Tarantino’s Inglorious Basterds centers around two independent attempts to assassinate the Nazi high-command during a Paris premiere of a new propaganda film. Split into 5 chapters, the film follows the plans of Amrican Lieutenant Aldo Raine (Brad Pitt) and his group of Jewish guerilla fighters, parallel to Shoshanna Dreyfus (Mélanie Laurent), a Jewish-in-hiding, as both plot to eliminate the high-ranking members of the Nazi party. Opposing to them is Colonel Hans Landa (Christoph Waltz), a cunning SS officer who is also the premier's Chief of Security. During the final chapter of the film, Landa captures Raine and one of his soldiers, Smithson Utivich (B. J. Novak), and offers them a deal - if they convince the Allied commanders to grant him immunity (amongst other benefits, such as his own private island), he will not alert the Nazi security forces and let Raine’s remaining men continue their assassination plan (both parties are unaware of Shoshanna’s plan).
The negotiating scene begins with both parties sitting opposite to one another on two sides of a somewhat small table. This shot sets the scene for the next few, and using clever camera placement Tarantino lets us know who exactly is in charge.
As the conversation begins, both sides remark on the other’s nickname in a somewhat cheerful exposition sequence. During this part, we get equal profile shots of Hans and Raine - the camera is placed so that their foreheads are matched in height, and the table is either a minor detail (in Landa’s shots) or out of sight (Raine’s shot).
Once the negotiations begin, we get a different story. During Landa’s shots, Tarantino places the camera in a way that makes the same table seem huge. The phone and wine are spread apart, while the colonel sits comfortably in the center. He has a lot of room for himself - he is currently the stronger power, he is in charge.
During Raine’s shot, however, the camera shows both him and Utivich in a completely different light. The camera is angled downwards to barely show the table, and both the phone and wine glasses block a notable portion of the shot to give a sense of claustrophobia. The small space, adding to the fact that both men are tied up and placed close together, signals that right now - they are powerless.
However, once Landa makes his offer, the scales tilt. No longer is he the sole, dominant force in the scene - Aldo has the power to either decline or accept Landa’s offer (obviously Landa wants him to accept, otherwise he wouldn’t have even brought it up). Landa offers the men wine, and suddenly his shot becomes crowded, he has less space - and thus less power.
Going back to Raine’s shot, the phone is gone and the glasses are now right beside the Americans, barely obstructing anything. Aldo has more space in the shot to reflect that now, he has a better position in the negotiation.
And, once again, all of this is done using the perspective of a small, seemingly meaningless table.