Tess (1979)
Genre: Drama / Romance
Duration: 186 minuten / 168 minuten (dvd)
Country:
France / United Kingdom
Directed by: Roman Polanski
Stars: Nastassja Kinski, Peter Firth and Leigh Lawson
IMDb score:
7,3 (19.730)
Releasedate: 6 October 1979
Tess plot
"She was born into a world where they called it seduction, not rape. What she did would shatter that world forever."
Farmer Durbenfeld hears from a pastor with an interest in genealogy that he is still descended from the noble d'Urbervilles. He thinks his daughter Tess can get a better education if she joins the d'Urbervilles estate, but he doesn't know that the people who live there now bought that family name.
Actors and actresses
Tess Durbeyfield
Angel Clare
Alec d'Urberville
John Durbeyfield
Mrs. Durbeyfield
Marian
Vicar of Marlott
Reverend Mr. Clare
Mrs. Clare
Izz Huett
Reviews & comments
starbright boy (moderator films)
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- 22473 messages
- 5142 votes
A lesser Polanski. That much is certain. The film hangs on the surface. Is too careful. Kinski is to blame for this. In her mediocre role of Tess, she doesn't know how to make much more than a superficial girl who stares into the world completely resigned. It's not the only time Polanski has let his private crushes get a little carried away in the casting of an actress. In Frantic, Seigner also got in the way with a weak role. (She was much better in the later Bitter Moon, by the way. Kinski was much better again in Wenders' Paris, Texas) Kinski is especially beautiful here, although that is not unimportant for the role.
The photography saves the film quite a bit. Tess is visually more impressive. Every shot is meticulously cared for. The film is full of beautiful pictures and sometimes comes close to Kubrick's Barry Lyndon in terms of classical picturesqueness. The movie didn't bore me, but I'm not really impressed.
3.0*
Translated from Dutch · View original
Fisico
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- 10039 messages
- 5398 votes
I can only endorse the above review of Flavio. Nice film, but it just lacks that little bit to score higher for me. It was certainly not because of the beautiful Kinski. She performs her role excellently, partly submissive from her poor background, but also well aware of what she stands for.
Excellent use of color and lighting where many scenes look like tableaus. In terms of time lapse or editing, there were sometimes very big jumps, such as her pregnancy (a scene seemed to have been deleted) or the fact that a few minutes later the child turned out to be several years old.
An excellent film that has been cleverly filmed by Polanski. However, I thought three hours was quite a long time for this sluggish costume drama. But it's worth seeing it once.
Translated from Dutch · View original
BBarbie
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- 12893 messages
- 7675 votes
It is reported that Roman Polanski made this film at the request of his later murdered wife Sharon Tate, to whom the film is dedicated in the opening credits. It is one of many film adaptations of Thomas Hardy's tear-jerking book about the misadventures of a humble farmer's daughter in England in the second half of the 19th century. A beautiful melodrama that easily rivals the other versions of "Tess of the D'Urbervilles."
Translated from Dutch · View original
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