Why did Hans Landa in Inglourious Basterds change his mind about the "Jew Hunter" nickname?

Why did Hans Landa in Inglourious Basterds change his mind about the "Jew Hunter" nickname? - Overhead view of white inscription on center of chalkboard located on black background

In the opening part of Inglourious Basterds Hans Landa asks Monsieur LaPadite if he knows the nickname the French people have bestowed upon him. When LaPadite anxiously reveals that he has heard the term "Jew Hunter", Landa puts him at ease saying he is proud of this nickname

"precisely because I have earned it".

However, in the last act of the film when Hans Landa is sitting in front of a captured Aldo Raine and "Little Man", when referred to as "Jew Hunter", Landa is disgusted. He states

"I'm a detective. A damn good one. Sure I have to find people and sometimes those people are jews... But Jew HUNTER? Just a name that stuck"

Why the change of heart? What's happened to make him resent the nickname at that point?



Best Answer

It is probably not a change in heart, I am afraid! In the first case you are referring to when Col. Landa said the quoted statement while talking to LaPadite. The reason behind the sudden visit to his house was to search for the unaccounted-for Jewish family in that area. To remind LaPadite about his unofficial nickname was a tactic of Landa, I believe, to mentally pressure him to admit that he has given shelter to the Jewish family members (which Col. seemed to be quite sure of) and that could result in a disaster to both of the families by the colonel himself. This is a sort of act to tactfully make the victim mentally weak so that the victim gives in easily.

While on the other hand, the second scene you are referring to, he wants to terrorize some terrorists (apparently they are terrorists to him) who are not Jewish. So throwing the same dialogue would not result anything fruitful. Rather he should make sure in that situation that he must speak something that would make the prisoners think. He is more capable of doing something other than merely hunting or killing Jews, so that he must make himself sound like a frightening character to his enemies. This is also a sort of cunningness to frighten the prisoners.

Christian Rau's comment is valuable and worthy to be added. As he suggested in his comments, maybe Landa was preparing himself before the events to flee to the US. He also planned to make a deal with the Allies. So maybe to save himself, he started presenting himself as a good man who was just doing his job. He tried to mean that it was not his intention to kill the Jews, but his employer made him do that. In the end, he wanted to portray himself as just a responsible employee and nothing more!




Pictures about "Why did Hans Landa in Inglourious Basterds change his mind about the "Jew Hunter" nickname?"

Why did Hans Landa in Inglourious Basterds change his mind about the "Jew Hunter" nickname? - Black chalkboard with inscription on black background
Why did Hans Landa in Inglourious Basterds change his mind about the "Jew Hunter" nickname? - From above composition of contrast blackboard in wooden frame with white USE YOUR PRIVILEGE TO OPT IN title on black background
Why did Hans Landa in Inglourious Basterds change his mind about the "Jew Hunter" nickname? - Overhead view wooden frame with white inscription about social injustice on black background



Who was called the Jew Hunter?

Standartenf\xfchrer (SS Colonel) Hans Landa is an Austrian SS officer assigned to the Sicherheitsdienst. He is nicknamed "the Jew Hunter" for his uncanny ability to locate Jews hiding throughout Occupied France.

Did Landa know Emmanuelle was Shoshanna?

[Inglourious Basterds] Hans Landa was not aware that Emmanuelle Mimieux was Shosanna Dreyfus. The consensus opinion on this matter is that it is ambiguous; that Tarantino left it open to interpretation.

Why does Landa let Shoshanna get away?

Given Landa's dedication to hunting down as many Jews as possible, it seems strange that he let Shosanna live, but it wasn't a brief moment of humanity, and he did it because he didn't think she would survive the night.

How did Hans Landa know they were under the floor?

He says that sending the girls outside (so he can "call them back in" later) and speaking in English (so he can make his big show of switching back to French later) indicate that he knew the Dreyfuses were underneath the floorboards the whole time.



What Makes Hans Landa One Of The Most Terrifying Villains in Film History




Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Images: Brett Sayles, Brett Sayles, Brett Sayles, Brett Sayles