Word: mons
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...Mon...
...Mon Oncle (which the distributor has rendered with accuracy and consummate disrespect for Americans' linguistic prowess, as My Uncle) is Jacques Tati's sequel to his immensely successful Mr. Hulot's Holiday. The newer movie retains as its hero, Hulot, the man of zany good sense and good will pitted against a world that takes itself awfully seriously but happens to be insane. Last time, Hulot attacked the concept of the holiday; now he is after modernism...
Hulot's method of attack is a subtle one: he doesn't really pursue his prey; it pursues him. In Mon Oncle, Modern Times closes in on the good-natured Hulot (played by M. Tati, who also wrote and directed the film) in the form of a paunchy brother-in-law. Brother-in-law is an officer of an ultra-modern company which manufactures plastic hoses and similar useful items, and he has constructed for himself, wife and son a house with every conceivable inconvenience...
...While Mon Petit may play with reality, the audience remains aware that this is fiction, even surrealistic fiction. To heighten this effect, Kautner limits his palette so that orange (the oranges), black (the sophisticates), white (our boy and girl), and grey (the edifices of Paris) predominate. And, of course, the characters seem too attractive to be realistic. Horst Bucholz especially stands out as a sort of Jimmy Dean for the quality trade...
...fault is to be found, it lies in the rather contrived climax. But even this mars Mon Petit only superficially...