Playtime

Finally saw Playtime. It starts out mining comedy from mass production. A travel agent's office has posters showing off identical skyscrapers in different locals. In one scene, four identical men get into four identical cars in synchrony. The main character looks so identical to every other person that no one can tell who he is. This all climaxes in a restaurant scene which is funny I guess but goes on a bit long (I also don't find rich, eccentric/drunk Americans to be very funny. It's a comedic archetype from a different time I suppose. It's funny how comedy can separate us from the past sometimes.) I liked the beginning, but I liked the ending of the film best of all. The film makes this identical, mass-produced Paris into a carnival. A roundabout becomes a merry-go-round, a cherry-picker becomes a giraffe, car-lifts become rides. It's very sweet and ends on a merry note which, judging from the "oh, this hectic modern life" tone of the beginning, I didn't expect. Ending in this way, the film seems to be saying "Life is crazy! Enjoy the ride!" And I think that's great.