5/5 Blu-ray: I absolutely love this film! It may not be for everyone but for Tati fans, a wonderful BD release!
  by Dennis A. Amith (kndy) (California)
French director Jacques Tati is considered as one of the best directors of all time. Known for his comedic work in France, his character Monsieur Hulot has appeared in several successful comedic films such as "Juor de Fete", M. Hulot's Holday", "Mon Oncle", "Traffic" but there is one film that will be his accolade. That film is "Playtime".

Considered a masterpiece by critics, the film was also a commercial failure and was the most expensive film ever created in France as Tati created a set featuring a whole city block with high rise buildings that looked incredibly real. But the film was ahead of its time.

"Playtime" is a visual film with no significant plot, nor does it have much dialogue. It's a film that is driven by its many characters onscreen and the elaborate setup as characters, buildings and vehicles are treated with so much detail on the film, that it just a feast for ones easy as Tati absolutely created a film that was sheer brilliance.

But part of the problem was his risky gamble on 70 mm widescreen and stereophonic sound. Many theaters were not equipped to handle that and to make things worse (but understandable) is the lack of dialogue which can easily turn off audiences. So, needless to say, the film didn't do well in France and also in America.

It's after Tati died in 1982, is when people found admiration in his work and seeing how his films were truly amazing.

"Playtime" is like a smorgasbord of life being changed by modern technology and as Tati was known to do, lambast modern society as he was a man that was definitely "old school" to the time of his death.

The film revolves around Tati's famous character Monsieur Hulot and an American tourist named Barbara.

For Monsieur Hulot, he easily gets lost in the city and leads him to adventures to various areas such as an office building (which he had a problem with today's modern architecture) as he gets lost trying to get to his meeting and ends up being pulled away to a high-tech trade expedition, a high-tech apartment and then leads him to nightclub known as the Royal Guarden.

As for Barbara, she just wants to experience the beauty of Paris. She accompanies her (loud) American friends but she rather enjoy France her own way. Obviously Barbara had different ideas in mind of Paris but instead she receives a modernize setting.

The film culminates with the carousel of cars as Barbara must leave the city and sees almost a carousel/parade of all these vehicles all around her and how all the people react. What we see is a city that has been transformed to a festive, enormous metropolitan playground.

"Playtime" focuses on these two characters (and other characters who shows up more than once), Tati showcases modernization (which looks beautiful) but it's that demolishing of the France that he loves and now getting used to this new France is what makes "Playtime" quite entertaining.

Viewers can watch "Playtime" with its original French audio but also an International version which features the film in English.

VIDEO & AUDIO:

"Playtime" is presented in 1080p High Definition (1:85:1 Aspect Ratio). Accord to Criterion, the black bars at the top and bottom of the screen are normal for this format. The HD digital transfer was created on Spirit Datacine from the 35mm reduction internegative made from the 65 mm interpositive. Thousands of dirt, debris, scratches, splices, warps, jitter and flicker were manually removed using MTI's DRS system and Pixl Farm's PFClean system, while Digital Vision's DVNR system was used for small dirt, grain and noise reduction.

"Playtime" is featured in its original French language but also a alternate International soundtrack which features a few scenes with English dub.

As for the audio, the audio is presented in lossless stereo. Criterion mentions that the soundtrack for "Playtime" was remastered at 24-bit from the orignal stereo audio stems. Clicks, thumps, hiss and hum were manually removed using Pro Tools HD. Crackle was attenuated using Audio Cube's integrated audio workstation.

Subtitles are provided in English.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

"Playtime" comes with the following special features:

* Video introduction by writer, director, and performer Terry Jones - (6:13) Terry Jones talks about "Playtime" and what he remembered when he watched in on the theater for the first time, what he thought about the film and also a little information about Jacques Tati.
* Selected scene commentary by film historian Philip Kemp - (46:44) A well done commentary by Philip Kemp as he talks about certain scenes from the film. Kemp definitely giving an intelligent and yet smooth delivery for commentary for the film. Very informative!
* Au-delà de "Playtime," a short documentary featuring behind-the-scenes footage from the production - (6:30) Featuring a behind-the-scenes look of how the set was created for "Playtime" and video footage of Jacques Tati with the cast and crew.
* Tati Story, a short biographical film - (20:38) A featurette celebrating the work of director Jacques Tati. Featuring photos and video of Jacques Tati from when he was a child to when worked on his final film. Very good insight to Tati's personal life and his career.
* "Jacques Tati in Monsieur Hulot's Work," a 1976 BBC Omnibus program featuring Tati - (49:28) Featuring an interview conduced by Gavin Millar who interviews Tati at the Hotel de la Plage about M. Hulot and films that the character has appeared in.
* Rare audio interview with Tati from the U.S. debut of Playtime at the 1972 San Francisco International Film Festival (Courtesy of Pacifica Radio Archives) - Featuring Jacques Tati at the 1972 SF International Film Festival (discussion moderated by Albert Johnson) and insight of Tati's feelings of the film being showing in the US and his appreciation for the American fans who enjoyed the film. A great audio recording that gives us insight of Jacques Tati.
* Video interview with script supervisor Sylvette Baudrot - (12:09) Sylvette Baudrot talks about working on the film and reveals some secrets of how Tati made this film work.
* Cours du soir, a 1967 short film written by and starring Tati - (27:41) A short film in which features Tati teaching a mime class.

