Review of Monsieur Hulot's Holiday

One of my most cherished memories was my first family vacation. Traveling north in a cramped fin-styled red and black Plymouth, we approached the Adirondack mountains. Situated in the middle in all its grandeur is the turquoise-laden Lake George. Certain sights and smells transport me back in time. When I see a neon sign it reminds me of the motel where we resided. The smell of plastic from a beach ball in which we spent lazy afternoons splashing in the pool and lastly, the sounds of cards shuffling as other guest spent their days playing bridge. Just a simple, relaxing vacation in the country. Monsier's Hulot's vacation gave that same visceral response. Hulot (Jacques Tati) is driving to a European seaside hotel for some rest and relaxation in a scanty car that doesn't quite suit him. To describe our Monsier Hulot you see a tall, gangly pipe-smoking individual who is friendly yet for the most part ignored by the other guests. Despite his clumsiness, you find him most captivating just waiting for the next mishap. Here you have a hotel with their clientele and this tall awkward loner who gets entangled in everything he interacts with. Despite being ignored it doesn't diminish from the storyline of carefree summer days. The sight gags are meticulously timed. I love the scene when Hulot is painting his Kayak on the ocean shore with the paint can floating in and out with the tide. Each time the paint can float toward him, Hulot would dip his brush into the moving can. Another example of this comic genius would be Hulot's boat folding/capsizing inward resembling a shark as our neighboring guest run to shore for cover. I also love the comical dexterity in Hulot's tennis serve. Each sight gag is meticulously timed to perfection and yet despite the failures Hulot is unaffected by the result. As for Hulot nothing goes as planned but it's perfectly fine because we're on holiday and it's time to step back and breathe easy between laughs. I also noticed that there aren't any closeups of Hulot. Tati who is a master of mime wanted to showcase his whole body rather than his facial expressions that you would see in other physical comedy stars the likes of Chaplin, Keaton, More recent Jerry Lewis or Lucille Ball. This film engrained in my thoughts, those past vacations many decades ago and from now on each time I watch this movie, it will be like coming back for a new summer season of fun. It's like returning to that Motel with the green neon trim all over again.