What are those garden decorations that Hulot helps break with this nephew? A friend suggested that they looked like Hannukah chandeliers... which made me think that there might be some subtle association between bourgeois and capitalist values with Jewish ones... a bit odd considering this is a postwar (although conservative), 1950s, French movie... but anyway, does anyone know anything about this?
Thanks!
Pb.
From what I could tell they were just bushes groomed to grow in a chandelier shape on the wall. And when Gérard accidentally breaks one of the 'arms' on one of the two bushes, his uncle also cuts the rest of them to maintain the symmetry.
But your indication of some subtle connection with jewish Hannukah chandeliers, please! Aren't such chandeliers 7-armed, whereas these bushes from what I can recall had 5 branches each? Your friend's suggestion sounds like a typical case of over-interpretation.
Actually, Chanukah menorahs have 8 arms plus a 9th, usually central candle, though other Jewish candelabra have 7 arms. But I also detect no antisemitism in Hulot's "fixing" of the espaliers. The more arms the bushes had, the more funny business could be done with them. Some people just aren't satisfied with a simple and obvious explanation.
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Some people just aren't satisfied with a simple and obvious explanation.
Blame the modern art movement for that. If people are taught that a blank piece of paper is full of symbolism... well, what can you expect?
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Math problems? Call 1-800-[(10x)(13i)2]-[sin(xy)/2.362x].
so true.
Where there's smoke, there's barbecue!
You're kidding me.
shareAbsolutely, I agree with the OP that this movie was anti-Semitic, also this was before the huge population explosion (immigration) in France, which should tell you something.
shareabscissa1, have you actually seen the film or did you just happen to visit this messageboard by looking at my posting history from the "triplets of belleville" board?
And you thought that "Les Triplets" was anti-semitic too, just like seemingly every other movie on IMDB that you can find (well, judging from your posting history, anyways). Forgive me, but something looks a little suspicious here.
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Math problems? Call 1-800-[(10x)(13i)2]-[sin(xy)/2.362x].
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There's nothing concerning anti-semitism in the film. Tati focused his irony on the flop of human relationships in a world dominated by machines, on the dryness of modern world, on the lack of communication in modern times. He did it greatly, through a superb film. The heart of his message is bitter, but he manages to transmit it in a bright, funny way.
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Some people just aren't satisfied with a simple and obvious explanation.
we have now moved from "subtle antisemitism" to "this movie is antisemitic"!!! hahaa there is hardly enough proof for the first statement, let alone the second...
shareI doubt that 90% of people in France (or indeed Europe) even know what a menorah is. I had never seen or heard of one until I came to live in the US.
But that will seem like bigotry as well, to some American ethnocentrists.
(How many Americans knew the difference betwen Sunnites and Shiites, before the present troubles??)
If the Kingdom of Heaven is like a grain of mustard, It can also be like a chicken-pox mark.
Moreover: there are no black characters in this movie, so Tati's portraiting a world dominated by white race.
Furthermore: I haven't seen any gays/lesbians, so it's a pretty homophobic picture of a rural french area and a modern city. How could he think about future world without homosexuals - who dares to say what happened to them?
And dwarves... Ironically this movie is not showing any dwarves... Tati's definitely crossed the line, man. Jesus, it should be banned as it doesn't meet any PC standards.
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I haven't seen any gays/lesbians
Yes necro, he is also anti-government, anti-establishment, anti-machines and anti-nature. He is messy around the house. The man is one *beep* up Uncle, a danger to society.
with [cheese]
Not even close. The tree in question was "espaliered", a very deliberately artificial pruning and training of tree to become more of a decoration than a useful tree. These are usually slow growing fruit trees like pear or plum, so you can see what a disaster breaking off a branch might be.
It has been done since the Middle Ages, but had something of a revival in the 1950s. I know my mother attempted to espalier a Russian Olive against our garage in the early '50s. It got to looking like the Arpel's fairly quickly and was abandoned. Mom was a great fan of M. Hulot, so that may have been where she got the idea.
Creating espalieres is a time-consuming business similar the the two main other forms of plant sculpture: bonsai and topiary. If I recall, there are some topiary trees in the Arpel garden. Check "espalier" in Wikipedia for some examples and pictures.
I'm pretty sure that plants are espaliered against walls so that they face the winter sun and take up little room. While they do look decorative, it is mainly an ingenious response to available area and climate.
This is irrelevant but, the sausage dog's tail actuating the electric eye when it's happy but not when it's being yelled at is a hoot.
10/10 for the most stupid thread I've read this year ! Congratulations.
Don't you know what a pear tree looks like ? Well, imagine a hanukah made of wood.
By the way, I never seen the words Hanukah or menorrhea before but now I know it is a candelabra in form of a pear tree. Thanks for the information.
Varboro, before you share your new found knowledge with others, you should know that Hanukkah is a religious festival, one multi-armed candlestick is a candelabrum and menorrhea is something to do with blood coming from the vagina: you mean menorah.
Good luck
I thought "candelabra in the form of a pear tree" was an ironic joke. Made me laugh.
By the way, great film.
Thanks awerling for your last comment. It prevented me from reading all the others. How can one watch a Tati-movie without a sense of irony... The deeper meaning is mild and human and symbolism or whatever used is always non-agressive. Like frienliness and love and stuff.
shareThis is irrelevant but, the sausage dog's tail actuating the electric eye when it's happy but not when it's being yelled at is a hoot.Well, it may be irrelevant to you freaudianslit, it's the best comment in this thread! Oh shoot, let's cover the quote up like so
This is irrelevant but, the sausage dog's tail actuating the electric eye when it's happy but not when it's being yelled at is a hoot.before the racist police sees this as a character flaw and proof of his discrimination of jews. Furhermore: he tortures little cute animals! That Oncle is one helluva... beast!
No I don't think it has anything to do with racism. It's a joke, a visual joke, played out by clumsy and silly characters who make things worse by scarily covering up their stupid mistakes and actions.
One can put the mark of racism on anything, it always creates chaos on american Forums (Fora).
I think it looks like a hand! I think it's torture!
(you see: no reactions...)
Did the enviromental Green party complain yet?
Anyone reading anything anti-semitic into this film should get their heads examined. I'd really want to know what they would score on a rorschack test. Would every blob turn out to be a jewish caricature with a long nose?
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I don't see anti-semitism. I see "anti-americanism". Not virulent anti-americanism, just a bit of resentment that grungy old France is being swept aside by modern boring buildings, appliance gadgetry, and the most incredibly ugly parodies of American cars. M. Hulot's brother in law has an ugly car, something like a Plymouth, and for his birthday gets a multi-colored DeSoto-like horror.
share"There are exactly fifty-seven card-carrying members of the Anti-Semite party in the Department of Defense at this time!" - U.S. Senator John Y. Iselin
shareI actually liked that unique tri-tone Chevy Bel-Air!
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