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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
44 of 47 people found the following review helpful
By Jeff Markham
Format:DVD
Misunderstood and occasionally unappreciated ever since its initial 1967 release, Tati's visionary masterpiece is now an undisputed classic. The hallucinatory, hypnotically strange modernist vision of a barely recognisable Paris is quite simply amazing. Hugely influential for its use of space, architecture and Tati's amazing ability to mine subtle observational humour out of literally 'nothing much going on', this visually beautiful film is a must for all film fans. It is also an object lesson to all aspiring filmmakers and critics alike on the use of sound in the cinema.
Tati show us how most definitely less is more, in visual and aural terms. He makes every single second of screen time count. This is incredibly difficult to achieve, yet Tati manages it all with effortless grace and dexterity, all the while charming and amusing us with the immortal Mr. Hulot's hilarious physical comedy. The French Buster Keaton? Why not; they both share an innate genius for visual and physical comedy, and the intuitive appreciation of cinematic space, which few directors, living or dead, ever fully understand. Whenever I see this movie I am reminded of Time Out's famous review of Leone's Once Upon A Time In The West (1968), which (I admit I am paraphrasing here) goes something like "The only critical tools you need are your eyes and ears: this is cinema!" How true and so apt of Playtime.
Tati's alter ego, the ever polite, angular Monsieur Hulot, is let loose on a Paris dominated by modern offices, pristine glass surfaces and scurrying, over-officious French nine-to-fivers.... Read more ›
Tati show us how most definitely less is more, in visual and aural terms. He makes every single second of screen time count. This is incredibly difficult to achieve, yet Tati manages it all with effortless grace and dexterity, all the while charming and amusing us with the immortal Mr. Hulot's hilarious physical comedy. The French Buster Keaton? Why not; they both share an innate genius for visual and physical comedy, and the intuitive appreciation of cinematic space, which few directors, living or dead, ever fully understand. Whenever I see this movie I am reminded of Time Out's famous review of Leone's Once Upon A Time In The West (1968), which (I admit I am paraphrasing here) goes something like "The only critical tools you need are your eyes and ears: this is cinema!" How true and so apt of Playtime.
Tati's alter ego, the ever polite, angular Monsieur Hulot, is let loose on a Paris dominated by modern offices, pristine glass surfaces and scurrying, over-officious French nine-to-fivers.... Read more ›
40 of 43 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Whether it's a masterpiece or a failure or both, Playtime remains an essential Tati movie
9 July 2007
Format:DVD
Why was Playtime a failure, sending Jacques Tati into bankruptcy and costing him control over his life's work of films? His previous film, My Uncle, had been a commercial and artistic success. M. Hulot's Holiday and Jour de Fete had gained Tati world-wide recognition and respect. He had become recognized as one of the few authentic geniuses of film.
Watch Playtime and I think you'll find the answer. Tati in his earlier films placed Hulot in situations where we could empathize with him. Hulot was an innocent. As we came to like him, we also came to like the people he encountered. Even with their pretensions and idiosyncrasies, we could see something of ourselves in them. Tati might be holding up a mirror for us to look in, but M. Hulot was such a gentle companion that we smiled as we recognized ourselves.
With Playtime, there is little Hulot. Instead, we have Tati's view on all sorts of social and cultural issues, from the sterility he saw in much of modern life to modern architecture, group behavior, impersonal offices, loneliness, boorishness and American tourists. We're observers, and our job is to share Tati's viewpoint. Hulot, now middle-aged, has become a minor player in the film. In his earlier movies, Tati was careful to give us small numbers of people with whom, along with Hulot, we could come to know. In My Uncle, for instance, it was essentially one family and one modern home, along with Hulot's own apartment and his neighbors. In M. Hulot's Holiday, it was a small seaside hotel and its guests. With Playtime, we have a large, impersonal office building, all glass and right angles, filled with people -- employees, visitors, exposition guests, customers.... Read more ›
Watch Playtime and I think you'll find the answer. Tati in his earlier films placed Hulot in situations where we could empathize with him. Hulot was an innocent. As we came to like him, we also came to like the people he encountered. Even with their pretensions and idiosyncrasies, we could see something of ourselves in them. Tati might be holding up a mirror for us to look in, but M. Hulot was such a gentle companion that we smiled as we recognized ourselves.
With Playtime, there is little Hulot. Instead, we have Tati's view on all sorts of social and cultural issues, from the sterility he saw in much of modern life to modern architecture, group behavior, impersonal offices, loneliness, boorishness and American tourists. We're observers, and our job is to share Tati's viewpoint. Hulot, now middle-aged, has become a minor player in the film. In his earlier movies, Tati was careful to give us small numbers of people with whom, along with Hulot, we could come to know. In My Uncle, for instance, it was essentially one family and one modern home, along with Hulot's own apartment and his neighbors. In M. Hulot's Holiday, it was a small seaside hotel and its guests. With Playtime, we have a large, impersonal office building, all glass and right angles, filled with people -- employees, visitors, exposition guests, customers.... Read more ›
13 of 15 people found the following review helpful
By Yovra
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
It's been a long wait for a decent region 2 release of this movie by actor/director Tati. It's not is most accesible work (Les Vacances de monsieur Hulot/Mister Hulots Holiday is a better choice to get used to the subtle humour), but it's a timeless and very funny movie. I had to get used to the fact that much of the humour happens in the background, so it's quite rewarding to watch this movie more often. Decent extra's about Tati and the making of this movie make this a very good DVD. Bring on the other Tati masterworks!
