Tried to watch three of Jacques Tati's movies over the last week or so. Each one longer than the last, the cast pushed further away as he focuses more and more on architecture and consumer products. Some would assume this is cultural critique, but the gangly, awkward hero, played by Tati himself, is monochromatic, mute and duller than anyone else in shot, despite the occasional gurgle of slapstick included to guarantee "Chaplinesque" status. Ebert says Tati gives us as "an amused affection for human nature," which must be beneficial if you're doomed to watch it from afar.