The Complete Jacques Tati

Locations
Call Number: DVD FLC-FRE Complete
On Shelf At: Downtown Library, Westgate Branch

Location & Checkout Length	Call Number	Checkout Length	Item Status
Downtown 1st Floor 2-week checkout	DVD FLC-FRE Complete	2-week checkout	On Shelf
Westgate Adult A/V 2-week checkout	DVD FLC-FRE Complete	2-week checkout	On Shelf

Jour de fête Special features: New 2K digital restoration; two alternate versions of Jour de fête: a partly colorized 1964 version and the full-color 1995 rerelease version; À l'américaine, a 2013 visual essay by Tati expert Stéphane Goudet tracking the evolution of Tati's comedy; "Jour de fête": in search of the lost color, a 1988 documentary on the restoration of the film to Tati's original color version; Trailer; New English subtitle translation.
Mon oncle Special features: New 2K digital restoration; introduction by actor and comedian Terry Jones; My uncle, director Jacques Tati's 1958 reedited, English-language version of the film; Once upon a time ... "Mon oncle," an hour-long documentary form 2008 on the making of the film; Everything is beautiful, a three-part program from 2005 on the film's fashion, architecture, and furniture design; Everything's connected, a 2013 visual essay by Tati expert Stéphane Goudet comparing Mon oncle to the other Monsieur Hulot films; "Le Hasard de Jacques Tati," a 1977 French television episode featuring an interview with Tati about his dog, Hasard, and the canine stars of Mon oncle; New English subtitle translation.
Playtime Special features: New 4K digital restoration; introduction by actor and comedian Terry Jones; Three selected-scene commentaries, by film historian Philip Kemp, theater director Jérôme Deschamps, and Jacques Tati expert Stéphane Goudet; Like home, a 2013 visual essay on Play time by Goudet; "Tativille," a 1967 episode of the British television program Tempo international, featuring an interview with Tati from the set of Play time; Beyond "Play time," a short 2002 documentary featuring behind-the-scenes footage from the production; Interview from 2006 with script supervisor Sylvette Baudrot; Audio interview with Tati from the U.S. debut of Play time at the 1972 San Francisco Film Festival; Alternate English-language soundtrack; New English subtitle translation.
Traffic Special features: Disc 1. Interview from 1971 cast; The Comedy of Jacques Tati; theatrical trailer and more -- Disc 2. A two-part documentary; plus, a new essay by film critic Jonathan Romney. (104 min.).
Parade Special features: New 2K digital restoration; In the footsteps of Monsieur Hulot, a two-part documentary from 1989 by director Jacques Tati's daughter Sophie Tatischeff; In the ring, a 2013 visual essay by Tati expert Stéphane Goudet about Tati's appreciation for the circus, clowns, and mime; "An homage to Jacques Tati," a 1982 episode of the French television program Magazine featuring a tribute to Tati by his friend and set designer Jacques Lagrange; New English subtitle translation.
Monsieur Hulot's holiday Special features: New 2K digital restoration of director Jacques Tati's 1978 rerelease version; Original 1953 version of the film; Introduction by actor and comedian Terry Jones; Clear skies, light breeze, a 2013 visual essay by Tati expert Stéphane Goudet about the debut of Monsieur Hulot; New interview with film composer and critic Michel Chion on Tati's use of sound design; Optional English-language soundtrack; New English subtitle translation.
Tati shorts Special features: New 2K digital restorations of all seven shorts;Tati story, a 2002 short film on the life and career of director Jacques Tati by Tati expert Stéphane Goudet; Professor Goudet's lessons, a 2013 lecture program by Goudet on Tati's cinema; Trailer; New English subtitle translation.
[Pt. 1: disc 1-2] Jour de fête -- [pt. 2: disc 1-2] Monsieur Hulot's holiday -- [pt. 3: disc 1-2] Mon oncle -- [pt. 4: disc 1-2] Playtime -- [pt. 5] Trafic -- [pt. 6: disc 1-2] Parade -- [pt. 6] Tati shorts -- [Booklet]
Jacques Tati, Guy Decomble, Paul Frankeur, Santa Relli, Maine Vallée, Nathalie Pascaud, Micheline Rolla, Valentine Camax, Louis Perrault, Jean-Pierre Zola, Adrienne Servantie, Lucien Frégis, Betty Schneider, Barbara Dennek, Georges Montant, France Rumilly, Reinhart Kolldehoff, Maria Kimberly, Tony Kepper, Marcel Franval, Honoré Bostel, Franco Ressel, Mario Zanuelli, The Williamses, The Veterans of Paris Hockey Club, The Sipolos, Pierre Bramma, Michèle Brado..
Jour de fête: In this enchanting debut feature, Jacques Tati stars as a fussbudget of a postman who is thrown for a loop when a traveling fair comes to his village.
Monsieur Hulot's holiday: Monsieur Hulot takes a holiday, at a seaside resort, where his presence provokes one catastrophe after another.
Mon oncle: A supremely amusing satire of mechanized living and consumer society.
Playtime: A nearly wordless comedy about confusion in an age of high technology.
Traffic: The bumbling Monsieur Hulot, outfitted with tan raincoat, beaten brown hat, and umbrella, takes to Paris's highways and byways.
Parade: The director himself serves as master of ceremonies at a circus. Focusing on the spectators, this stripped down work is a testament to the communion betwen audience and entertainment.
Tati shorts: The charming short films directed by Jacques Tati.
DVD; NTSC, region 1; full screen (1.37:1) presentation; Dolby Digital mono.

