Tess (1979)

Director:

Roman Polanski

Writers:

Gérard Brach (screenplay) &
Roman Polanski (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

12 December 1980 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

As timely today as the day it was written.

Plot:

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

Plot Keywords:

Love | 19th Century | Peasant | Tragedy | Social Climber

Awards:

Won 3 Oscars. Another 10 wins & 12 nominations

Cast

John Collin	...	John Durbeyfield
Tony Church	...	Parson Tringham
Nastassja Kinski	...	Tess (as Nastassia Kinski)
Brigid Erin Bates	...	Girl in meadow
Jeanne Biras	...	Girl in meadow
Peter Firth	...	Angel Clare
John Bett	...	Felix Clare
Tom Chadbon	...	Cuthbert Clare
Rosemary Martin	...	Mrs. Durbeyfield
Geraldine Arzul	...	Child
Stephanie Treille	...	Child
Elodie Warnod	...	Child
Ben Reeks	...	Child
Leigh Lawson	...	Alec d'Urberville
Lesley Dunlop	...	Girl in henhouse
Marilyne Even	...	Girl in henhouse
Jean-Jacques Daubin	...	Bailiff
Sylvia Coleridge	...	Mrs. d'Urberville
Jacob Weizbluth	...	Yokel at barn-dance (as Jacob Weisbluth)
Jacques Mathou	...	Harvester
Véronique Alain	...	Harvester (as Veronique Alain)
Richard Pearson	...	Vicar of Marlott
Fred Bryant	...	Dairyman Crick
John Barrett	...	Old dairy band
Anne Tirard	...	Old dairy band (as Ann Tirard)
Carolyn Pickles	...	Marian
Suzanna Hamilton	...	Izz
Caroline Embling	...	Retty
Josine Comellas	...	Mrs. Crick
Arielle Dombasle	...	Mercy Chant
David Markham	...	Reverend Mr. Clare
Pascale de Boysson	...	Mrs. Clare
Gordon Richardson	...	Parson at wedding
Patsy Smart	...	Housekeeper
Dicken Ashworth	...	Farmer Groby
Jimmy Gardner	...	Pedlar
Reg Dent	...	Carter
John Gill	...	Landlord
Forbes Collins	...	New tenant
Keith Buckley	...	Postman
John Moore	...	Postman
Patsy Rowlands	...	Landlady
Graham Weston	...	Constable

Directed by
Roman Polanski

Writing credits
Gérard Brach		(screenplay) &
Roman Polanski		(screenplay) &
John Brownjohn		(screenplay)
Thomas Hardy		novel "Tess of the d'Urbervilles"

Produced by
Claude Berri	....	producer
Timothy Burrill	....	co-producer
Pierre Grunstein	....	executive producer
Jean-Pierre Rassam	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Philippe Sarde

Cinematography by
Ghislain Cloquet
Geoffrey Unsworth

Film Editing by
Alastair McIntyre
Tom Priestley

Casting by
Mary Selway

Production Design by
Pierre Guffroy

Art Direction by
Jack Stephens

Costume Design by
Anthony Powell

Makeup Department
Alain Bernard	....	assistant hair stylist
Didier Lavergne	....	makeup artist
Paul Le Marinel	....	assistant makeup artist
Ludovic Paris	....	hair stylist (as Marc Ludovic Paris)

Production Management
Alain Depardieu	....	unit manager
Paul Maigret	....	production manager
Tadek Zietara	....	unit manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Hercules Bellville	....	second unit director
Thierry Chabert	....	first assistant director
Romain Goupil	....	second assistant director
Hugues de Laugardière	....	second assistant director (as Hugues De Laugardiere)

Art Department
Jean-Claude Bourdin	....	assistant art director
Michel Damiens	....	assistant art director
Marcel Laude	....	property master
Pierre Lefait	....	set dresser
Claude Moesching	....	assistant art director
Albert Rajau	....	assistant art director
Jean-Claude Sévenet	....	set dresser (as Jean-Claude Sevenet)
Ferracci	....	poster designer (uncredited)

Sound Department
Hervé de Luze	....	sound editor
Maurice Gilbert	....	dubbing mixer
Louis Gimel	....	boom operator
Peter Horrocks	....	sound editor
Jean-Pierre Lelong	....	sound effects
Jean Nény	....	dubbing mixer (as Jean Neny)
Alex Pront	....	dubbing mixer
Robert Rietty	....	post-synchronization (as Robert Rietti)
Jean-Pierre Ruh	....	sound mixer
David Watts	....	stereo sound consultant: Dolby

Visual Effects by
Frederic Moreau	....	visual effects supervisor (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Eric Brach	....	assistant camera
Jean Harnois	....	camera operator
François Lauliac	....	assistant camera
Jean-Claude LeBras	....	chief electrician (as Jean-Claude Le Bras)
Bernard Prim	....	still photographer
André Thiéry	....	head grip (as Andre Thiery)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Caroline de Vivaise	....	wardrober (as Caroline De Vivaise)
Joanna Johnston	....	assistant costume designer
Thérèse Ripaud	....	wardrobe supervisor (as Therese Ripaud)
Frederic Vieille	....	wardrober

Editorial Department
Jeremy Hume	....	assistant editor
Pierre Louis Lecoeur	....	assistant editor
Jacqueline Mariani	....	assistant editor
Arielle Noyer	....	assistant editor

Music Department
Peter Knight	....	orchestrator
Carlo Savina	....	conductor

Other crew
Sylvette Baudrot	....	continuity
Josée Bénabent-Loiseau	....	publicist (as Josee Benabent)
Patrick Bordier	....	location manager
Philippe Desmoulins	....	location manager
Catherine Fleming	....	voice teacher
Jérôme Jeannet	....	location manager
Sue Lefton	....	choreographer
François Nadal	....	horse master
Jennifer Patrick	....	dialogue coach
Andrea Potter	....	researcher
Jeannie Stone	....	production assistant
Colette Suder	....	production accountant
Marguerite Théoule	....	production assistant (as Marguerite Theoule)

Thanks
Sharon Tate	....	dedicatee (as Sharon)

Production Companies

• Renn Productions
• Timothy Burrill Productions
• Société Française de Production (SFP) (in collaboration with)

Distributors

• AMLF (1979) (France) (theatrical)
• Magna-Filmi (1979) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Neue Constantin Film (1979) (Austria) (theatrical)
• Columbia Pictures (1980) (USA)
• LW Editora (2005) (Brazil) (DVD)
• RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video (1990) (USA) (VHS)
• Umbrella Entertainment (2004) (Australia) (DVD)
• VTI Home Vídeo (19??) (Brazil) (VHS)

Other Companies

• London Symphony Orchestra, The (LSO)  orchestra
• Ciné Lumières de Paris  lighting
• Elison  sound
• Euro-Titres  titles
• Pyral  magnetic tape
• S.I.M.O.  recording studio
• Samuelson Alga Cinéma  camera equipment

Runtime:

190 min | Argentina:150 min | France:170 min | 172 min (DVD) | West Germany:134 min (re-issue version)

Country:

France | UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby (35 mm prints)

Certification:

UK:A (1980) | UK:PG (1987) | Iceland:L | South Korea:15 | Australia:PG | Argentina:16 | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 | France:U | Sweden:11 | USA:PG | West Germany:12 (w) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Château de Beaumanoir, Le Leslay, Côtes-d'Armor, France

Company:

Renn Productions

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.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: At the beginning of the final sequence, set at Stonehenge, someone's head can be seen at bottom-left.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Filming 'Tess' (2004) (V)

Why dont they make them like this anymore?

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