Playtime tati

Audrie Leong

Jacques Tati’s Playtime and the outcome of urban renewal and architectural modernism. In order to analyse outcomes, it is necessary to return to the primary source which influenced the changes in Paris in the 1960s. In Jacques Tati's Playtime (1967), modernist features of the then new and evolving landscape of Paris has been condensed into a world constructed by the director, hence amplifying the consequences of change, both individually and as a whole (Hiliker 2002: 320). This essay will encompass a look through Tati's magnifying glass, and also examine the driving forces behind Le Corbusier's planning and how his beliefs and resultant works came to influence the outcome suggested in the film. According to Richards, Le Corbusier's style of urban planning is 'antisocial', appearing contemptuous of socialising in the city and possibly attempting to avoid its occurrence (2007: 5051). In 'The City of To-morrow', Le Corbusier proposed a plan for the contemporary city, in which skyscrapers 'designed purely for business purposes' occupied the very heart, while spaces of leisure ('restaurants and cafes...theatres, halls and so on') were designated their place in the surrounding areas (1971: 167). In Playtime, the high-rise office building is an integral part of the daytime scenes, whereas spaces of leisure are almost nowhere to be found. In addition, the triumph of 'uninviting concrete, glass, and steel' (Richards 2007: 53) denotes architecture that is purely utilitarian, devoid of decorative and ornamental elements which have been coded as feminine (Leslie & Raimer 2003: 298). Support of this gendering of space was evident in French women's magazines of the 1950s and early 1960s; information on careers, politics, and economics was 'off-limits' to women and ignorance (although a vague awareness was advised) of them was encouraged (Ross 1995: 81-82). Women were discouraged from participation in the main thrust of working society due to their tendency to be