Master Rank #459

Playtime

1967

GCML Total8.5040% Greatness · 40% Engagement · 20% Ease

Directed by Jacques Tati

CastJacques Tati · Barbara Dennek

FranceFrenchComedy124 minNot Rated
Sight & SoundNarrative FeatureModerate pace
Original poster artwork · Great Cinema Master List

Spoiler-free premise

An American tourist and the bewildered Monsieur Hulot navigate a glass-and-steel vision of modern Paris.

Read expanded premiseLonger, still spoiler-free

Monsieur Hulot tries to attend a business meeting inside a maze of modern Paris offices while American tourist Barbara explores a city of glass, steel, and standardized design. Their paths cross trade exhibitions, apartments, and the disastrous opening of the Royal Garden restaurant.

Why it belongs

Playtime makes glass-and-steel Paris a democratic field of simultaneous jokes, where architecture, sound, and crowds replace conventional plot.

Read expanded why it belongsThe fuller editorial case

Tati draws on the enormous Tativille set, 70 mm depth, reflective glass, layered sound, and simultaneous background action to let viewers discover their own comedy inside modern architecture rather than directing every eye toward a single gag.

Major award wins

No verified wins in this six-institution crosswalk.

Awards are reference metadata only · zero points in 40/40/20

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