Parade

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Audience Member As always with the circus, expectations should be low; and that way, Tati can surprise you. The film is a made-for-Swedish-tv feature that more or less is just a taping of his circus mime act, with some other acts thrown in for the fuller experience. While that may not sound all that appealing, Tati is such a brilliant physical comedian, and elevated the conceit through a lot of sleight of hand breaking the fourth wall of the center ring. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/30/23 Full Review Audience Member The final feature from celebrated French director Jacques Tati (a.k.a. M. Hulot) was filmed for Swedish TV, apparently live in front of an audience on video (but then with additional footage shot later on film). It's a circus, complete with acrobats, jugglers, musicians (both classical and prog-rock), magicians, and, of course, Tati himself recreating some of his classic pantomimes (playing tennis, boxing, riding a horse, dancing). The physicality of it all is very impressive (particularly Tati in his late sixties) and you can tell that Tati spent a lot of time with the sound effects and production (as he always did). The feel of the film is exuberant and, as the acts roll on, the audience (dressed in incredible multi-coloured hippy outfits) gets fully involved in the show. But is this really a naïve audience or perhaps there are actors and performers strewn throughout their midst - many jump up on stage, including a memorable old fellow who tries to jump on a mule. The same droll humour found in all of Tati's films is here, with a knowing, sometimes sentimental or sad, undertone that bespeaks of shared human experience. Some might find this a lesser Tati film (continuing his attempt to recover an audience after the costly flop of the amazing Playtime), but I agree with Jonathan Rosenbaum that it demonstrates Tati's masterful control of the material and the viewer's responses while also deploying his major theme about the necessity of human connection. Of course, one can't avoid thinking about Fellini's similar fascination with the circus as a metaphor for life and the music here often evokes Nino Rota's scores for that other director. This is not the place to start with Tati (that would probably be Les Vacances de Monsieur Hulot, 1953) but Parade functions well as a bittersweet goodbye. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/04/23 Full Review Audience Member A bit difficult to watch in comparison to other Tati films, but I do enjoy the ending and it has the best juggling I've ever seen. Rated 2/5 Stars •  Rated 2 out of 5 stars 02/08/23 Full Review Audience Member While comedic legend Jacques Tati's last film was probably his worst, I don't think it's a bad one to end on. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/11/23 Full Review Audience Member One of the first things I watched out of the Tati Criterion set, just because this one was completely new to me, and I enjoyed it well enough, but the carnival/circus atmosphere didn't quite jive with what I was expecting, so I may've come away from it a little let down. Still, it has its charming moments. Worth a look. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/07/23 Full Review Audience Member the last pic from director Jacques Tati Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Read all reviews

Parade

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