Also, included is an essay (in the insert) by Jonathan Rosenbaum (a film critic for the Chicago Reader from 1987-2000) titled "The Dance of Playtime".

JUDGMENT CALL:

"Playtime" happened to be the first Jacques Tati film that I have ever watched. I was familiar with his character of M. Hulot but for years, I have wanted to watch and experience the film.

The first thing that I found surprising is the attention to detail as the unbelievable set Tati's company had created was just fantastic. The buildings look modern, the set looks like a major section of Paris with all the people, buildings and vehicles. And sure enough, "Playtime" is a film that utilizes everything on screen to show how modern technology has literally chanted the landscape. Some who embrace the changes and convenience of modernization and some who feel they are left behind and are literally lost.

What makes this film work outside of its incredible set is that Tati is a perfectionist. He literally directs each person in the film. Everyone has an import part to play. May it be how characters have this choreographed walk as they go off in several directions to characters at a restaurant as we see people dancing on the dance floor, each person dancing differently. While servants are trying to get the food out and you see visual gags as one servant clearly has their eyes on something inside the club, while another is attentive to the female patrons and those who are desperately trying to get their food out. It may seem chaotic, but Tati knows what he wanted to get onscreen and succeeds.

"Playtime" features absolutely beautiful cinematography as we see bungalows on the work floor which work almost like a maze. We see buildings that appear to be metallic and the lighting automatically synchronizing when they turn on. We see vehicles move almost in synch with other vehicles.

We see people throughout the city in similar routines at work, we see people promoting the latest in modern technology ala the late 60's and what is most amazing is that there is hardly any dialogue. It's like you are given an upfront look at how life is in the city and seeing how various people react to each other.

The film plays out quite interesting as the first half is dedicated to various characters such as M. Hulot who has a business meeting but ends up getting lost in all the modern settings. Barbara is a tourist who has accompanied several American women to Paris and finds the city to be quite breathtaking. We see Monsieur Hulot getting lost in offices from buildings that look alike.

But then the second half of the film focuses on a nightclub known as The Royal Garden that is opening and yet not ready. We see how the builders and the restaurant staff prepare for their major night despite the nightclub not yet ready. Where the first half was quite visual, the second half focuses more intimately on the people of the nightclub and the film becomes more gag-driven but yet with so many people in the film, Tati did a wonderful job in making sure each character had some part in the film and contributed in some fun or hilarious way.

A visual film without dialogue may seem boring and monotonous but fortunately Jacques Tati included a good number of gags to make the whole 124 minutes a bit lively. I did feel the film went a little long and that scenes could have been cut but with Jacques Tati putting all his energy into this film, I understand how difficult it was for him to even cut any scene out. But I do feel that the film could have been much shorter but then again, I would have been curious to see Tati's original, longer cut.

If anything, I really enjoyed what Tati did to create such a beautiful film. Three years of his life and also the crew and talent who made this film a reality is very much appreciated as I was entertained visually and I just felt so much respect for Tati after the film was completed. I did find it a bit disheartening to learn how this film which cost over $15 million (which was incredible for 1967 and was the most expensive French film at the time) caused problems for Tati as he was left bankrupt and unfortunately damaged his career. As much as it was critically well-received, it was a failure in the box office but partly that was because Tati chose 70 mm instead of 35 mm and Stereophonic sound which many theaters were not equipped to play during that time.

The Criterion Collection really did a great job in presenting "Playtime" on Blu-ray. The film looked absolutely beautiful for a film that is over 40 years old and because this film and what takes place onscreen is so immense that each time you watch this film, you will see things that you just didn't catch the first time. You can't help be amazed of how Tati and crew were able to create a modernized city. Tati made sure to really utilize his large cast in this film and what you see maybe different from what others are seeing because there are many things going on in the background. So, definitely a film that I have no doubt will require multiple rewinds because too much is happening in one sitting.

Also, The Criterion Collection edition of "Playtime" on Blu-ray features many special features that Jacques Tati fans will enjoy.

I've heard that the film is a statement by Tati of how much society has changed along with the city he has loved. The modernization with the use of electronics in buildings and restaurants and just making sure he has enough gags to make the audience laugh. If only Tati can see how much has changed today, that would definitely be an entertaining script.

