Jacques Tati recounted later in life that he had been heavily criticized for perceived weak dialogue when this film came out. Tati claimed that his intention was to make the dialogue as realistic as possible (thus, simple or boring) to capture the banality of real vacationers.
In an interview aired on French television, Jacques Tati recounted a story of buying a ticket, entering the theater late (and in the dark) and sitting by a corpulent man who did not recognize the auteur. Tati said the man laughed heartily throughout the film and kept nudging him with his elbow, saying "what an asshole he is" of Monsieur Hulot.
Jacques Tati continued to revise the film throughout his life. In addition to the original 1953 version, he edited the film in 1960 and made a serious revision in 1978.