L'illusionniste

Plot synopsis:
The film concerns an illusionist/magician named Tatischeff (no one ever says this name, but it is mentioned on the poster he carries with him, and shows at different performances).The scene opens in Paris 1959, the entertainment landscape is changing with the advent of rock and roll, and the incoming onslaught of television. Tati finds himself playing to nearly-empty auditoriums. When it seems there's little luck in Paris, he heads off to London.The only performance there that he's able to perform is the second act following a rock-and-roll band. However, the band packs the house full of screaming girls, and the theater owner ends up keeping the performers on for multiple 'encores.' When Tati finally gets to perform, the theater is nearly empty...except for two people.Tati soon tries to peddle his act to even smaller venues, playing at cafes, bars, and at one point, a private party. However, almost no one seems to pay any attention to him...except a drunken Scotsman.The Scotsman invites Tati to perform at his pub in Scotland, and the Illusionist accepts. Unlike the other venues, the people in the pub actually stop and pay attention to the Illusionist's act. However, they are also soon entranced when the pub is wired for electricity, amazed at the place's first electric light, and soon a jukebox.One of the people who is curious about the Illusionist is the Scotsman's young daughter, named Alice. While cleaning up the hallway near the room he's staying in, she accidentally drops a bar of soap, and when the Illusionist picks it up, she is astonished when he magically turns it into a brand new bar! She is also amazed when he manages to seemingly pull money out of thin air, causing her to believe that Tati has some supernatural powers.Walking around the small town, Tati notices Alice admiring a pair of red shoes in a store window, and notices that the boots she wears are starting to fall apart. Using what money he has, he purchases the shoes for her, and magically makes them appear to her. Needless to say, Alice is delighted.Very soon, Tati decides to leave the small town, but on the ferry back to the main land, he is surprised to find Alice, who has voluntarily decided to come along with him. Tati quietly accepts her request to accompany him, as well as her request to visit Edinburgh.Tati manages to get a small apartment in a building that houses other performers. These include three acrobatic brothers, a ventriloquist, and a clown. While Alice is given the bedroom of the apartment, Tati decides to sleep on the sofa in the main apartment room.Tati manages to get a job performing at the local Music Hall, and also spends time with Alice. However, Alice meets a young man and steps out in Tati's absence to be with him. Tati comes home drunk one evening and the next morning finds Alice gone. He is despondent and walks his rabbit into the mountains and sets him free. He then packs his bags and catches a train to who knows where.After being out with her young man, Alice comes home to an empty apartment. Tati has left her some money and a note saying "magicians do not exist". She takes her suitcase, turns out the light and joins her young man waiting downstairs in the street.On the train, Tati shares a car with a mother and her child.The final scenes show the lights of the city going out except for the televisions in a shop window. The ventriloquist's dummy is for sale in a shop window. The price tag says "free".

Tags: tragedy

Review:
The film is based off of a script written in the late 1950s by a French, mime, actor, and director named Jacques Tati, but was forgotten about until Director Syvain Chomet picked up the script and ran with it producing an 80 minute animated masterpiece.
The film follows the travels of a French Illusionist from town to town looking for work while performing his artistic magician craft in small shows.
Based on an unpublished script by Jacques Tati, The Illusionist follows a magician named Tatischeff, a man whose art form of illusion is dying.
Tatischeff and Alice develop a sort of father/daughter bond, and Tatischeff ponders his own life as well.The film is directed by Sylvain Chomet, the man probably best known for his 2003 animated art-house feature The Triplets of Belleville.
One thing that I simply adore about The Illusionist is that Chomet follows closely to the phrase "Actions speak louder than words." The film's dialogue is minimal, and for it's storytelling relies almost entirely on animation, body language, and a simple, but beautiful musical score written by Chomet himself.This isn't even mentioning the animation style itself.
This animated charmer really oozes Tati's peculiar brand of character comedy from every single pore.Yes, the story is more sentimental and streamlined than the master's original efforts, but Tati's central issues (such as old-fashioned life-styles and values confronted by modern technology), his eye for detail, his pleasantly reserved humanity and his wonderful sense for comedic timing and subtle gags are all left intact by the careful makers of this gem.
And the rendering of the Hulot character with all his distinctive mannerisms is a joy to behold.Plus, it's good to see beautiful hand-drawn animation for a change (with sparse use of CGI techniques.) 8 out of 10 querulous white rabbits.
