The Town Is Quiet (La Ville est tranquille) (2000)
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71% of critics liked it
(35 reviews) -
73% of users liked it
(569 ratings)
Racism, violence, and drug abuse run rampant in this ensemble drama set in the southern French city of Marseilles. Michele (Ariane Ascaride) spends her days working in a fish factory, where she earns a living to support her unemployed husband and her teenage daughter Fiona (Christine Brucher). In… More Racism, violence, and drug abuse run rampant in this ensemble drama set in the southern French city of Marseilles. Michele (Ariane Ascaride) spends her days working in a fish factory, where she earns a living to support her unemployed husband and her teenage daughter Fiona (Christine Brucher). In addition to being the mother of a three-month-old, Fiona is also a heroin addict and a prostitute. Thanks to her habit, Fiona is increasingly unable to work, and Michele helps her daughter by exchanging sexual favors for money with Paul (Jean-Pierre Darroussin), an ex-dock worker with more than a few problems of his own. Michele gets drugs for Fiona from Gerard (Gerard Meylan), the sullen proprietor of a small bar who engages in such shady pastimes as political assassination. Meanwhile, Abderramane (Alexandre Ogou), a young African man recently out of prison, finds himself attracted to Vivienne (Julie-Marie Parmentier), a social worker married to a womanizing high-society snob whom she detests. Her spite towards her husband leads Vivienne to claim that she respects poor people who vote for the Far Right more than moneyed individuals who talk a lot about helping the poor but do almost nothing. Vivienne's frustration, coupled with that of the other characters, illustrates the overriding tension that threatens to build to society's collapse. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, Rovi
- Directed By
- Robert Guediguian
- Written By
- Robert Guediguian, Jean-Louis Milesi
- Genres
- Art House & International, Drama
Unrated,
- In Theaters
- Jan 17, 2001 Wide
- Studio
- Diaphana Distribution
Critic Reviews
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Mark Caro, Chicago Tribune
For all of the apparent naturalness on screen, Guediguian's grim vision comes off as far too calculated.
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Philip Wuntch, Dallas Morning News
It's a strong viewing experience but definitely worth the effort.
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Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times
It's a pitiless film, uncompromising in what it shows us.
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Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle
Always, one gets the sense that this film is coming from some place real, and terrible.
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Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times
...the film's characters are familiar, real-life people, whose sadness reaches out from the screen.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
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Cast
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Ariane Ascaride
as Michele
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Jean-Pierre Darroussin
as Paul
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Gerard Meylan
as Gerard
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Alexandre Ogou
as Abderramane
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Pierre Banderet
as Claude
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Jacques Boudet
as Paul's Father
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Pascale Roberts
as Paul's Mother
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Julie-Marie Parmentier
as Vivane
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Christine Brücher
as Fiona
