We rarely believe Quentin Tarantino when he starts speaking so when we heard him suggesting that is latest film was set to be a masterpiece, we took it with a pitcher full of salt. But Inglourious Basterds turned out to be a slice of cinematic heaven.

Once Upon a Time in Nazi occupied France crows the introductory title, as a lovingly crafted,  Western-inspired opening unfolds – a wonderfully tense, multi-lingual conversation in real time   between a terrified farmer and Waltz’s smooth and sinister Col. Landa. The opening is a perfectly crafted preface to the film which is to follow, as a disparate group of characters comes together for a violent final confrontation.

Pitt is excellent though his screen time is limited, with much time given to less well known players. Melanie Laurent is sharply delicate and Michael Fassbender memorable in his role as the ultimate British toff. But Christophe Waltz is simply stunning, working effortlessly in multiple languages and creating a multi-layered, silver tongued villain  who is never quite hateful. The Oscar rumours are well deserved.

Of course, even Inglourious Basterds is not immune to Tarantino’s whims and the film is a little too long, the conversations too elliptical and the characters too broad. But even though the narrative  sometimes gets a little lost, the way in which he ratchets up tension and releases it in calculated,   cathartic blasts – using humour as often as violence – is incredible and shows a director with a command of the viewer virtually unmatched in modern cinema. A dark, witty, violent, self-aware and glorious ode to all things cinematic.

Extras: a selection of extended scenes and many behind the scenes glimpses on the Blu-ray.