Mon Oncle

I don't pretend to be a film snob, but I do know what I like.

And I finally spent the time this weekend (and tonight) to watch Jacques Tati's "Mon Oncle" in full, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Definitely for the French aesthetics. I lived in France for almost two years, for a time in a building that reminds me a little of the one M. Hulot lives in:

There's still plenty of new coming in among the old, but they've done an amazing job of preserving the old. The apartment building I lived in when I lived in Blois is still there, built before Columbus discovered America.

And I love the visual comedy of it all. This is clearly a tale that could be told with lots of jokes and dialogue, but it's not. Most of it is in the visual absurdity of the new world M. Hulot is called to live in compared to the fuzzy, grimy, comfortable one he calls home.

There are a few odd editing moments that confused me a little, and while the payoff at the end is nice, I'm not exactly sure what led up to it. But seeing father and son holding hands like that is precious (I won't spoil the joke for those who haven't seen it).

It was this bit from the Royal Ocean Film Society that convinced me finally to watch the entire film:'

As this bit says, Tati does visual comedy well. The photo that starts this entry is a great example. The old Mr. Tudball character trying to help this guy park his enormous Cadillac between the cart and the beat-up local-production truck.

Anyhoo, for now the film is available to see at dailymotion.com, here. It's worth a try.