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Playtime
To some Playtime (1967), at four years in the making, is Jacques Tati's masterpiece - a film that fully realised his complex vision of a movie where the audience will laugh not at the same thing, but at different details. To others, despite its brilliance, this cold satire on business and bureaucracy, lacks the innocence of Les Vacances de M. Hulot, a perfect film.
With Les Vacances, Tati created his own vision of a seaside holiday to which we always wish to return. Here, though, he bankrupted himself (and even lost his house) with the austere world he had built on 6 acres outside Paris. Playtime's excesses may have damaged his reputation (he was to make just one more film). But it has aged remarkably well, and looks stunning in this BFI edition, complete with alternative `international' soundtrack, which Tati revised to incorporate more English dialogue.
To those yearning for another Les Vacances or Mon Oncle, this will inevitably disappoint. But accept that Tati, brilliant film-maker and perfectionist that he was, had long earned the right to pursue different styles and concepts, and you will find yourself absorbed by Playtime, a film truly with no equal.
To some Playtime (1967), at four years in the making, is Jacques Tati's masterpiece - a film that fully realised his complex vision of a movie where the audience will laugh not at the same thing, but at different details. To others, despite its brilliance, this cold satire on business and bureaucracy, lacks the innocence of Les Vacances de M. Hulot, a perfect film.
With Les Vacances, Tati created his own vision of a seaside holiday to which we always wish to return. Here, though, he bankrupted himself (and even lost his house) with the austere world he had built on 6 acres outside Paris. Playtime's excesses may have damaged his reputation (he was to make just one more film). But it has aged remarkably well, and looks stunning in this BFI edition, complete with alternative `international' soundtrack, which Tati revised to incorporate more English dialogue.
To those yearning for another Les Vacances or Mon Oncle, this will inevitably disappoint. But accept that Tati, brilliant film-maker and perfectionist that he was, had long earned the right to pursue different styles and concepts, and you will find yourself absorbed by Playtime, a film truly with no equal.
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4.2 out of 5 stars
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Why can't they make films like this any more?
This film is superb. Long but superb. Just think - nowadays, the 'celebrities' all live in glass houses so that the hoi poloi can envy how they live. Read more
Published 1 month ago by J. G. Kingham
5.0 out of 5 stars
Jacques Tati at his best
The quality here is superb. The images are neddle sharp. It seems every scene is a work of art. Needs to be viewed more than once.
Published 3 months ago by Dean D. Anthony
5.0 out of 5 stars
playtime
classic tati,all the humour visual,have to watch it a few times ,to appreciate the subtle anarchy involved ,really enjoyed it.
Published 4 months ago by martin
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great film, watched many times and every time see something new
Fantastic film, very well planned.
Something happening all over the place more or less at all times therefore every time you watch it you'll see something new and wonder... Read more
Something happening all over the place more or less at all times therefore every time you watch it you'll see something new and wonder... Read more
Published 5 months ago by NM
3.0 out of 5 stars
playtime blu-ray/dvd dual format edition
The widescreen blu-ray picture for this film is absolutely stunning .every Tati fan will want to have a copy in their collection. Read more
Published 7 months ago by gerrard
3.0 out of 5 stars
For Tati enthusiasts
I am a great Tati fan - and Play Time completes my collection of his films. I found this DVD enjoyable, with some brilliant flashes of Tati's comic genius, but he sometimes gets... Read more
Published 7 months ago by K. W. E. Page
4.0 out of 5 stars
A forerunner
I saw some of Jacques Tati's films in the past and am most impressive by his works e.g. Mon Oncle and Les Vacances de M. Hulot. Read more
Published 9 months ago by ipjackie
3.0 out of 5 stars
I just don't get it
I'm sure everybody enjoys actual playtime, but don't think this movie is for everyone. It's long, experimental, and can be quite a chore to get through. Read more
Published 16 months ago by Inspector Gadget
5.0 out of 5 stars
Magnificent Release of a Magnificent Tati
Well the BFI have done it again. Along with the Eureka MOC series we are really being spoiled at the moment and Jaques Tatis' Playtime is a more than worthy addition to my, or any,... Read more
Published 16 months ago by hell-oh-kitteh
5.0 out of 5 stars
Staggering Achievement
Bless my father for showing me 'Les Vacances de M. Hulot' when I was barely into my teens and shame on me for waiting nearly 20 years to discover the rest of Tati's films. Read more
Published on 5 Jan 2011 by Simon Morgan
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