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The Duellists Movie Review

The Duellists is a 1977 British period drama directed by Ridley Scott in his directorial debut and starring Harvey Keitel. It is such a strong debut.

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“General Feraud has made occasional attempts to kill me.

That does not give him the right to claim my acquaintance“

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In 1801 France, due to a minor perceived slight, mild-mannered Lieutenant d’Hubert is forced into a duel with hot-headed irrational Lieutenant Feraud. The disagreement ultimately results in scores of duels spanning several years. This story was based on Joseph Conrad’s short story that itself was based on the true events that happened. Life is sometimes crazier than movies and this story is further proof that movies should stick to adapting real events as no fictionalization is really necessary.

Keith Carradine wasn’t all that good in the role of d’Hubert. He was serviceable, but Keitel was the clear star here. He was born to play men like Feraud. Aggressive, arrogant, spiteful and truly mad, Feraud is an instantly unforgettable figure and he becomes basically a myth within the story, one that makes the entire movie larger than life.

The film didn’t give a backstory to the two’s conflict and at first it did not explore the psychology behind it properly, but thankfully the final third changed that. There is this fascinating sequence that states just how ridiculous it was for men throughout history to have obsessed over the idea of “honor” with no proper explanation or definition of what that term even means.

The Duellists is absolutely incredible in its final confrontation. It was terrific and very entertaining, not to mention much more suspenseful that the pistol duel wasn’t the usual duel in close range, but one where they dispersed in a forested area near a chateau. That entire sequence was brilliantly executed, leading to the ending that was poetic and fascinating. Who is Feraud without his lifelong drive to beat his nemesis?

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The only issue in the movie is the supporting characters, especially the female ones. All of them are underdeveloped and unnecessary to the main story, making those sections lifeless and very slowly paced. The rest is engaging all around while benefiting from fantastic cinematography, impressive production design and historically accurate costumes. Ridley Scott proved from the start just how meticulous he is when directing his historical epics and I hugely respect him for that staggering attention to detail.