Toni (1935)

Directed by

Jean Renoir

Genre

drama film, crime film

Country

France

Runtime

1h 21m

Rated

7

Rating

7.1 of 10 from 75 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

A group of immigrant workers at a quarry and farm in Provence gets entangled in romantic relationships. The film follows their personal conflicts and everyday struggles.

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What happens

Toni is a 1935 French drama film directed by Jean Renoir and starring Charles Blavette, Celia Montalván and Édouard Delmont. The credits mention no writers other than the story writer Jacques Levert, but the script was later confirmed to be authored by Renoir and Carl Einstein. It is an early example of the casting of non-professional actors and on-location shooting - both of which would influence the Left Bank of the French New Wave movement. Examining the romantic interactions between a group of immigrants (both from abroad and other parts of France) working around a quarry and a farm in Provence, it is also generally considered a major precursor to the Italian neorealist movement, for its concerns on the working class, use of non-professional actors and on-location shooting. Although Toni is not among Renoir's most famous works, it continues to receive positive reviews from critics. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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