PARADE

“Parade” is Jacques Tati’s homage to the world of the circus, partially staged and partially shot as a documentary. Tati himself plays the ringmaster, and also performs a few of his famous routines. In this, his last film work, Tati employed an unusual and associative form, using a wide variety of material, some of which was shot at real venues and some staged in a studio.

For the first time ever, the filmmaker worked with video, which permitted a previously unknown amount of freedom, though at the same time “Parade” is very much a brilliantly controlled and precise film, a vivid and enthusiastic love letter to circus performers and their work.