STUDIO: Criterion
RELEASE DATE: July 25, 2008
STARRING: Jacques Tati, Maria Kimberly, Tony Knepper, Marcel Franval, Honore Bostel, Franco Ressel, and Mario Zanuelli
WRITTEN BY: Jacques Tati, Jacques Lagrange, and Bert Haanstra
DIRECTED BY: Jacques Tati
FEATURES: New, restored high-definition digital transfer
Interview from 1971 with the cast of Trafic, from the French television program Le journal du cinema
"The Comedy of Jacques Tati", a 1973 episode of the French television program Morceaux de bravoure
Theatrical trailer
New and improved English subtitle translation
In the Footsteps of M. Hulot (1989), a two-part documentary by Sophie Tatischeff tracing the evolution of Tati's beloved alter ego
PLUS: A new essay by film critic Jonathan Romney

Jacques Tati is one of the most well-known French filmmakers with one of the smallest filmographies. He directed less than ten feature films in his career, one that spanned from the '40s to the '70s. And yet, most directors with resumes four times as long aren't spoken about in the same hushed tones as Francophiles use when they're talking about Tati. Of course, Tati's most popular character was the legendary Monsieur Hulot, who Jacques himself played in Mr. Hulot's Holiday, Mon Oncle, Playtime, and Trafic. The final film was just released by Criterion in another gorgeous two-disc set that fans of Tati, Hulot, and French cinema in general need to add to their collection. Trafic doesn't stand up to Holiday, Mon Oncle, or Playtime, but this often maligned entry in Tati's career has actually held up surprisingly well. Tati's final theatrical release is as light on its feet as any of this brilliant director's best work and, in typical fashion, Criterion has taken a movie that might come across as "just okay" in the hands of a lesser DVD house and truly enhanced the film. That's what makes Criterion so remarkable. They don't just deliver the films to your DVD player. They make their movies better.

In Trafic, Hulot, wearing his typical tan raincoat, beaten brown hat, and umbrella, has to deal with something that none of us enjoy - the highways and byways of a major city. In his final film, Hulot is forced to drive a new vehicle (a camper equipped with some very bizarre and unusual gadgetry) from Paris to Amsterdam, after getting a job with an auto company. Of course, the trip across Europe is not an easy one. Tati was clearly interested in technology and its impact on the average man like Hulot and this comedy features some truly masterfully directed scenes. As a whole, the film doesn't have the same weight or influence as Holiday or Mon Oncle, but it's still an important release in the filmography of a man who gave the world of cinema so much with only a handful of films.

In typical Criterion fashion, one of the biggest draws of Trafic is the perfect video, one that preserves the film in its original 1.33:1 aspect ratio with a gorgeous, high definition digital transfer. What I love most about Criterion is that their special features never feel perfunctory or merely "bonuses". They always enhance he film. So, for Trafic, Criterion includes a 1971 interview with the cast of the film, a 1973 episode of the French television program Morceaux de bravoure called "The Comedy of Jacques Tati", and the theatrical trailer on the first disc, and a two-part documentary from 1989 that traces the entire career of Tati's beloved alter ego called In the Footsteps of M. Hulot. Trafic also features a new essay from film critic Jonathan Romney (of Film Comment) and a new and improved subtitle translation. The new translation is the perfect example of something that other DVD houses wouldn't bother with but that Criterion recognizes is necessary for the film to be included in their collection. Nothing less than perfection will do. Considering Tati himself was a notorious perfectionist, Criterion has lived up to his legacy.