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Tess ()


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A strong-willed young peasant girl attracts the affection of two men.

Director:
Awards:
  • Won 3 Oscars. Another 13 wins & 17 nominations.
  • See more »
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Cast verified as complete

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John Durbeyfield
Tony Church ...
Parson Tringham
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Tess (as Nastassia Kinski)
Brigid Erin Bates ...
Girl in Meadow
Jeanne Biras ...
Girl in Meadow
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Angel Clare
John Bett ...
Felix Clare
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Cuthbert Clare
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Mrs Durbeyfield
Geraldine Arzul ...
Child
Stephanie Treille ...
Child
Elodie Warnod ...
Child
Ben Reeks ...
Child
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Alec d'Urberville
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Girl in Henhouse
Maryline Even ...
Girl in Henhouse
Jean-Jacques Daubin ...
Bailiff
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Mrs d'Urberville
Jacob Weizbluth ...
Yokel at Barn-Dance (as Jacob Weisbluth)
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Harvester
Véronique Alain ...
Harvester (as Veronique Alain)
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Vicar of Marlott
Fred Bryant ...
Dairyman Crick
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Old Dairy Hand
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Old Dairy Hand
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Marian
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Izz
Caroline Embling ...
Retty
Josine Comellas ...
Mrs. Crick
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Mercy Chant
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Reverend Mr Clare
Pascale de Boysson ...
Mrs Clare
Gordon Richardson ...
Parson at Wedding
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Housekeeper
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Farmer Groby
Jimmy Gardner ...
Pedlar
Reg Dent ...
Carter
John Gill ...
Landlord
Forbes Collins ...
New Tenant
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Postman
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Postman
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Landlady
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Constable
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
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Religious Fanatic (uncredited)
Rico Lopez ...
Horseman (uncredited)
Lina Roxa ...
Caretaker (uncredited)
Jack Stephens ...
Man in Tavern (uncredited)

Directed by

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Roman Polanski

Written by

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Thomas Hardy ... (based on the novel "Tess of the d'Urbervilles" by)
 
Gérard Brach ... (screenplay) (as Gerard Brach) &
Roman Polanski ... (screenplay) &
John Brownjohn ... (screenplay)

Produced by

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Claude Berri ... producer (produced by)
Timothy Burrill ... co-producer
Pierre Grunstein ... executive producer
Jean-Pierre Rassam ... associate producer

Music by

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Philippe Sarde

Cinematography by

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Ghislain Cloquet
Geoffrey Unsworth

Editing by

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Alastair McIntyre
Tom Priestley

Editorial Department

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

Casting By

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Mary Selway

Production Design by

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Pierre Guffroy

Art Direction by

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Jack Stephens

Costume Design by

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Anthony Powell

Makeup Department

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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

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

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director

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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

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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)
Chip Miller ... illustrator (uncredited)

Sound Department

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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
Robin O'Donoghue ... assistant dubbing mixer (uncredited)

Visual Effects by

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Doug Ferris ... matte artist (uncredited)
Frederic Moreau ... visual effects supervisor (uncredited)
Philippe Tourret ... restoration coordinator (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department

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Eric Brach ... assistant camera
Jean Harnois ... camera operator
François Lauliac ... assistant camera
Jean-Claude Le Bras ... chief electrician
Bernard Prim ... still photographer
Roger Robert ... key grip: additional
André Thiéry ... head grip (as Andre Thiery)

Costume and Wardrobe Department

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Caroline de Vivaise ... wardrober (as Caroline De Vivaise)
Dougie Hawkes ... costumer
Joanna Johnston ... assistant costume designer
Thérèse Ripaud ... wardrobe supervisor (as Therese Ripaud)
Frederic Vieille ... wardrober

Location Management

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Patrick Bordier ... location manager
Philippe Desmoulins ... location manager
Jérôme Jeannet ... location manager

Music Department

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Peter Knight ... orchestrator
Carlo Savina ... conductor
Franklin Jones Jr. ... score recording engineer and score mix engineer (uncredited)
London Symphony Orchestra ... music performed by (uncredited)
Federico Savina ... music recordist (uncredited)

Script and Continuity Department

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Sylvette Baudrot ... continuity

Transportation Department

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Richard Booz ... unit driver (uncredited)

Additional Crew

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Josée Bénabent-Loiseau ... publicist (as Josee Benabent)
Catherine Fleming ... voice teacher
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)
Robert A. Levine ... project director (uncredited)

Thanks

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Sharon Tate ... dedicatee (as Sharon)
Crew verified as complete

Production Companies

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Distributors

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Special Effects

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Other Companies

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Storyline

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Plot Summary

Wessex County, England during the Victorian era. Christian values dominate what are social mores. These mores and her interactions with two men play a large part in what happens in the young life of peasant girl, the shy, innocent, proper yet proud Tess Durbeyfield. The first of these men is Alec d'Urberville. After learning from a local historian that they are really descendants of the aristocratic d'Urberville family which has died out due to lack of male heirs, Tess' parents send her to a nearby mansion where they know some d'Urbervilles actually reside. This move is in order for the family to gain some benefit from their heritage. Upon her arrival at the mansion, Tess quickly learns that the family of Tess' "cousin" Alec are not true d'Urbervilles, but rather an opportunistic lot who bought the family name in order to improve their own standing in life. Tess is pulled between what she was sent to accomplish for her family against her general disdain for Alec, who will give her anything she wants in return for sexual favors. The second of these men is Angel Clare, the son of a parson and an apprentice farmer. Angel and Tess fall in love with each other. Tess has to decide if she will divulge to Angel her past relationship with Alec, which if she does may jeopardize their own relationship. But if she doesn't, Tess also has to figure out if the secret will haunt her and thus jeopardize their relationship in other ways. Written by Huggo

Plot Keywords
Taglines She was a poor man's daughter, an aristocrat's mistress and a gentleman's wife. She was Tess, a victim of her own provocative beauty. See more »
Genres
Parents Guide View content advisory »
Certification

Additional Details

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Also Known As
  • 苔丝 (China, Mandarin title)
  • Tessa (Croatia)
  • Тесс (Ukraine)
  • Tess - viattomuuden tarina (Finland)
  • Tess - Uma Lição de Vida (Brazil)
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Runtime
  • 186 min
Country
Language
Color
Aspect Ratio
Sound Mix
Filming Locations

Box Office

Budget $12,000,000 (estimated)

Did You Know?

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Trivia The 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. See more »
Goofs At the beginning of the final sequence, set at Stonehenge, someone's head can be seen at bottom-left. See more »
Movie Connections Featured in The 38th Annual Golden Globe Awards (1981). See more »
Quotes Tess: There are no stars tonight. Perhaps we could have made our souls take flight together.
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