Tativille

Jacques Tati was a real institution and the master of French comedy but his artistic life was not funny at all. On the tide of self-confidence following the great success of his earlier films, he chose to make his visionary work, 'Playtime'. It turned out to be a financial disaster and was instrumental in causing the director's bankruptcy. The author pays tribute to the great artist. He depicts Tati's artistic life and examines his filmmaking method, Tati's 'recipe' for comedy taking place not in the meticulously constructed dialogue but in simplicity and gags. Tati's gag is a construction, a kind of an intellectual play based on the knowledge of the rules of man's behaviour; the artist said he had enjoyed observing people, their instinctive actions in daily situations. His comedies are a sign of the times but also a powerful author's record the cinematography of France would not do.