Tarantino's 'Basterds' Gets an August Release Date

by Erik Davis Jan 1st 2009 // 1:02PM

Filed under: Action, Drama, Cannes, Fandom, Distribution, The Weinstein Co., Newsstand, Quentin Tarantino, War



So it seems The Weinstein Co. has opted to release Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds on August 21, 2009, which seems to be a strange date for not only a Tarantino flick, but also one starring Brad Pitt that's set during World War II. Late August is usually dumping ground for iffy action flicks and C-grade comedies. This past August 22 saw the release of Death Race, The House Bunny and The Longshots, to give you an example of the type of films we expect to arrive on that weekend.

Tarantino has already stated that he wants to screen Basterds at the Cannes Film Festival in May, so we assume some sort of cut will be finished by then. One imagines the buzz from that first screening will dictate the film's final release date. Personally, I can't see it staying in late August. Remember a similar move was attempted with the WWII flick Valkyrie, which was originally a June release before being pushed back to Christmas. If Basterds receives any type of awards buzz out of Cannes, the Weinstein Co. will package it right up, toss it into the Toronto Film Festival or The New York Film Festival and release it in the fall.

All I know is that both The Weinstein Co. and Tarantino should think real hard about when they want to release this film, especially after the botched release of Grindhouse on Easter weekend. It should be interesting to see where this sucker eventually ends up. When do you think a film like Inglourious Basterds should hit theaters?

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