The Movie
The type of subtle comedy of manners that's virtually impossible to make in this age of overt guffaws, Playtime is a masterpiece of uncompromising filmmaking for writer/director Jacques Tati, although its box office failure would deal a huge blow to his career. There's no real plot, rather a series of little situations set in the fast-paced world of ultra-modern Paris, many of them completely mundane. The humor is kept at a deliberate simmer throughout, coaxing chuckles with little more than the sound that a newfangled chair makes, the expression of a portrait on the wall, or an offhand comment or gesture. This is one of several films in which Tati himself plays the iconic Monsieur Hulot who, despite a pratfall or two, never crosses over into slapstick, maintaining the delicate balance of a beautifully crafted romp.
The Picture
The opening shot of clouds is so twitchy and vertically scratchy it almost looks like there's a rainstorm in progress, until we pull back to the gorgeous blue, and then the movie itself looks quite crisp for the most part. Grain appears to have been reduced but is still evident, imparting an appropriately nostalgic feel. Much of the movie utilizes a blue-gray palette, shot in color but evoking black-and-white. With few exceptions, textures are well-rendered, with only rare instances of digital "noise" per se, usually in specific areas of the 1.85:1 frame that are oddly-lit (half-in/half-out of shadow) or -focused (at a peculiar angle). Playtime was meant to be shown on a huge screen in 70mm, with its long shots brimming with detail, and the home version is of course less successful.
The Sound
Two soundtracks are supplied for the film, the original French mono and an "International" track incorporating more English. The dialogue, much of it written by American humorist Art Buchwald, is often muttered and almost incidental to the action, like background noise. This International track is the default option, and the only one presented in an uncompressed linear PCM stereo format. Yes, it's all very front-heavy and lacking any memorable side-to-side directionality. For one prolonged sequence, only the sounds of the city are audible, and it would have been great if they were in surround, it might have felt like a trip to Paris via Blu-ray, but oh well. Ultimately the audio is adequate for this '60s comedy.
The Extras
Filmmaker and Monty Python alumnus Terry Jones is all smiles during his on-camera introduction (six minutes), and film historian Philip Kemp supplies commentary on selected scenes, about 47 minutes total. "Au-delà de Playtime" is a fascinating six-and-a-half-minute behind-the scenes film showcasing the incredibly ambitious production, the most expensive in French history at the time. A 20-and-a-half-minute biographical film, "Tati Story," features clips from several of his films, and "Jaques Tati in M. Hulot's Work" brings back the 1976 BBC program wherein Tati discusses his work and the Hulot character specifically (49-and-a-half minutes).
The audio-only "Tati at the San Francisco Film Festival" provides 17 minutes of chaptered, excerpted interviews from the film's 1972 U.S. premiere, followed by a more recent video interview with his script supervisor on three films, including Playtime, Sylvette Baudrot. The real gem here is the half-hour film Cours du Soir from 1967 (the same year as Playtime) written by Tati and directed by Nicolas Rybowski, starring Tati as a mime instructor. All extras are presented in high-definition, although the quality varies wildly.
Final Thoughts
Nothing is lost in the translation of Jacques Tati's superbly realized comedy, and the generous extras help us to appreciate what an impressive achievement it was.
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