Here are two quotes by two foreigners about America (the first obliquely-US box office return is the most important marker for studio films).
Christopher Nolan, about his upcoming film Inception:
When somebody’s spent years making a film and spent massive amounts of money — crazy amounts of money, really, that get spent on these huge films — then you want to see something extremely ambitious in every sense. Full article
J.M. Coetzee, when asked about the significance of his novel Elizabeth Costello ending with a letter dated September 11th, said:
As for September 11, let us not too easily grant the Americans possession of that date on the calendar. Like May 1 or July 14 or December 25, September 11 may seem full of significance to some people, while to other people it is just another day. Full Interview
What is being said here? Unsaid? Again that word ‘ambitious.’