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Like the sarcastic phrase "well done, Einstein" in English?

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    Huh, this is popular in English? The one I'd heard was about Sherlock.
    – user541686
    Commented Jan 31, 2018 at 8:47
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    No, in France we compare ourselves with the guy who invented powder and the one who invented the butter-cutting thread.
    – TonioElGringo
    Commented Jan 31, 2018 at 12:54
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    Voir aussi incidemment la question sur la traduction de this isn't rocket science. Merci !
    – user3177
    Commented Feb 1, 2018 at 2:01
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    @Améraldor Tiens, je savais bien que cette question-ci me disait de quoi, et le voila, vous l'avez trouvé! Bien vu, l'aveugle! (dans son sens "pour souligner la perspicacité de son interlocuteur [c-a-d: vous]" pour vous et votre trouvaille et puis dans son sens "pour se moquer de quelqu'un [c-a-d: moi-meme] qui n'a pas remarqué un élément qui saute aux yeux" pour moi, qui n'en ai rien trouvé, meme pas ma propre reponse!)
    – Papa Poule
    Commented Feb 1, 2018 at 16:02
  • 1
    I wish "Bien joué, Poincaré!" was more popular...
    – Taladris
    Commented Feb 2, 2018 at 2:14

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Not sure about its popularity compared to English but the sentence:

Bien joué, Einstein !

can be heard in French with the same purpose.

Here are some examples of ironical, sarcastic or insulting usage in French:

"Braquage de Florent Pagny : “Quand je les ai vus cagoulés et armés, j’ai tout de suite compris”"
– Bien joué Enstein
– Ouaaah, bac + 4 pour comprendre ça, bien joué Einstein!
Comme tu le sais, le Roi Lion expose les péripéties d’un lion (d’où le titre du film, bien joué Einstein) nommé Simba...
Sur les cons :
- Aime les cons, tu t'aimeras toi même
- Bien joué Einstein
- Casse-toi pov' con

What is possibly more common is to reuse against someone a qualifier that he previously applied to him. e.g.:

— Attends, je vais t'aider. Je suis un pro en xxxx (or un expert en yyyy).

... something wrong happens

— Bien joué, le pro (l'expert / champion...) !

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  • Merci, d'une grande aidé!
    – Julia Voortman
    Commented Jan 30, 2018 at 20:14
  • @jiliagre Il pourrait être intéressant de noter que Bien joué Einstein! est souvent (parfois?) utilisé ironiquement pour se moquer gentiment de quelqu'un.
    – Turtle
    Commented Jan 30, 2018 at 23:20
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    @Nathan Oui, je pense que c'est aussi le cas en anglais. Il n'y a pas de frontière franche entre le sarcasme et l'ironie, juste une gradation. Le ton et le contexte ont, comme toujours, leur importance.
    – jlliagre
    Commented Jan 30, 2018 at 23:42
  • I've never heard any mention of Einstein in a sarcastic way. "Bien joué, champion!" seems to be more common. "On a un nouveau vainqueur!" is also possible.
    – Eric Duminil
    Commented Jan 31, 2018 at 15:12
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    @EricDuminil I definitely did and there are plenty of examples of Bien joué, Einstein on the web. Answer update with some of them.
    – jlliagre
    Commented Jan 31, 2018 at 15:35
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I guess we do. Any french speaker will definitely understand the sarcastic tone of a sentence mentioning Einstein. However, from my experience, I believe we prefer to use it in a negation like :

Ce gars-là, ce n'est pas Einstein !

This dude, he is not Einstein !

Meaning that this man is really NOT smart/bright.

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    "ce n'est pas une lumière"
    – Cœur
    Commented Jan 31, 2018 at 15:21
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A relatively common sarcastic sentence is

Tu te prends pour Einstein?

Googling this sentence produces a few references, including this translation of Robert Penn Warren's citation (from "Tous les hommes du roi")

Tu te prends pour Einstein ? — Tu veux dire que ce n'est pas vrai qu'on a beaucoup en commun ou bien que ça saute tellement aux yeux qu'il n'y a pas besoin d'être un génie pour en arriver à cette conclusion?

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No, it is uncommon to hear Einstein used in a French sentence in a pejorative way, usually it is rather used as a compliment:

On l'appelait 'L'Einstein de la danse'...

From Ouest-France.fr

Although of course your mileage might vary. Some people are more sarcastic (even in French!) so it can happen.

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1

Well "Einstein" is not really often use at all. Also it is not use in a sarcastic way (direct Answer). However in general french are not really sarcastic (compare to English). French people will use the word Genius 10 times more than Einstein. And they will use it in a playful way (and or) "real talk" context. They are not making fun of that person.

Ce gars-la c'est un Génie!

That dude is a genius!

In this example either it is 100% true or you are joking (with your bodies). This is not harsh, nobody gets offended

P.s :Genius = Génie ( meaning smart)

But also Génie(fr) = Genie in bottle. (don't mix the two)

Hope that helps

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    "Einstein" is not really often use at all I don't agree, this is used quite a lot :(
    – Turtle
    Commented Jan 30, 2018 at 23:21
  • @Nathan: I've never heard it.
    – Eric Duminil
    Commented Jan 31, 2018 at 15:13
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    I guess it depends on the people you grow up with and you live with. I definitely hear it once in a while.
    – SivaDashq
    Commented Jan 31, 2018 at 15:25

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