Review of Monsieur Hulot's Holiday (1953) by Arshi R — 28 Mar 2010

Grade: B+.

Jacques Tati directs, co-writes, and stars (as the aloof and jovial Mr. Hulot). The opening of this film, our introduction to Mr. Hulot, is one of the great opening character introductions in film. Vehicles stand in for people, take on personality, and embody their inhabitants. We see in the beginning a train leaving and arriving at a summer seaside holiday destination, in France. We see the people, whom will all meet, and eat, and vacation at the same resort; familes with kids, old couples, foreign tourists, etc. Most of the principle players are staying at the same hotel. This is their holiday, and when it ends, they will go home, perhaps with some new friends, some new acquaintances, some new memories and experiences.

This is deliberately paced slapstick, observational, intricate, yet with realist tendencies. Tati gives us images, which he holds for extended takes, just to let us know, "yea, I constructed that mise-en-scene. Me." Tati knows when to end a scene, and he knows the right notes to end them on. Tati is focused on settings and sounds; not so much the people in and around them, but the actions and feelings we associate with them.

Tati goes to great lengths to let normality reign supreme in this film, and then to topple that house of cards with Mr. Hulot's accidents. Everything is going just fine, and then Mr. Hulot enters, and through no intent of his own, destabilizes the balance. Always Tati finds the right instances to reinforce checkpoints for the viewer, and he is very funny in his ways of doing this.

In the end, the film is of little consequence, its observations perhaps not as well realized as they would be in later Tati films. The film is content with itself, and so too are we content with its feeling of ease. Hulot's miss-steps are dealt with, with as much dignity as he can muster, and a need to set the error right. Minimizing the damage, not maximizing it, is what Tati is concerned about. An important thing is Hulot's humility, as its key to winning our, the viewers, favour.

The film is a marvel of sound, sound repetition, background noises, ocean noises; the noises of children playing, cars driving, the annoyance of certain sounds, the tranquility of other ones. Sounds galore! All sound, everywhere! Tati's minimalism is a whimsy to sit through because along with it comes so much that is ingrained. The film, like much of Tati's work, is a work of life, its repetitiveness, its conformity, its struggles, its breaks from stress. Tati strikes a balance between normality and understated chaos; he never lets it get too out of hand, except in one instance, which is a great burst of a climax to the film.

I was sad at the end, but I don't know why; perhaps because Tati is so damn observational. Perhaps he left me thinking, "So what's the point?" and I having to answer, "well, maybe that IS the point." Tati, your comedy, you make it bittersweet; I think you would've liked Wes Anderson.