The Tenant |  | Director: Roman Polanski
Actors: Roman Polanski, Isabelle Adjani, Melvyn Douglas, Jo Van Fleet, Bernard Fresson
Studio: Paramount
Category: DVD
List Price: $9.98
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Rating:  70 reviews
Sales Rank: 35704
Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
Languages: English (Unknown), English (Subtitled), English (Original Language), French (Original Language)
Rating: R (Restricted)
Region: 1
Discs: 1
Running Time: 126 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 7.4 x 5.1 x 0.6
ISBN: 0792179285
UPC: 097360867640
EAN: 9780792179283
ASIN: B000069I09
Theatrical Release Date: June 11, 1976
Release Date: July 1, 2003
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Amazon.com
After the triumph of Chinatown, Roman Polanski's The Tenant marked an unsettling return to the horrifying psychodrama of Repulsion and Rosemary's Baby. As in those previous films, Polanski explores a descent into madness with subtle, deliberate pacing and keen attention to accumulating details. Cannily casting himself in the title role, Polanski plays the mild-mannered occupant of a Parisian flat previously rented by a woman who committed suicide by leaping from her upper-floor balcony. The woman's leftover belongings and the harsh attitudes of disapproving neighbors (including Melvin Douglas and Shelley Winters) begin to grate on the new tenant's psyche; his paranoia shifts from simmering anxiety to full-blown psychosis, until fate itself seems to run in a complete, tragically tormenting circle. Polanski masters the material as only he could, and despite some critical drubbing at the time of its release, The Tenant has earned a place among Polanski's finest films. --Jeff Shannon
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Showing reviews 1-5 of 70
 DVD did not work January 8, 2010
JoeReb
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
The DVD did not work and I emailed the seller for a refund and they never responded back.
 Roman Polanski: The Tenant November 6, 2009
Book and music lover "Jane"
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Excellent psychological thriller and interesting look at Roman Polanski's early work in the trilogy of psychological thrillers. Films of this caliber are very rare anymore. I enjoyed this film very much and recommend it highly.
Roman Polanski film THE TENANT August 24, 2009
Dr. Feelgood (USA)
This film was not well received when it was first released, it did not gain the success that Rosemary's Baby did. Although it is still an interesting film, and should be noted. Polanski stars in the film as the film's central character, a character like the character (Carol) in Repulsion or even Rosemary (Rosemary's Baby) the character's inner world is turned inside out through paranoid delusions, that at times, it is difficult for us or the characters in these films to tell what is real, the line becomes blurred, between reality and fantasy. Which makes for a great cinema. This film is less heavy than Repulsion and doesn't take it self so seriously, which is why it works on that level.
 Roman Polanski's Faithful, but Ultimately Flawed Adaptation of The Tenant June 5, 2009
Bryan Byrd (Daveport, Iowa)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Having read Roland Topor's masterful novel 'The Tenant' only a few weeks ago, I was primed and ready for Roman Polanski's take on the persecuted and haunted character of Trelkovsky. Though I am more familiar with Mr. Polanski's reputation as a filmmaker than with his films, I did expect him to bring a singular vision to the adaptation - even if that vision differed from my interpretation. That it does, but where the film clumsily stumbles is in its failure to show the cause and effect necessary to support even the director's view.
'The Tenant' is the story of Trelkovsky, an unassuming everyman, who takes an apartment recently vacated by a woman, Simone Choule, who committed suicide. Once settled, he starts finding artifacts of Mlle. Choule's around the apartment that have an unhealthy attraction for him. Coupled with that, he has continuous problems from his neighbors, who constantly harangue him with complaints about noise coming from his apartment. The lingering presence of Mlle. Choule, the harassment by his neighbors, and the slow disintegration of Trelkovsky's identity lead him to believe that his neighbors are scheming to turn him into a copy of Mlle. Choule - and for him to suffer her same fate.
