Tarantino 'directs like a sculptor'

Inglourious Basterds star Christoph Waltz has compared Quentin Tarantino to a sculptor.

The Austrian actor, who plays sinister Third Reich Colonel Hans Landa in the World War II picture, spoke fondly of working with Tarantino at Basterds' UK press conference.

"He doesn't infringe upon your choice," Waltz remarked of his director's methods. "He manages to actually direct in the true sense of the word. He directs you making the right choice. All you need to do is trust. It sounds a bit cliché and a bit esoteric, but it isn't, it's very hands on. He clears away everything."

He continued: "Michelangelo once said sculpting is easy, everything that's not the sculpture you chip away from the block. In a way that's what Quentin does. You end up finding yourself being part of the sculpture without actually knowing how it happened. He directs, he leads, you only have to follow."

Actress Diane Kruger described Tarantino as "the most precise director I've worked with", who made sure she recited lines from his script word-for-word.

She added: "He's very attached to his writing, he makes sure you say every word, which was new for me. A lot of directors let you go along approximately with what is written. It's actually a challenge, [his dialogue] is very nuanced and between the lines. Everytime you read it, you discover something else."

Inglourious Basterds opens in cinemas this Wednesday.