, November 6, 2012. She had not seen the film, but after viewing it she identified the themes of resistance and fighting back as being what had most resonated with audiences, and found the story of Operation Greenup after some research.
The film featured interviews with both Mayer and Wijnberg; Weber had already died by that time, but some of his surviving relatives shared their knowledge of his experiences. The film also blended original newsreel footage from the war, and dramatic re-enactments of some events with the trio portrayed by actors Steve Shand as Mayer, Eric Markewich as Wijnberg and Sean Connolly Affleck as Weber.
Distribution
The film premiered November 8, 2012 on History.
It was screened theatrically at the 2013
GI Film Festival
The GI Film Festival is an annual film festival focused on military and veteran experiences, held in San Diego, California. Films featured in the festival reveal the struggles, triumphs, and experiences of service members and veterans.
The festiv ...
, an American film festival devoted to military-themed films.
Awards
The film won the
Canadian Screen Award
The Canadian Screen Awards () are awards given for artistic and technical merit in the film industry recognizing excellence in Canadian film, English-language television, and digital media ( web series) productions. Given annually by the Academy ...
for Best History or Biography Documentary Program or Series at the
RealScreen
Brunico Communications is a Canadian magazine publishing company."Desktop tabloid publishing firm sports 2 publications and a profit". ''The Globe and Mail'', October 9, 1989. The company specializes primarily in online trade magazines serving medi ...
'', January 13, 2014. and Dave Kazala was nominated for Best Editing in a Documentary Program or Series.