The film's unique style is only being shown in forty cinemas across the UK, its box office status falling behind the animated Pixar hit Toy Story 3.Those who are followers of Tati's work or loved Belleville Rendez-vous will inevitably be drawn to such as personal piece.
The long-awaited follow-up to Belleville Rendez-Vous is out at last, and director Sylvain Chomet must be the number one in a field of one, when it comes to contenders for making a long-lost Jaques Tati script into a feature-length animation.The underlying premise of the story here is the same as in all Tati's films: Old is Good, New is Bad. Variety theatre conjurer Monsieur Taticheff is one of the last of the old troupers as TV and rock 'n' roll kill off music hall in the late 1950s.
Maybe I expected too much, since I thought "The Triplets of Belleville" (same director; hand-drawn animation) was one of the best movies I had ever seen.I felt no connection with either the man or the girl.
I pretty much had the same opinion of this film as most of the reviewers here on IMDb. I loved the incredible, stunning visuals but thought the story was so-so.You'd be hard-pressed to find a prettier animated film, especially when viewed on Blu-Ray. The artwork in here is simply jaw-dropping, scene after scene.
I just wish the story had been as much fun as Sylvan Chomet's previous effort, "The Triplets Of Belleville." This story is kind of drab - the opposite of the beautiful drawings, under the art direction of Bjame Hansen.For you adults that would like a serious, almost melodramatic story in a different genre (animation), this film should be extremely appealing.For the artwork alone, I found it worthwhile watching..
Sadly, the narrative providing the means for discovering the city imparts a final impression of cold disillusionment that starkly contrasts with the city that I've come to know in the last three years.Chomet tells the story of an aging slight-of-hand magician -- a cartoon of an already cartoonish M.
The animation medium befits the Jacques Tati character as well as Edinburgh itself, and Chomet's restrained style teases out the occasional smile from the ordinary moments of life.
Had Chomet focused more on the characters' interactions with the residents as opposed to themselves, I think the film would have better communicated a stirring sense of hope and quiet pride that would have left the viewer with a greater desire for and appreciation of the city of Edinburgh..
It is a wonderfully delicate film, visually it provides a lot of interest and is particularly relevant to those who know the city of Edinburgh in which a large portion of the film is set.As an animated film, The Illusionist has the feeling of being children's film, however the film has an extreme dearth of dialogue, with only a few spoken lines, which are not all in English.
From an adult point of view this is a bitter-sweet, beautiful film.In 1950s France, magician Tatischeff is finding it increasingly difficult to make a living as his style of entertainment goes out of fashion.
Tatischeff travels across Europe looking for a home for his act, and picks up orphan Alice along the way, finally settling in Edinburgh.The film has some comic moments, Tatischeff's uncooperative rabbit who resents being pulled out of a hat, provides one such moment, although these are tinged with the melancholy which runs throughout the film.The film's story is linked with the life and work of Jacques Tati, though how closely is widely debated.
The debate and the elements of Tati's life which are said to inspire the story adds an extra level of depth and interest to the film.The calm and serene beauty of the film, with little action, virtually no dialogue and a soundtrack which lulls you into a dreamlike state the film verges on dull and soporific.
Despite its good intentions, with its original touching story adapted from the influential comic master Jacques Tati, this animated film may well alienate much of its audience with its melancholy slow pace.
His on screen character was awkward but likable, often intensely interested in the people around him, but usually missing the point.This kind of comedy is a difficult thing to pull of in an animated film, and, unfortunately, The Illusionist generally fails to deliver on the laughs that appeared to have been written into the script.I think the central problem is the medium.
Instead of being an absurd version of everyday behaviour, the comedy is reduced to a very tame version of cartoon slapstick.The Illusionist, the "Tati" character, watches the antics around him with a kind of dumbfounded depression, very different from the lively, affable character we're used to in the Tati films - although I couldn't help thinking that this might be how Tati himself might look if he were watching this adaptation of his script.
Not a classic and not the best animated movie of the year which so far has to be How to Train your Dragon or Toy Story 3 with the later superbly depicting the emotions of coming of age and the passing of time that The Illusionist fails to deliver..
