Jacques Tati

[dfordoom]

Who else loves Jacques Tati’s films? In my opinion there may have been funnier movies than <i>M. Hulot’s Holiday</i>, but if there have been I haven’t seen them. When it comes to visual humour Tati’s only serious rival was Buster Keaton. And although Tati’s humour is almost entirely non-verbal, he was a master of the use of sound effects. As usual the film follows the misadventures of M. Hulot, a well-meaning chap who causes chaos wherever he goes. An absolutely delightful movie. Delightful not just for the laughs, but for Tati’s wonderfully off-kilter way of looking at the world.

[MikeBSG]

Perhaps this is a failing of mine. Perhaps I was exposed to too many snooty Francophiles at an early age in college. However, I've never been that taken with Jacques Tati, despite hearing people go on and on about his comic genius.

The European comic actor whom I adore is Alberto Sordi. I know he didn't direct his own movies, but I just find him far funnier in films like "Everybody Go Home," "The Great War," and "Mafioso."

[jdb1]

I have to agree. While I find Tati's films pleasant, they aren't exactly the most trenchant laugh riots I've ever seen. I find that Tati himself seems to disappear into the woodwork. If he hadn't been so tall, I probably wouldn't have noticed him at all.

Euro-comedy generally doesn't say much to me (save for British humor (humour?)). The European comedy I find the funniest is probably "Divorce, Italian Style."

In most of the Euro-comedies I've seen, the people run around like puppets, their underpants fall down at inopportune moments, and everyone finds at least one moment to mock America, sometimes justifiably, most often not.

I guess my favorite French comic actor is still Jerry Lewis.

[Mr. Arkadin]

I am a big fan of Tati and my favorite of his work is Mon Oncle (1968). It's a great film that features the sweet and gentle Hulot in contrast with modernization (a theme he would explore more deeply in Playtime and Traffic).

Tati's films often need a second or third look to be fully appreciated because there is often so much going on in the frame that we cannot see it all on the first viewing. His humor is also different from others just as his character is. It's not something that you'll will roll around on the floor laughing at (although the dog and the fish incident is hilarious). It's much more subtle in nature.

[klondike]

Funny thing about Jacques Tati . .
Back in the late 80's, a friend kept insisting I check out the film work of Jacques Tati, said that he just knew with my sensibilites that I'd groove big-time to his films.
So I ran down M. Hulot's Holiday.
What a revelation! I laughed til I teared, chuckled & whooped til I gasped, spent half the film clapping with delight & surprise. It seemed like I loved nearly every little thing about it.
I thanked my friend profusely and set about to ferret out other Tati films.
Two weeks later I nailed a library-lend of Mon Oncle, made it my after-supper treat, with a big-ass bowl o' corn, the curtains drawn & phone ringer turned off.
What a disappointment - 60 minutes later, I was avalanched under twin waves: continual embarrassment for Tati's character, and extreme repulsion toward post-war French architecture. Submerge those plot features beneath a dense class-struggle puzzle I wasn't interested in either solving or laughing at, and you can appreciate my relief when those end-credits began.
I confronted my afficionado pal at a barbecue a week later, and expressed my disappointment r.e. Oncle; I don't get it, he responded, how could you adore Holiday, but not like Tati in Mon Oncle?!
"I've got a better question;" interrupted an eavesdropping mutual friend of ours: "how can you appreciate any of the films of Jacques Tati, when you (indicating myself) have always claimed that you can't stand Charlie Chaplin?!"
Pardon?!
Ahh, mais c'est cinema pour vous, non?!

[MissGoddess]

I've only seen two of his films, Mon Oncle and M. Hulot's Holiday. I thought they both were charming but I much preferred Mon Oncle for it's sharper criticism of materialism which is still so resonant today. And I'm glad I'm not the only one who continually thought of Chaplin when I watched these films.

He certainly was a gifted filmmaker.

[Moraldo Rubini]

The one to check out is Playtime. I think it's a masterpiece. It's especially great if you have the opportunity to see it on the big screen. It's a wide-screen feast for the eyes. The Criterion Collection edition is a handsome set too, with some great supplemental material. You can add me to the pro-Tati list. I think he's a genius. I first saw Monsiuer Hulot's Holiday in art class. The professor loved it, and insisted that everyone in class watch it. I'm indebted to her...

[Mr. Arkadin]

Playtime is awesome. I love his friend who lives in the apartment that looks like a store window front.