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The Town Is Quiet

Play trailer Poster for The Town Is Quiet 2001 2h 23m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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71% Tomatometer 35 Reviews 85% Popcornmeter 500+ Ratings
"The Town is Quiet" tells the story of several characters whose lives overlap and influence one another in both tragic and uplifting ways. Their paths cross with those of the other finely etched characters to create a rich, insightful fresco of a particular contemporary urban reality, showing, in the words of the director, that at a time when life is more and more meaningless, the town is not quiet.
The Town Is Quiet

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Critics Consensus

Tough to watch but ultimately rewarding, The Town Is Quiet finds universal truths in individual lives shadowed by tragedy.

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Critics 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. Rated: 2.5/4 Jul 20, 2002 Full Review Philip Wuntch Dallas Morning News It's a strong viewing experience but definitely worth the effort. Rated: B Jun 20, 2002 Full Review Kenneth Turan Los Angeles Times It's a pitiless film, uncompromising in what it shows us. Rated: 4.5/5 Feb 22, 2002 Full Review Film Threat Rated: 3/5 Dec 6, 2005 Full Review Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Rated: 4/5 Jul 21, 2005 Full Review Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews Too trying and unwieldy to keep my attention. Rated: C+ May 8, 2004 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Dave S Set in Marseilles, The Town is Quiet opens with a lengthy panoramic shot of the city that reveals its beauty, at least from a distance. As the film progresses, the characters introduced indicate that things may not be as they appear from far away – it is a city, like so many others, filled with crime, drug abuse, violence, mental health issues, loneliness, and intense sadness. While the first half of the movie sometimes feels aimless, things come together over the remaining hour as the stories of the seemingly disparate characters begin to intertwine. Well-acted throughout and deftly directed by Robert Guediguian, it is undeniably dark and pessimistic about the human condition, but provides some hope in the touching and memorable final scene. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 04/09/23 Full Review Audience Member A Bleak, Cold and Merciless Drama... Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/26/23 Full Review Audience Member Beautifully acted, fascinating criticism of contemporary issues like racism and addiction, told with heart and dignity, through the eyes of several unfortunate Marseilles inhabitants and still unfortunately a tad over-long. Jean-Pierre Darroussin and Ariane Ascaride are superb though. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/26/23 Full Review Audience Member Another excellent film by Guediguian. It seems that his leftist leanings have got a bit less orthodox with time- the bourgeois characters are not depicted as quite as ridiculous as in his prior films. Still, solidarity of the workers of Marseilles in almost hopeless situations is the main thing again. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/14/23 Full Review Audience Member Not so good very much for my type of choice!!! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/11/23 Full Review Audience Member French realism with lots of social pathos and a story as stratified as the society it investigates. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 01/29/23 Full Review Read all reviews
The Town Is Quiet

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Cast & Crew

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Robert Guédiguian

Director

Ariane Ascaride

Michèle

Jean-Pierre Darroussin

Paul

Gérard Meylan

Gérard

Alexandre Ogou

Abderamane

Pierre Banderet

Claude

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The Town Is Quiet

Michele (Ariane Ascaride) and Gerard (Gerard Meylan) Claude (Pierre Banderet) and Michele (Ariane Ascaride) Paul (Jean-Pierre Darroussin) and Michele (Ariane Ascaride) Fioria (Julie-Marie Parmentier) and Michele (Ariane Ascaride) Michele (Ariana Ascaride) Michele (Ariane Ascaride) and Gerard (Gerard Meylan) Abderamane (Alexandre Ogou) and Viviane (Christine Brucher) Gerard (Gerard Meylan) threatening a pedestrian. The Town Is Quiet (2000) The Town Is Quiet (2000) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis "The Town is Quiet" tells the story of several characters whose lives overlap and influence one another in both tragic and uplifting ways. Their paths cross with those of the other finely etched characters to create a rich, insightful fresco of a particular contemporary urban reality, showing, in the words of the director, that at a time when life is more and more meaningless, the town is not quiet.
Director
Robert Guédiguian
Screenwriter
Jean-Louis Milesi, Robert Guédiguian
Distributor
New Yorker Films
Production Co
Agat Films & Cie
Genre
Drama
Original Language
French (France)
Release Date (Theaters)
Oct 26, 2001, Wide
Box Office (Gross USA)
$66.3K
Runtime
2h 23m
Sound Mix
Dolby SR, Dolby Digital, Dolby A, Dolby Stereo
Aspect Ratio
Flat (1.66:1)