Whith Chomet half of his movies are beautiful (the visual part) and the other half is dead-boring (the story, the characters).So Chomet is only technically good and the critics have inflated his visual pessimism into Great Art. The worst in it is that he had 7 years to think he was really good and now I don't see how 2010 audiences will be cooed into admiring a flat backward-looking movie.PS the 3D aerial Edinburgh shot is totally out of place and a lame waste of money.
This viewer had a lump in his throat at the end, although admittedly the story pleasing does finish on a happy and hopeful note.In summary, The Illusionist is a beautiful and melancholic film about the coming-of-age of a young girl and the end-of-an-era for a type of entertainer.
Though the character frequently does all he can to cling to old ways, his role, like his world, diminished as Tati's films grew increasingly experimental.
As I will reveal below, he had personal reason for writing the script, but as presented by Chomet the film stands as a calculated attempt to lure the sorts of people who came to Tati's work through Mr.Bean or romantic references in films like "High Fidelity" and "Unfaithful".
The animation was technically superb, the characters well drawn (no pun intended), the scenery and settings were well chosen.But this doesn't compensate for the fact that the story is dull, clichéd, mostly predictable and above all it's boring to the extent that it took me three days to sit through it because I simply lost interest in these cardboard cutout characters.I see that most of the reviews are from people who live in Edinburgh and attended the IEFF premier.
Sylvain Croment's latest genius, as a film, adapted to a superb and touching script by Jacque Tati is like growing up too quickly, realizing the magic of the time has ended, and reality begins.
This film is a personal narrative of a whole new kind, and one that should be watched for its animated beauty and captivating story, even a tinge of sadness that comes with the turf.
When I reviewed French animator Sylvain Chomet's earlier film, Triplets of Belleville on IMDb three years ago, I wrote that while the movie has some visual virtues, the film strike me as an inferior imitation of Jacques Tati's brilliant comedic films of the 1950s.
The dialogue is very minimal, and while people may find the story slight in an infuriating way, I think the slightness worked and in the film's favour.While the characters are good and the interaction between them touching, the pace suitably elegiac and Chomet's direction superb, the visuals and music are the strongest elements of The Illusionist.
It's written and directed by Sylvain Chomet, who also performed the same duties on 2003's 'THE TRIPLETS OF BELLEVILLE' (which was also a best animated film Academy Award nominee).
It was passed on to Chomet by caretakers of his work and he modeled the lead character in the film after Tati.The film tells the story of a French illusionist, in the 50's, who is continually running out of work wherever he goes and finding it harder and harder to impress an audience, who is much more entertained by the young rock bands of the times.
It's upon realizing this where the film practically represents the world's unfair realities of how no matter how much you love someone or even your passion, you can't hold on to them forever, and without spoiling anything, let's just say the movie doesn't have the happy ending you wish to see.On a brighter note, the animation is fantastically gorgeous to look at.
As stated before, the smooth character acting drives the movie forward, but the characters all have distinct albeit slightly grotesque caricatured designs that make them stick out from other animated films, with Tatischeff even being modeled after Tati himself.
With a perfect dramedic tone, realistic characters, well thought out acting and highlighted animation, The Illusionist may stand the test of time as one of the most beautiful albeit somber animated films of all time, let alone as a lovely tribute to Monsieur Tati.
The same rabid capitalism of the '50s, the bleak vision of a life that is clearly worse, but somehow feels more colorful than the present.The story of the production of the film is interesting, too: Wikipedia explains how it is based on a script written by Jacques Tati in order to reconcile with his estranged daughter.But there is a major difference.
The ending is not satisfying anybody, with the main character having learned nothing and the silly country girl just having moved from her Scottish village to the big city.Bottom line: I liked the animation, but the story left me with a bitter taste, part nostalgia, part melancholy and part stale alcohol and cigarette ash..
Well, it's difficult to describe.The animation is the best I've ever seen, I have no idea how they did it, but so often you have to remind yourself that it's not real despite the fact that the art work is stylised.Each shot contains details that only add to the story, and each shot is like a work of art.This is a beautiful film, watch it as soon as you possibly can..
He moves on to Edinburgh and is followed by Alice who thinks he possesses real magic.There is a melancholy feel throughout this movie punctuated by moments of charming light comedy.
Chomet seems to have nailed his style from the days The Triplets of Belleville.He captures Scotland, in particular Edinburgh, so well that memories of walking around Arthur's Seat and the quirky characters found at the fringe festivals came flooding back.The artistry is truly beautiful with mostly hand-drawn animations and limited use of CGI techniques; but the color work, the color work is sublime.Storywise though, it's charming yet a little too melancholic for my tastes but Tati's comedic nuances and the attention to detail had me favor this over Belleville..
