Last year I watched Jacques Tati's film Playtime, which I absolutely loved. Yesterday I watched his earlier film, Monsieur Hulot's Holiday, where he introduced his beloved character. Truthfully, I didn't like it as much as Playtime, although that's hardly a stinging critique. There's a certain pace that you need to adjust to, mainly a slow burn, where his character clumsily causes unintentional mischief. I read where Rowan Atkinson loved the film, and based his Mr. Bean on Monsieur Hulot, which makes sense, but since I don't like Mr. Bean nearly as much as his Blackadder, I suppose I'm naturally limited to how much I am drawn to the character. Atkinson's point was that it was amazing how much you could say and how much fun you could have with so little words, and he's definitely spot-on in this observation. I also like Tati's critique of the modern business sensibility and pace. Definitely recommended. This makes me want to go back and watch Playtime.
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