And these films are shown. As Tess's fortunes ebb and flow, capitalism slowly invades the beautiful village. When Tess and Clay exchanged their heartfelt feelings, they saw the train representing industrial civilization drive into the countryside. After being abandoned by Clay, while working with Marianne, steam engines have been used in the countryside. With the influx of these products of industrial civilization, the patriarchal society in the countryside has collapsed, and the once noble class has lost its glory. Tess's family, the once-prominent d'Urbervilles, had fallen into disrepair, destitute to the point where they needed to send their daughter to seek relief.
It is against this backdrop that Tess's story takes place, and her tragic fate stems from it. Because of the decline of the family, he was forced to go to the city to seek relief, and only met Tess's nightmare in this life - Alec. Alec in the movie will remind people of Reid played by Clark Gable in "Gone with the Wind", with a sexy moustache, a straight nose, and a half-smiley look, which can be described as a classic image of a bad man. Although the appearances are quite similar, Alec is not Reid Barry, who is deeply in love with Hao Scarlett. He is not sincere towards Tess, but only covets Tess's beauty. When he first met Tess, he said to Tess "beauty has his price" (beauty has a price). Alec is undoubtedly the emerging bourgeoisie, who uses money to measure everything, and bluntly uses money to buy Tess's beauty. Since Tess's arrival, Alec has been teasing Tess again and again, and finally, in the woods that morning, Ares seduces Tess. The bourgeoisie is the culprit in destroying the countryside, so what happened to Tess, who grew up in the countryside, was a hint to the social background at that time.
Tess eventually left Yale to work at the milking parlour after the death of the child she gave birth, and met the love of her life, Clay. If Clay represents matter, Clay represents spirit. Clay is an idealist who indulges in fantasies. He gave up the opportunity to go to college and instead went to study farm farming and build his own farm in Brazil. So Clay like this can't be Tess's true salvation. On that wedding night, Clay and Tess confessed to each other their past mistakes, and Tess finally spoke out about the past she had held back for a long time. I believe that audiences who have seen the movie "Tess" will be deeply impressed by this scene. Clay remained silent the entire time he listened. When Tess finished speaking, Clay walked slowly to the fireplace, stirred the burning firewood with a stirrer, and said, "I'm going out for a while." A short sentence shattered all Tess's previous efforts. Clay himself had a dewy relationship, but he criticized Tess for his infidelity. Even though he knew that Tess was loving him with his whole life, he still abandoned Tess cruelly. He acted like a sanctioner, standing on the moral high ground to impose moral sanctions on Tess, and this morality itself was questionable. It can be said that Clay played an inescapable responsibility in pushing Tess to destruction.
Alec and Clay, the two men who took over and led innocent Tess to destruction. In one scene, Yale handed the strawberry to Tess' mouth, and the innocent Tess ate the strawberry hesitantly. Under Kinski's slightly shy interpretation, the plump red lips and the bright strawberries are full of temptation. This scene reminds people of Eve in the Garden of Eden, who was tempted by the serpent and ate the forbidden fruit. And then, Tess and Clay truly love each other, but they are abandoned after confessing to Clay. Tess, dressed in tattered clothes, struggles to walk through the withered countryside in early winter, reminding people of Eve who was banished to Paradise Lost. At the end of the film, Clay returns to find Tess, who kills Alec and leaves Clay on the run. He was gradually forced to the end of his life by a ruthless fate. At Stonehenge, England, Tess was arrested by the police and finally walked to the gallows. In the center of the ancient Stonehenge in England, Tess lies curled up on the stone, like a saint who has been sacrificed. Tess is a victim of the times. Tess from an ancient family symbolizes Hardy's admiration for the ancient village patriarchy and his mourning for the past. Tess's final passing also reflects the author's helplessness for the inevitable disappearance of the rural world.
1979's "Tess" is Polanski's comeback after his return to Europe, and the whole film is also filled with his helplessness about fate. The great success of the film, in addition to the director's talent, is also related to Kinski's expressive interpretation. It was Kinski's performance that allowed us to see the innocent Tess in Thomas Hardy's book on the screen. Natasha Kinski, known as "the most beautiful woman in European cinema" in the 1980s, was only 18 years old when she played Tess, and she was as beautiful as a blooming rose. In the movie, she is sometimes pure and lovely, sometimes poignant and moving, and her interpretation of the role is meticulous, just like Tess in real life. Although Kinsky has not had an impressive image since then, she is always Tess in the audience's mind.
(Tencent video has been sent, "Wheat Field Cinema")
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