Il était une chaise

A man approaches a chair to sit down but finds that the chair is unwilling to be sat on. The man persists and a difficult game of approach and withdraw begins.

Sometimes the simplest ideas make for very effect shorts. With one man and a chair in it's cast listing, this short is a wonderfully amusing little love story (of sorts). The film is basically a mix of stop animation with the live action of the male character. The chair effectively moves around the screen, jumping or running quite fluidly. At times the stop motion is very evident but it is surprisingly effective at times - I mean, I couldn't merge the real character with the animated chair, could you?

The actual tale of love is mostly hidden behind the simple, yet amusing action, however it is still meaningful. Everyone plays this sort of game or has done at some point; it may not amount to physically chasing a partner around the place but the essence is the same.

Overall this is quite an enjoyable little short. Its very basic and simple appearance and plot conceal, but don't totally hide a warm heart just under the surface.

It is perhaps illuminating to note that this amusing tale of an unnatural affection was made by two of Canada's most creative closeted homosexuals, Norman McLaren and Claude Jutra. The outcome here is a happy one, a union between man and chair.

"A Chairy Tale" was the closest that the great Norman McLaren ever came to a homoerotic film until he outed himself in his final effort, the quite overt "Narcissus", made in 1983, a gentle Canadian answer to the more confrontational works of the likes of Kenneth Anger and Derek Jarman.

A man. and a chair. sitar. and tabla. and, sure, the genius of McLaren. result - at the first sigh - an amusing film. at the second sigh - a parable about relationship. or love. or friendship. the music is the axis. to the well known transition from stop-motion to the live action. for the amusing battle. for the roles of chair. for the persistence of man. for the crumbs of circus show. and, off course, for the joy who has as root the profound simplicity. so, the four - sitar, chair, man, tabla. and a great show. or just profound useful lesson.

This short is an extremely effective use of the stop-motion technique of animation blended with live action footage about a very determined chair and a young man who wants nothing more than to sit and read. I personally negotiated a deal with my chairs: if they perform some basic function, they can remain. If not, they either pay rent like I do or they leave. So far, it seems to be an equitable and acceptable arrangement for all concerned. Most recommended.

This is a very unusual short film about a man and a very strange chair! When he tries to sit in it, it moves away and eventually the man chases the chair in a vain attempt to catch it. However, after he accepts this and just sits on the floor, the chair returns and begins bothering him--wanting the man to accept him but STILL not sit on him! This is all very strange but the film makers manage to milk a lot out of what they've got to work with--and that is a man, a tiny plain set and a chair. Using stop-motion and their imaginations, they manage to spin a tale that actually kept me watching it--and you wouldn't think a chair film could do this! Plus, it sure helped that the film ended so well.

Clever, strange and totally unique--this short from the Canadian National Film Board is well worth seeing.