How Does It End? As Seen in:

By Jesenia Calderón Quintanar, Anna Slusser, and Awdah Alghanam

How Does It End? Topic Overview How are people affected by change? Some are

able to adapt, while others, sadly, are not. The ‘50s were known for many things that changed the American and European culture: post-war affluence, the rise of modern jazz, the rise of ‘fast food’ restaurants and drive-ins, the invention of the teenager, the rise of drive-in theaters, and the rise of the anti-hero in films, such as James Dean, Paul Newman, and Marlon Brando. The 50’s were also known for the beginning of a new genre of music, as well as a new form of entertainment: Rock and Roll. This meant the end of traditional performers, such as illusionists, clowns, and ventriloquists. Jacques Tati wrote the script for the film The Illusionist. Tati was a music-hall mime before turning to film directing. The film was inspired by Tati, and is a “modest homage to its writer and a melancholy look at a lost world.” – Manohla Dargis, The New York Times

The passage of time, the changes in trends, and the differences in class are three major themes that L’Illusionniste deals with.

“It is the dusty stage world of magic an dancing girls that this film recalls with a delicate visual style, tender humor, and a sense of loss.” – Manohla Dargis, The New York Times

IntroductionL’Illusionniste was directed by Sylvain Chomet, and

was created with both hand-drawn animation and computer-generated animation. The film was based on a short sketch of a script by Jacques Tati. It was released in France on May 16th of 2010. It opened in 84 French cinemas and entered the box office at #8, with a revenue of €495,030 ($600,099) in the first weekend. The Illusionist shows

the less glamorous side of life as an entertainer. Set in 1959 Europe, it follows the story of a magician and his attempts to survive in the emerging new culture of entertainers.

StorylineL’Illusionniste is a story that presents the theme of the end and the beginning of an era. The main character is Tatischeff, an illusionist who is struggling to find jobs now that the popularity of his art is declining. With emerging rock stars stealing the show in 1959, Tatischeff is forced to take on more obscure assignments in fringe theaters, at garden parties, and in bars and cafés. He meets Alice while performing at a pub located in an isolated Scottish village, where the villagers are celebrating the arrival of electricity on their island. Alice is amazed by his tricks, and believes that his magic is real. Encouraged by the illusionist’s kindness, Alice follows Tatischeff to Edinburgh, where they fall into a daughter-father relationship. Alice tends to their home at a boarding house for vaudevillians, while Tatischeff works in a small local theatre. He presents Alice with her materialistic desires (such as a new coat and new shoes), which he has ‘conjured’ into existence. Worried about disappointing her, Tatischeff does not reveal to her that magic does not exist and that he is driving himself to ruin working all night jobs to buy her gifts.

Setting

The setting is 1959 Europe. The Illusionist is first seen at a theatre in Paris, where it is shown that his popularity has greatly declined. He then travels to London, where he is outshined by the rock band Billy Boy and the Britoons. Next, he journeys to a small and remote island in Scotland, where his show is finally shown some appreciation. However, soon after his performance, the villagers find a greater entertainment in a light switch and a jukebox. Finally, The Illusionist

travels to Edinburgh, where he stays for a while, before moving on.

Characters

The Illusionist, TatischeffA magician struggling to keep audiences interested in his old-fashioned sleights of hand, the main character resembles the great French comic actor and filmmaker Jacques Tati. Generous and kind, he takes on more jobs to support Alice’s tastes.

CharactersAlice

A naïve young girl, Alice is awestruck after witnessing The Illusionist’s show. Believing that his tricks are real magic, and encouraged by his kindness and generosity, Alice follows the Illusionist to Edinburgh.

CharactersOther Struggling

EntertainersThis includes a suicidal clown, a ventriloquist, and a trio of acrobats who are living in poverty because their practices are dying in this new age.

Jacques Tati

Jacques Tati was a beloved entertainer in France before, after and during World War II. His performances were said to have lifted the spirits of the downtrodden war-time population. Tati was also a writer and director. He was recognized as the 46th greatest movie director of all time by Entertainment Weekly.

Jacques Tati

The Illusionist was written by Tati in the late 1950s and was originally titled “Film Tati No. 4”. The script was to have been a follow-up to Tati’s film Mon Oncle. The film was never produced by Tati, but was instead handed over to Sylvain Chomet by Tati’s daughter Sophie.

Jacques

Tati

There’s some speculation about whether Tati wrote this film due to his feeling of regret for his lack of involvement in the life of his illegitimate daughter, Helga Schiel. Some also believe that it was a script written for his legitimate daughter, Sophie. Whomever the film was written for or inspired by, it is undoubtedly a tale of Tati’s life experiences.

The first footage of the film was shown at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival. The Illusionist won 7 out of the 24 awards it was nominated for. These include:Best Animated Feature Film nomination at the

68th Golden Globe Awards.Best Animated Feature Film nomination in the

83rd Academy Awards.Best Animated Feature nomination for Annie

Award.Won the 1st Cesar Award for Best Animated

Feature on February 25th, 2011Won the 2010 European Film Award for Best Animated Film.

Accolades

Cultural Aspects Shown in the Film

The Rock and Roll Revolution in France and the U.S.

The Nouvelle Vague or New Wave of popular music in France was embodied by a nonchalant, devil-may-care attitude. Film started to imitate US actors such as Humphrey Bogart while music imitated Elvis Presley. Youths were looking to be less serious than the generations of yesteryear.

This quote from Larry Portis’ book French Frenzies sums up the difference between US and French music and culture at the time- “In the United States, the beginnings of rock and roll were in the spontaneous fusion of African-American rhythm and blues and European-American country and hillbilly music. In France, the beginnings of indigenous rock and roll lay in the efforts of individuals to convince record producers that such a music should he created because the market already existed."

The Rock and Roll Revolution: France

The French Rock and Roll Revolution started with influence from the flux of popularity in US Rock and Roll in the 1950s. Artists of the time have admitted that it all started with them parodying songs from the US. This brought about such titles as “Hiccup Rock”, "Go Cook An Egg, Man!” and “Tell Me You Love Me Rock”. We can see this influence in the film via the silliness of Billy Boy and the Britoons.

The Creation of the Teenager

Rebels Without A Cause

Theaters & TV’s

The Decline of Traditional Entertainers

The rise in popularity of rock and roll music caused a great decline in more traditional “music hall” acts. The fans of rock and roll were young and had very little interest in such old fashioned styles of entertainment. Music halls were forced to book rock and roll bands or go out of business; pushing out

the traditional performers. The final demise of the music hall and traditional entertainment, though, was the growing popularity of the television.

How Does It End? Major Themes

The Passage of Time

The Change of Trends

The Differences in Class

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THE END

Questions