Mon Oncle

I'm unsure of what to make of this film. Some of it is quite funny and some of it is not. I know many people who swear by this film and its a winner of numerous awards and yet I'm left scratching my head. The plot is simple, Jaques Tati's Mr Hulot tries to come to terms with a changing world as exemplified by his sisters family who lives in a modern home with all of the latest gadgets. The film is a series of loosely connected bits as we see the family and what they go through and how the basically pastoral Hulot deals with all the modern push button conveniences. Mr. Hulot lives in an old-fashioned and disorganized neighbourhood where people still travel by horse and cart and dogs can roam free on the streets. He frequently pays visits to his sister's family who live in an ultra-modern urban house where everything is geometrical, empty and pretty uninhabitable. The comedic genre allows delicious exaggeration of the contrast between the two neighbourhoods. The pacing is slow and the long runtime allows a lot of focus to be put on small details that are often ignored as self-evident: the complexity of modern kitchen appliances, the tap-walking secretary at the factory, the stepping stones on the Arpels' yard, the pedalled lawnmower, the "eyes" of the house... On the other hand, the antics of Gérard's friends in Hulots's neighbourhood are presented as joyful and unpredictable, like tricking passers-by to walk into lampposts or enjoying the aftermaths of fender-benders that never really happened after all. Hulot and the other adults also have time to enjoy themselves by sitting in cafés and chatting with the easily distracted street cleaner. Much of the first half hour, when most of the jokes are new, is very funny, as is the garden party, the "sausages", and the old man attempting to cross the street towards the end. Titled as a comedy, there are laughs. Regrettably I don't think this is the be all and end all that some people feel it is. Granted if its like all of Tati's other films a second viewing might reveal it to be much funnier and better than first thought. However as it stands now I find it to be a funny but very over rated comedy.