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Tess (1979)

 -  Drama | Romance  -  12 December 1980 (USA)
7.2
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Ratings: 7.2/10 from 7,276 users  
Reviews: 66 user | 50 critic

A young strong-willed peasant girl, becomes the affection of two men, in the end tragically falling into the arms of one.

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(screenplay), (screenplay), 2 more credits »
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Title: Tess (1979)

Tess (1979) on IMDb 7.2/10

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Won 3 Oscars. Another 13 wins & 12 nominations. See more awards »
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Edit

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Collin ...
Tony Church ...
...
Tess (as Nastassia Kinski)
Brigid Erin Bates ...
Girl in meadow
Jeanne Biras ...
Girl in meadow
...
John Bett ...
...
Rosemary Martin ...
Geraldine Arzul ...
Child
Stephanie Treille ...
Child
Elodie Warnod ...
Child
Ben Reeks ...
Child
Leigh Lawson ...
...
Girl in henhouse
Edit

Storyline

In the Victorian period, a rural clergyman tells John Durbeyfield, a simple farmer, that he is descended from the illustrious d'Urberville family -- now extinct. Or maybe not. Durbeyfield sends his daughter Tess to check on a family named d'Uberville living in a manor house less than a day's carriage ride away. Alec d'Urberville is delighted to meet his beautiful "cousin" and seduces her with strawberries and roses. Actually, Alec has gotten his illustrious name and coat of arms by purchasing them. Tess also takes up the game of illusion when she finds, loses and finds again her true love Angel Claire. Written by Dale O'Connor <daleoc@interaccess.com>

Plot Summary | Add Synopsis

Taglines:

Columbia Pictures is proud to present a film by Roman Polanski, based on the classic Thomas Hardy novel. See more »

Genres:

Drama | Romance

Certificate:

PG | See all certifications »
Edit

Details

Country:

|

Language:

Release Date:

12 December 1980 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

Egy tiszta nő  »

Company Credits

Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

| (DVD) | (re-issue) | (original)

Sound Mix:

(70 mm prints)| (35 mm prints)

Color:

(Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1
See  »
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Did You Know?

Trivia

Set in England but filmed in France, as director Roman Polanski was wanted on sex-related charges in the United States and could have been extradited from England. See more »

Goofs

At the beginning of the final sequence, set at Stonehenge, someone's head can be seen at bottom-left. See more »

Quotes

[first lines]
John Durbeyfield: Good night, t'ee.
Parson Tringham: Good night, Sir John.
See more »

Connections

Version of Tess of the D'Urbervilles (1924) See more »

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User Reviews

Why dont they make them like this anymore?
17 July 2001 | by (Cornwall) – See all my reviews

I saw Tess as a teenager and the images and emotions have lingered with me ever since. I remembered Natasia Kinski as Tess being tempted with a strawberry by her cad of a cousin, the subtlety of showing a murder by just having the tiniest spot of blood appear on the ceiling below, the powerful poetry of the final scene at Stonehenge... I have just watched the film again and it was even better than I remembered. I will go to my grave being in love with Kinski in this role! I had forgotten also what a perfect performance Peter Firth gives as Angel Clair, and the apparent authenticity of life in rural Victorian England. Perhaps what is most extraordinary is the leisurely pace at which the story is told. Shots linger on the countryside after characters have said their lines and moved off. many sequences exist entirely to build up to a single glance or gesture. Altogether Tess is a superb lesson in story telling and one of the truly great movies of all


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