Jour De Fête

1949 Director Jacques Tati

This is Jacques Tati's pre-Hulot first feature. Intriguingly, Tati originally shot this film in two simultaneous processes; a black and white one and an experimental color one called 'Thomson-Color' but was forced to release the black-and-white version when he ran into problems printing the color film. Then in the late 1990s his daughter prepared and released a color version of the entire movie.

Tati plays a contented postman in a small, unhurried French village. He leisurely performs his duties, peddling away on his rounds on his bicycle. A traveling fair arrives in town. One of the attractions at the carnival is a film depicting the United States Postal Service's fast and efficient postal delivery system. Tati accepts the challenge and attempts to modernise his work style with predictably disastrous results.

What this film captures beautifully is a post war rural community where the pace of life barely exceeds a crawl. The viewer is treated to a leisurely stroll through an unhurried era. It's a delightful film whose influence is evident in quite a few more modern films.