Directed by Jacques Tati!!!
How do you say "drugstore" in French?
Tati is always a delight and this movie is his masterpiece. The day after watching Playtime, I came across the phrase or concept “cognitive dissonance in isotropic spaces,” which is attributed to the artist William Fox. Mr. Fox is referring to the loss of orientation that is experienced in the vast openness of desert landscapes. My mind, however, went straight to the isotropic cityscape that Tati created for this film. A world that baffles our lovable Monsieur Hulot and delights the viewer with its absurdity. There is so much going on in Playtime that it is good for multiple viewings - you’ll always see something you didn’t catch before. It’s also more fun to watch with a friend. I watched this with Kai, who noticed that there were black and white cardboard characters in some of the cubicles in the office scene. This time around, I was rather taken by the fella who is trying to find his way home by reading the veins in a marble column as though it was a map. Good stuff that!