A film that showcases beauty in various ways. This is absolute a film that was the highlight of Jacques Tati's career and despite how this film may have done in the box office, anyone watching now and seeing what the director was able to accomplish with no discernible plot and very little dialogue is fantastic. And again, the visuals are just fantastic. I was really blown away with how beautiful and intricate of a film "Playtime" truly is.

"Playtime" is highly recommended!



3/5 A confounding film, but one I can't get out of my mind
  by S. Rosen (NJ USA)
You either go along with the flow or rebel against the complete lack of forward momentum in this film. This is a sweet, quiet, mild-mannered, virtually plotless film played out against brilliant sets. Jacques Tati's "M. Hulot" character is an acquired taste, and I'm not entirely sure I've acquired it. It is so gentle as to be virtually non-imposing. The humor is mild. The film has a democratic image - you can focus on whatever you'd like it almost any scene - but that also makes the director passive, in a sense.

All this said, I bought the Criterion DVD and bought the Criterion Blu-ray. There must be something to this that keeps drawing me in, but I think I'll have to watch it a few more times before I can identify just what it is that's compelling in all this passivity.

5/5 blu-ray, big screen
  by Early A. Dopter
My review will be hated by many, but the Truth must out: I just saw this in the Criterion blu-ray on my ten (10) foot screen at home. It was magnificent. I am a comedy afficionado and this may be the greatest of them all, although definitely not the most laughs-out-loud. Anyway, the awful truth: if you don't see it in blu-ray on a large screen (at least 60", I imagine), I think you'll be missing a lot. Tati fills the frame with all kinds of mishegas in the background and on the far reaches of the image. Further, the simpler shots draw power from the large scale of the sets. Now please don't be ticked off....I'm doing you a solid!

1/5 Expected not ment to be
  by Robert Facio (New Orleans, LA)
I was looking forward to watching this great film, but the blu-ray would not play in my player (which is completey updated to the latest firmware. I sent it back, four weeks ago, and I am still waiting for my refund.

5/5 Blu-ray showcases Tati's conception.
  by Robert Bezimienny (Sydney, NSW Australia)
For those familiar with the film, the Blu-ray edition is a spectacular improvement over the SD DVD. Seen on a 120 inch screen via a 1080p projector, suddenly the film works as intended. While it goes without saying that a James Bond film is more exciting at high volume on the big screen, it still works as entertainment at home on a modest TV. Playtime, however, only really functions when it's cinematic. Criterion's wonderful decision to release this on Blu-ray makes this a possibility. The film needs size, and size demands HD detail, especially when a joke might be occupying a tiny fraction of the total screen. Some of Criterion's Blu-ray reissues, while terrific films, don't benefit greatly from HD (The Third Man, and even Wages of Fear, come to mind) - but Playtime becomes a different experience. The image quality is excellent - on a par with any colour HD restoration of a film of the period that I've seen (e.g. The Wild Bunch, A Clockwork Orange) - of course, the film elements are 40 years old and Mr.Hulot is not as athletic as Daniel Craig, his love interest tends to wear an overcoat, and (spoiler alert!) there are no explosions. There are no car chases, but there is a traffic jam. So, yes, visually you'll be immersed, but your socks won't be blown into the next room.

Tati's creation does not function as a traditional narrative. Often enough different sectors of the framed image compete for the viewer's attention - there is a unique freedom available to the viewer: you can literally choose what you would like to focus upon. In this the film truly approaches the experience of a being an observer in ordinary life. And, a bit like ordinary life, you have do some of the work if you're hoping to find what you're viewing interesting. Perhaps at times you might find yourself bored - but there's room enough in the film to sustain some boredom. You can drift off into your own thoughts and return to the film as you will.

Of course the film is filled with surprising observations from Tati himself, and inimicable visual and auditory humour. There's little in the way of dialogue, but the voice of an electronic button, or the background hum in a room, or the noise of the street as the camera voyeuristically peers through a window, makes Playtime anything but a silent movie. Again, Tati offers us the opportunity to not only see the ordinary afresh, but to also hear it anew.

Like a great painting, or a great novel, or a great play, Playtime invites you to see the world from a new and different vantage. For all its intellectual and aesthetic verve, Playtime does operate in a limited emotional range. Like its predominantly grey colour palette, the film's emotions are muffled - Mr.Hulot is a little baffled, a little bewildered, yet he remains intrigued and charmed by the world - his distance from the world allows in his comedy - but it's not a comedy that channels any of the grand passions. Frustration, alienation, emptiness, a critique of modernity's soullessness, all this can be contemplated during the film, accompanied by a smile. Love and hate must wait for another day, another film. So while I agree with the many opinions that have Playtime as Tati's masterpiece, and an utterly unique film, I'm also glad there are many other kinds of masterpiece in the history of cinema.