Famous french director Jacques Tati (1907-1982) wrote the script for this animated film for his daughter who also died in 2001.
This is an unfair world, but so be it: I am convinced Chomet will get the Oscar some day, if he can keep the level of the Illusionist: a breathtakingly beautiful movie, the best of all animation I have ever seen on the big screen.
The Illusionist is invited to Scotland and there befriends a Scottish lass and together they go to Edinburgh.For this reviewer this is a film about a dying world, from the simple furnishings to the empty theaters it charts a transition for a gentle world to the pop world and does so wryly.Beautifully crafted the skill in the rotorscope work or the simpler techniques adds much to the charm.Yes, the plot is too simplistic, but that's not the point; both Fêtes Du Jour and Les Vacances Du Monsieur Hulot are plot less too - it's the observation and recognition of the melancholy of the human condition that counts here.Some will be bored by this, others will appreciate it more as art than film - and on that basis it really is rather beautiful.We loved its slow languorous pace and poetic elegiac take on love and the theater.
If you are a fan of "Playtime" you will love it ,if not -PLEASE watch "Playtime"1967 .I think that is wonderful to see that different directors throughout the world reach the visual philosophy of nothingness .To watch Tati is almost like to watch Ozu. For me personally-ONE OF THE BEST MOVIES EVER!Critical responseRotten Tomatoes gives the film a score of 90% based on reviews from 114 critics, and reports a rating average of 8 out of 10.
One would have liked a little bit more, that's all."Jonathan Meville of The Scotsman wrote: "Edinburgh's skyline has never looked so good, and if the city didn't exist it would be hard to believe somewhere so beautiful was real: if locals aren't inspired to take a walk up North Bridge or down Victoria Street after this, they never will be."Whilst also in The Scotsman Alistair Harkness commented that "Once you strip away the overwhelming wow factor of the film's design, the absence of strong characterization ensures the end result is bleaker and less affecting than was probably intended".Tati's biographer, David Bellos, reviewing The Illusionist in Senses of Cinema was highly critical of Chomet's adaptation stating "the film is a disaster".
All that artistry, all that effort, and all that money for this".Reviewing The Illusionist in The New Yorker, Richard Brody commented "Sylvain Chomet (The Triplets of Belleville) has directed an animated adaptation of Jacques Tati's 1956 screenplay, with none of Tati's visual wit or wild invention".
The slow, sad, simply story, follows an aging French magician through part of 1959 as he falls in love with a naïve, young Scottish girl for whom he sacrifices what little he has left after a long decline in his career.
That's what makes me look for author animation once in a while: the visual worlds are visceral and direct, as if the film was being drawn at the same time you watch them.
It's been far too long since I've seen a movie with as much charming detail and personality as The Illusionist, an absolutely gorgeous traditionally animated tale about an aging traveling magician and a young companion that he meets and who accompanies him to Edinburgh, Scotland.
Still this Sylvain Chomet directed film adaptation off the original screenplay of the famed Jacques Tati is nothing to scoff at, with plenty of heart put into both its storytelling and art that makes this a must watch.The Illusionist tells of the story of a French magician who travels around performing at various venues in Europe, not very popular but always being able to obtain a gig or two to keep himself going.
For some, this slow pace may mirror the plodding progression of time that one actually experiences, for others, like myself, the pace was too slow and marked some failure in editing.Taken as an independent work of animation, "L'Illusioniste," is a beautiful and emotion stirring film.
Don't bother trying to understand the assorted French, Gaelic & English "dialogue," as this film is showing you that music and visual art are enough to make a great movie!.
The Illusionist is one of the most beautiful stories to emerge in modern animation for a very long time..
It was David Mamet who said that "a good film script should be able to do completely without dialogue." The Illusionist does just that and creates two characters I considered more real and cared more for than a few flesh and blood characters from Christopher Nolan's 148-minute-long movie.However has watched Chomet's The Triplets of Belleville knows that this French animator continues to work with old-fashioned hand-drawn animation and that he mixes it with a personal style that oscillates between the poetic and the bizarre.
M. Chomet gave the animated film a treatment which would have made Jacques Tati proud.