A strong-willed young peasant girl attracts the affection of two men.A strong-willed young peasant girl attracts the affection of two men.A strong-willed young peasant girl attracts the affection of two men.
- Won 3 Oscars
- 16 wins & 17 nominations total
Nastassja Kinski
- Tess
- (as Nastassia Kinski)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe film's opening dedication at the start of the film states: "For Sharon". Roman Polanski dedicated this movie to his late wife, Sharon Tate, who was killed in 1969 by the Manson Clan. Before Tate's death, she had read the film's source novel by Thomas Hardy and was convinced that her husband would one day make a great film based on the novel. Movie was released to the theaters exactly 10 years after her untimely death.
- GoofsAt the beginning of the final sequence, set at Stonehenge, someone's head can be seen at bottom-left.
- Alternate versionsThe film was first released to German cinemas uncut with a running time of 184 minutes. As the audience reaction was far from overwhelming the distributor decided to re-cut and re-release the film in a more "accessible" 134 minutes version. But at least one of the original prints had survived and was shown here at the local art house years later.
- ConnectionsFeatured in The 38th Annual Golden Globe Awards (1981)
Featured review
She's Sleeping. Just A Little Longer
Polanski's 'Tess' is rich with images and poetry. To start with, the director really does make use of the countryside and life in the country during the late 1800s. Those themes are presented as characters themselves. And, coupled with the fitting score it gives a feel of what the time may have been like. Along with some fine cinematography, many of the shots linger on the beautiful and yet sad countryside.
The pacing is exceptionally well maintained. 'Tess' is longer than the traditional 100 minute flick but not for a moment does it feel as though it's lagging or dragging in pace.
Another strength of the film is its subtlety. For example, to the director's credit, there's an outstanding sequence of how murder is implied just with a few drops of blood. Even the finally sequence (beautifully done) implies Tess's fate (before the epilogue clarifies it). 'Tess' touches on some heavy themes such as sexism, poverty and betrayal but it doesn't preach about them. Rather it tells the story of a strong-willed, devoted and kind woman who was faulted for being beautiful.
Moreover, the characters are brilliantly layered. The screenplay has safely avoided caricatures). A very young Nastassja Kinski is incredible in one of her early roles. Her restrained performance and gestural expressions are remarkable. Peter Firth does a fine job too. They are supported by very good performers.
This is easily one of Polanski's finest: his most subtle and poetic films. A treat to watch.
The pacing is exceptionally well maintained. 'Tess' is longer than the traditional 100 minute flick but not for a moment does it feel as though it's lagging or dragging in pace.
Another strength of the film is its subtlety. For example, to the director's credit, there's an outstanding sequence of how murder is implied just with a few drops of blood. Even the finally sequence (beautifully done) implies Tess's fate (before the epilogue clarifies it). 'Tess' touches on some heavy themes such as sexism, poverty and betrayal but it doesn't preach about them. Rather it tells the story of a strong-willed, devoted and kind woman who was faulted for being beautiful.
Moreover, the characters are brilliantly layered. The screenplay has safely avoided caricatures). A very young Nastassja Kinski is incredible in one of her early roles. Her restrained performance and gestural expressions are remarkable. Peter Firth does a fine job too. They are supported by very good performers.
This is easily one of Polanski's finest: his most subtle and poetic films. A treat to watch.
helpful•243
- Chrysanthepop
- Apr 25, 2012
- How long is Tess?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Cô Gái Đức Hạnh
- Filming locations
- Morienval, Oise, France(final scenes, Stonehenge reconstitution)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $12,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $20,093,330
- Gross worldwide
- $20,101,247
- Runtime3 hours 6 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1
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