Friday, January 18, 2008

film: mon oncle



just a quick
last film
for abby's
beautiful film week.

when i
think
beautiful films
this one
always
comes to mind.



when i first
started dating
grub
he would show me
famous
modern buildings
and
i would
always tease him
and tell him
they
reminded me
of
mon oncle.



i was shocked
that
he had never
seen it,
as it
is a critique
of modernism
and
pokes fun
at modern architecture.
naturally
i made him
see it.



apropos
the building
he had been
working on
had
the mon oncle poster
hanging in it.


(see top right corner)

i first saw it
in my french class
years ago
and
from then on
was obsessed
with
jacques tati.
all
his
movies
are amazing



but
mon oncle
is
my favorite.







i love that it
has almost
no dialogue
and when
people speak
it is usally
drowned out
by sounds
of the city.



it is also
amazing to me
that
a movie made
some time ago
(1958)
rings so
true today
much like
two other
of my favorite movies,
blade runner & brazil.
movies about
the future
that in many ways
were dead on.

besides
all that
it's just
a fun,
feel-good
movie.
we need that
every
now
and then.

watch the trailer.


have a lovely
weekend.
xo

9 comments:

Eero said...

I need to see this one...

lisa solomon said...

love the images.

i need a feel good movie... :D
xo

MWM said...

I had this crazy client once -we were designing a new house for her and she was obsessed with mon oncle (and disneyland, but that's another story). She kept insisting I watch it, and gave me her copy. Long story short, she ended up having a nervous breakdown and not doing the project. I still have her movie, and still haven't watched it.
I will now, of course.

Anonymous said...

The movies look wonderful, the pulley system on the ceiling for the lights is fantastic. Brazil and Blade runner are cult movies of our time.

f. pea said...

tati is the greatest. i love mon oncle, but 'playtime' is my absolute favorite of his movies. we saw it several years ago on the big screen at the art museum - i'd love to see it on a big screen again.

bikeandbeer said...

ooohh, i love mon oncle too! pt calls it "monocle" :-) and i love blade runner and brazil also! the previous ones you mentioned though i haven't seen. wrote them down to check out...

Anonymous said...

Oh you're right on the money :) Mon Oncle is an absolute pearler! I really enjoy the movie about his holiday too... although I forget the title. Haha it's so good to hear people talk about something so random but so important to the shaping of our society. Thanks for remembering and reminding!

Joanna Goddard said...

i LOVE this post. that film poster is gorgeous, and it's such a sweet story about you and your boy. i am going to watch this movie now. thank you for the inspiration! xo

jenifer lake said...

thanks for the recommends - i put down many on your list (i'm a little late to the game here...!)