It may be unfair to review the film so soon after reading the source material, but because of that exposure, I do know that for the first two-thirds of the movie, Mr. Polanski was almost obsequious in his faithfulness. Much of the dialogue came straight from the book, and the actors were outstanding in their roles (including a stellar turn by Shelley Winters). Mr. Polanski himself, as Trelkovsky, nailed the timid title character exactly as I had pictured him, but as the character loses his grip on reality, I was disappointed to see that the director's view diverged so radically from mine.
The Question: are the neighbor's threats all in Trelkovsky's mind, or is something more infernal going on? I felt the novel might have been a mixture of both, though mostly I had the impression there was a real, external danger. Mr. Polanski's version ignored that possibility, and presented the horror as all inside Trelkovsky's head. But does it matter since both narratives share the same events right up to the end? I think so, as that makes the movie only a psychological chiller - the novel is a much more frightening allegory of humanity's cloven-footed habits throughout history.
Since each opinion is valid, I can't penalize a film that doesn't conform to my preconceived ideas - but I can dock it for failing to present its own views adequately. I can accept bizarre characters and storylines, but the established elements must evolve during the film along believable lines. When Trelkovsky dons a housedress left behind by Mlle. Choule, and paints his face with cosmetics, it struck me that the film hadn't provided enough underpinning for his actions. Knowing what I knew about the story, I could see that the clues were there - just carefully hidden - but I felt that someone else watching might be scratching their head and wondering what Mr. Polanski was thinking. Trelkovsky seemed to go from a timid cipher to a cross-dressing lunatic for little or no reason. Granted, the reasons were in his mind, which is difficult to present on screen, but I believe I would have had a hard time understanding his motivations, including those that influenced his decisions at the movie's end, from the film's storyline alone.
It's possible that I'm being too harsh, and that those unfamiliar with the book will still be able to easily follow along with the movie. I will say that the film should appeal to viewers with a heightened appreciation for subtle nuance, and that those who are used to a more contemporary presentation of horror may want to take a pass. Those in the middle, like me, but without prior information, may find 'The Tenant' to be a well-acted, interesting film - right up until it falls apart in the final act.
The Apartment Building From Hell (Great Psychological/Supernatural Thriller From Roman Polanski) February 28, 2009
J. B. Hoyos (Chesapeake, VA)
Strange. Bizarre. Creepy. These are words that can be used to describe Roman Polanski's "The Tenant." They can also be used to describe the residents of the Parisian apartment building into which Trelkovsky (Roman Polanski) moves. The former resident, Simone, leaped from the window and laid, wrapped like a mummy, in the hospital before dying. Soon, Trelkovsky believes that there is a conspiracy among the neighbors to force him to also commit suicide Does this diabolical conspiracy exist only in his insane imagination or is it real? The viewer never knows for sure and this makes the film highly provocative.
Having watched Polanski's occult masterpiece, "Rosemary's Baby," I can't help but believe that Trelkovsky is part of a complex Satanic conspiracy. The neighbors are Satan worshippers who have conspired to drive him insane and force him to commit suicide as a type of human sacrifice. They treat him as though he is Simone, giving him her mail and serving him her hot chocolate and Marlboros. He receives her photograph of the Egyptian sarcophagus from the Louvre. Next, he sees Egyptian hieroglyphics on the wall of the communal bathroom - the wall upon which residents have been seen staring as though entranced. There is also the human tooth embedded in his apartment wall. Simone's tooth? It would imply that part of her lives on in the apartment, preserved like a mummy, for eternity. Perhaps it is her soul, or ghost, that compels him to wear her clothes and put on a wig.
Commentary from Roman Polanski, explaining the mystery behind the apartment building and its residents, would've been nice. As usual, Paramount has provided us with an awesome reproduction of the film but has not taken the time to add special features except for a short trailer. There are, however, English subtitles for us hearing impaired.
"The Tenant" is highly recommended for fans of psychological horror, fans of occult thrillers, and fans of Roman Polanski's works. I have not seen his "Repulsion" but I hear that it also deals with the deterioration of a warped psyche.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 70
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