Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.5

Mon Oncle Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov November 6, 2014

Winner of Oscar Award for Best Foreign Language Film, Jacques Tati's "Mon Oncle" (1959) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include the French director's alternative version of the film, "My Uncle"; video introduction by actor and comedian Terry Jones; new visual essay by scholar Stephane Goudet; an episode of the French television program 30 millions d'amis; and more. In French, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

Villa Arpel

Mon Oncle is part of Criterion's The Complete Jacques Tati Blu-ray box set, which was released on October 28th.

Jacques Tati’s first color film sends the iconic Monsieur Hulot (Tati) to busy Paris. Because he is unemployed, he spends the majority of his free time entertaining his charming 10-year-old nephew, Gerard Arpel. Hulot’s sister (Adrienne Servantie) is grateful, but his brother-in-law (Jean-Pierre Zola), a strict man of logic who runs a giant plant with hundreds of workers, is concerned because he does not like how Hulot’s head functions.

Eventually, Madame Arpel asks her husband to give Hulot a job in the plant. After he reluctantly agrees, Madame Arpel also decides to introduce her brother to their next-door neighbor, an unbearably pretentious single lady, hoping that they could become a couple.

Rather predictably, the disorganized Hulot not only fails to adapt to the working environment in the plant, but creates some serious problems for his brother-in-law. During a big garden party organized by his sister, Hulot also fails to impress the single lady. Around the same time, things in the ultra-modern Villa Arpel miraculously begin to fall apart.

Tati’s Mon Oncle very much reminds of Charlie Chaplin’s iconic Modern Times. Like the Tramp, Tati’s character is an outsider trying to be normal in a world where very little is. In the ultra-modern and ultra-clean Villa Arpel, for instance, Hulot looks like a lab rat whose behavior is carefully monitored by the camera. His minor failures and successes could be quite amusing -- funny is not the right term to describe them -- but also notably disturbing. Why? Because so much of the absurd has become part of modern reality.

Though not as elaborate as that witnessed in PlayTime, the choreography is excellent. There are numerous sequences in which the movement of the different characters is incredibly well timed while the camera positioning is simply outstanding. The emphasis on detail is equally impressive. The architectural designs, the modern furniture and appliances, even many of the costumes and hats seen in the film are strikingly original.

A portion of the film also takes place in old-fashioned Paris. This is a place where things tend to have familiar curves, life has a different rhythm, and people and animals look normal. It is where Hulot feels alive. Each time Tati’s camera enters it after having spent some time in the sterile world of the Arpels, the atmosphere of the film changes dramatically. (Look for an entirely different range of warmer colors as well).

The film does not have an elaborate soundtrack, but music has a very important role in it. It enhances its rhythm and eases the transitions the between the two worlds Hulot spends time in.

Tati shot Mon Oncle with Oscar winning cinematographer Jean Bourgoin (Marcel Camus’ Black Orpheus, The Longest Day).

In addition to Tati’s original version of Mon Oncle, Criterion’s Blu-ray release also features My Uncle, an alternative version which the French director created for English-speaking audiences. This version of the film is approximately ten minutes shorter and features various sequences that are edited slightly differently. However, because the transfer used for My Uncle was sourced from a PAL master, the discrepancy between the two versions is less than ten minutes (PAL speeding).

1. Mon Oncle restored French version: 01.56.25.
2. My Uncle unrestored version: 01.50.28.

Mon Oncle Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.33:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Jacques Tati's Mon Oncle arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of StudioCanal.

The following text appears inside the booklet provided with The Complete Jacques Tati Blu-ray box set:

"This digital transfer was created in 2K resolution from the edited camera negative at Arane-Gulliver in Clichy, France, where the film was also restored. The 2013 restoration was undertaken by Les Films de Mon Oncle. The original monaural soundtrack was remastered at 24-bit at L.E. Diapason in Epinay-sur-Seine, France, from the optical track off the negative.

Restoration supervisors: Jerome Deschamps & Macha Makeieff, Philippe Gigot.
Image restoration: Arane-Gulliver, Clichy, France.
Sound restoration: L.E. Diapason, Epinay-sur-Seine, France."

