I Wasn't Expecting That

I am mostly agnostic on Quentin Tarantino these days and I didn't expect to much like Inglourious Basterds but I was shocked to discover on watching it on Sunday night that it was actually very good, in a way that any plot synopsis would hardly suggest. It may be effect of a bottle or so of wine consumed before watching it, so maybe I should watch it again before repeating the word 'masterpiece' which I bandied about a bit in the fuzzy aftermath of watching it. Anglophone media have been largely negative in their assessment of the film while in France the critical reception has been almost unanimously enthusiastic. The French are sometimes right in their praising of some American cinéma maudit (such as Heaven's Gate) and also sometimes very wrong (the entire career of Brian de Palma). In this case, I think they might be right, as a lot of the references in this most multilingual of Hollywood films would go over the heads of some Anglophones. A rich irony, and one you don't really expect from QT. Here's the trailer for the film, though you'd never imagine from watching it that the thing could be any good. More on this matter later (after I've watched the film again).