COMMUNITY REVIEWS

Visual gags for days submitted by answer-beat on March 13, 2022, 3:42pm Tati's films generally feature some dialogue, and subtitles are included (a couple films even had alternate versions specifically made for English-speaking audiences), but you don't really need to understand French to get the humor, as it's mainly based in body language, mannerisms, timing, and visual puns. Playtime was the first one I saw, and it's his most ambitious, panoramic film by far, and an absolute masterpiece of careful choreography, even when it descends into chaos, like the restaurant scene. It took me a while to warm up to Tati's Hulot character, but it's a genius depiction of bumbling idiocy, and plays a crucial role in his best work. The earlier feature length films are also great examples of his mastery, with Mon Oncle being a particularly vicious satire on modern life and the upper class (the message is basically "rich people are boring and dumb, kids and dogs are more realistic"). Trafic is pretty excellent as well, though kind of nerve-wracking; it's not a horror film but actually being in the situations the main characters go through would be horrendous. After that, Tati got tired of Hulot, and was reduced to conventional pantomime in Parade, which has some funny moments but is nothing more than a poorly executed public access variety show, with virtually none of the unique character of his earlier work. The short films are largely forgettable, one of them is basically a demo version of Jour de fête, so that was my favorite of the shorts. The first five features on this box set are all must-watch, and some of them have intros by Terry Jones of Monty Python, who clearly learned a lot from Tati's absurdist sense of humor.

M. Hulot and the Art of Observing the Ordinary submitted by joist-67 on May 3, 2023, 8:35am When Monsieur Hulot goes on vacation, he may not notice everything that goes on around him, but Jacques Tati certainly does. The wonderful timing of "being in the moment" carries the action (or lack thereof) throughout, savoring the absolutely ordinary small things in life, underscored by the twanging soft thud of a swinging door. Delightful to watch and listen to once you become accustomed to the slow pace, like life itself. Here everyone is interesting in their own way, and Tati is brilliant with elevating dogs to their rightful delightful status. He also was an accomplished mime, acrobat and a superb bike rider ("Jour de Fete" in particular).
Highly enjoyable viewing with gentle skewering of the over-reliance on technology ("Mon Oncle").
Lots to appreciate, though "Playtime" and "Trafic" for me were almost exhausting to watch, rather incredibly predictive portrayals of dehumanizing aspects of modern life.

No Flies on Tati submitted by tarascon on May 16, 2023, 11:52am Innocent as Charlie Chaplin, as limber as Buster Keaton, “anarchic” as the Marx Brothers, oblivious as Peter Sellers’ Pink Panther, all that plus M. Hulot walks like my cat. I believe that M. Tati was a kind of Situationist saint. ;)

Who said the French aren’t funny?