Jacques Tati (1907-1982), was born Jacques Tatischeff. He directed only six films. Four of them featured the writer-director as Mr. Hulot, a gawky, shambling man who smoked a pipe, wore a raincoat and carried an umbrella. The films were scant on dialogue, long on sight gags and sound effects, and genially lampooned the vagaries of French society. They were years ahead of their time. Though his father was a Russian emigre and his mother came from the Netherlands, Tati was born in France lived there for his entire life. He was late to the movie industry, having been a mime, juggler, comedian and magician in the French equivalent of...