Please note that the screencaptures included with our review appear in the following order:

1. Screencaptures #1-19: Mon Oncle (Restored).
2. Screencaptures #21-26: My Uncle (English-language version).
3. Screencaptures #27-37: Mon Oncle (BFI Region-B release)

Restored Version: Both depth and clarity are visibly improved. Contrast levels are also far better balanced. Grain is well resolved and in a number of different sequences also better distributed. The most notable improvements are in the area of color stability. On the BFI release of Mon Oncle there are some very light color pulsations (sporadic fluttering), but on the new high-definition transfer colors remain solid. As it was the case with the new 4K restoration of PlayTime greens and yellows are elevated. The effect the stronger green has had on the more balanced reds and whites from the previous restoration of Mon Oncle is very easy to see throughout the entire film (compare screencapture #3 with screencapture #33, screencapture #2 with screencapture #32, and screencapture #17 with #screencapture 37). Overall image stability is outstanding. Also, there are no large debris, cuts, stains, damage marks, or warps to report in this review.

My Uncle: This alternative version of Mon Oncle is presented in 1080p, but it appears to have been sourced from a standard definition master. Detail and image depth are not impressive, but overall image stability is very good.

(Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).

Mon Oncle Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: French LPCM 1.0. For the record, Criterion have provided optional English subtitles for the main feature.

The lossless track is excellent. The music is crisp and clear and the various sounds and noises heard throughout the film well defined. There is plenty of random dialog that isn't easy to follow, but the effect is actually part of the film's original sound design. There are no pops, cracks, audio dropouts, or distortions to report in this review.

Mon Oncle Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Terry Jones Introduction - actor and comedian Terry Jones introduces Mon Oncle. The introduction was recorded exclusively for Criterion in 2001. In English, not subtitled. (6 min, 1080i).

• My Uncle - presented here is an alternative version of Mon Oncle which Jacques Tati created for English-speaking audiences. This version of the film is a bit shorter and features various sequences that are edited slightly differently. It is presented in 1080p, but it appears to have been sourced from a standard definition master. (110 min/1080p/Dolby Digital 1.0).

• Once Upon A Time... Mon Oncle - this documentary film focuses on the production history of Mon Oncle. Included in it are clips from archival interviews with Jacques Tati, as well as clips from interviews with the great French comedian Pierre Etaix (The Suitor/Yoyo), Jacques Lagrange (artistic collaborator of Jacques Tati), legendary writer Jean-Claude Carriere (Belle de jour, The Unbearable Lightness of Being), stage designer Macha Makeieff, and actress Collette de Glasier PlayTime), amongst others. The documentary was produced by Marie Genin and Serge July in 2008. In English and French, with optional English subtitles where necessary. (52 min, 1080i).

• Everything is Beautiful - presented here is a three-part program which takes a closer look at the use of space and camera placement, the different architectural designs, suits and dresses, hats and purses, and the futuristic furniture and appliances seen in Mon Oncle. The program was produced by Les Films de Mon Oncle in 2005. In French, with optional English subtitles.
  
  1. Lines, Signs, Designs (23 min, 1080i).
  2. Fashion (20 min, 1080i).
  3. Please, Have a Seat (9 min, 1080i).

• Everything's Connected - in this visual essay, Jacques Tati scholar Stephane Goudet discusses some of the key themes in Mon Oncle, the drastically different worlds Monsieur Hulot and the Arpels exist in, the film's critical reception (with excellent notes addressing Francois Truffaut and André Bazin's reactions), the stylistic and structural similarities between Mon Oncle, Trafic, and Monsieur Hulot's Holiday, etc. The essay was produced in 2013. In French, with optional English subtitles. (52 min, 1080i).

• "Le Hasard de Jacques Tati" - presented here is an episode of the French television program 30 millions d'amis in which Jacques Tati introduces his white dog, Hasard, and explains how he found the dogs seen in Mon Oncle. The episode was broadcast in 1977. In French, with optional English subtitles. (9 min, 1080p).

• Booklet - a booklet featuring essays by critics David Cairns, James Quandt, Jonathan Rosenbaum, and Kristin Ross. (Please note that the booklet is included inside the box set).

Mon Oncle Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Mon Oncle, Jacques Tati's first film to be released in color, targets a wide range of modern values and attitudes that have become an essential part of our reality. I find the film to be just as effective as Charlie Chaplin's Modern Times, though the two accomplish their goals differently. StudioCanal's new 2K restoration offers excellent improvements in terms of clarity and detail, but my feeling is that its color scheme would have been slightly different if Criterion had been in charge with the restoration. Regardless, this is a release well worth owning. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.