Thank God I watched Terry Jones video introduction on the Criterion Collection DVD of Playtime before watching the movie proper, as it provided the proper set-up for what I was about to watch. Without that information at my disposal, I likely would have found the earliest sequences of Play Time impossible to get into due to their unorthodox style of storytelling and filming that intentionally tries to create distance between the viewer and what is occurring on-screen. Luckily, I not only managed to get into Playtime, I found it to be quite enjoyable and memorable thanks to a unique and audacious rhythm that it carries around.

Playtime is a 1967 movie that is apparently comprised of six sequential tales (I was not aware of the film dividing its runtime in this manner, so I was not keeping track of the individual environments the movies goes through), with Monsieur Hulot (played by the writer/director of this motion picture Jacques Tati) being the recurring element that links the majority of the stories. The feature follows Hulot as he attempts to navigate his way through (among other subplots) an invention expo, a fancy eatery and reuniting with an old friend from the Army. There’s a number of supporting characters that also come into play, particularly during the sequences set at an upscale restaurant.

While these may sound like overly simple descriptions in the way I describe them, in execution, Playtime finds plenty of opportunity for comedy in the form of Hulot that seems to recall comedy in the silent movie era of Hollywood. The exaggerated body language and occasional dives into slapstick, not to mention an emphasis on visual humor, all combined had me recalling comedy beats of films and shorts from the era where it was impossible to put actual vocalized dialogue into a motion picture. Jacques Tati in the lead role certainly seems to be channeling the energy and acting styles of actors from that period of cinema given how well he fares in the lead role.

Tati certainly shows a remarkable skill for this specific type of comedy in his performance, hitting a right balance of ignorance and charm that makes Hulot a fine everyman figure to guide the audience through this visually stunning tale. That may be the biggest takeaway that I got from Playtime actually, it’s a visual marvel in terms of the large amount of sets (which include the area where the invention expo is held and a fancy restaraunt) constructed. Apparently, this movie took multiple years to fully assemble and all that time spent hard at work getting it to be a reality certainly comes through in the final product, which is full of engrossing sets that are rich, vibrant and full of subtle lively details that make the world of this movie truly pop.
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The best part of the various sets is that they have an apparent sense of thought put into them, it’s easy to see how the various environments or objects would function under normal usage. Having that sense of obvious function play into the various environments makes it all the more humorous whenever Hulot or the various supporting players in the upscale restaurant sequence manage to trash their surroundings. The underlying message of contrasting the intricately designed sets with all this humorous mayhem seems to be the idea of how you can have all of the fanciest technology on Earth, but no matter what, imperfect human behavior will always find a way to muck things up. It’s Teti taking a swipe against changes that were occurring in the world at the time of this films release by showing how, even as the world marches onward, the inherently flawed and clumsy nature of humanity is going to be staying plenty intact.

Just look at how we, the viewer, get to watch a ritzy place to eat go from high-class to no-class in the span of one night as the restaurant slowly crumbles (which includes a see-through glass door that Hulot shatters by attempting to walk through) around the antics of the various patrons. It’s Jacques Tati throwing a giant wrench into the machine of progress seen in architecture and technology in that era of French culture, a wrench going by the name of “human behavior”. Playtime turns out to be one of those movies that’s kind of like hitting birds with two stones; its the perfect vehicle for Tati to rage against evolutions in society as well as a wonderful chance for the actor/writer/directors talents to run wild. And run wild they do, to some mighty fine results!