REVIEW #129 The Last Duel (2021)

The Last Duel is directed by Ridley Scott and set in the 1300’s. Jean De Carrouges is a respected knight known for his bravery on the battlefield and Jacques Le Gris is an intelligent squire who is one of the most respected nobles in the court. Carrouges wife courageously steps forward and reveals Le Gris raped her, leading to a duel to the death between the two men.

CAST & THE ACTING 

There is a stellar cast with Matt Damon playing Jean De Carrouges and Jodie Comer playing his wife Marguerite. The pair deliver fantastic performances, the way the story is told in the film requires subtle changes to each of their characters depending on which perspective we are seeing them from. I can imagine this was rather challenging for the actors, having to establish three different versions of their character and having to sell each one as if it was the truth. Adam Driver portrays Jacques Le Gris and similarly too Damon and Comer, he also delivers a strong performance. Ben Affleck has a less significant role in the film playing Pierre d’Alencon, his performance wasn’t as noticeable but nonetheless was still executed with quality. I do think the accents were a little questionable, they were all clearly putting on English accents but the characters are French and the film is set in France. I get that they have those accents to suit the needs of the audience which is acceptable but the American actors didn’t seem to have that English accent perfected. Other then that the acting as a whole was definitely one of the strong points of the film.

PLOT & THE STORYLINE 

The best thing about the storyline and how Ridley Scott pieced the film together, was that it was told from three different perspectives; Jean De Carrouge, Marguerites De Carrouge and finally Jacques Le Gris. This gave an interesting spin on the plot that I really enjoyed. It also gave the actors a chance to explore their characters in different ways, moulded to how others perceived them. I was shocked by how the accusation of rape was dealt with in those times, the process a women had to go through to get justice and how it ultimately relied on how well her husband could duel. It also signified to me how religion really did dictate the world and how men used that to their advantage to rule. Jodie Comers performance was rather symbolic of the audiences shocked reaction because when she found out the consequences she would face if her husband lost, it was almost like she was finding out for the first time along side the audience. The pacing at times was pretty slow, there were moments which I felt could have been left out and that’s coming from me who usually loves a long run time! Although you can forgive that for how well Ridley Scott executes his storytelling. 

CINEMATOGRAPHY & SPECIAL EFFECTS 

The Last Duel had some great cinematography, I particularly enjoyed the battle scenes and how well the brutality of those battles were captured. We didn’t see many scenes of that nature due to the focus on the main storyline but what we did see, looked great. For those scenes the special effects were extremely subtle, to the point where I’m not even sure if effects were even used at all for the gore and violence. However in other areas the CGI was quite noticeable, in those instances it was usually for scenes where they were trying to create huge crowds of people, covering a huge distance. The settings in the distance were obviously CGI and you could tell that, for example the start where you could see the duel area surrounded by people and also at the end when they’re riding through the crowds to what looks like a church being repaired. The colour and tone was kept very dull most of the time, probably to reflect the gritty nature of the storyline but overall the cinematography was good. 

OVERALL (8/10)

I can see why this has been rated highly by a lot of people, the acting was great and Ridley Scotts storytelling is superb in this film. However I do think the pacing was a little slow and it could have done with a slightly shorter run time, which is really rare for me to say because I love long films. The storyline highlighted a lot of social and legal issues during that time period and I guess the brutal nature of society too. The cinematography often reflected that with its dull colour pallet and tones, giving what I feel was a true reflection of the 1300’s. The fact this was based on true events helps provide that shock factor at certain points in the film. The Last Duel is an enjoyable example of great cinema but perhaps the storyline wasn’t exciting enough for most audiences because it tanked at the box office. That being said, because of that it’s been put on Disney+ already, so definitely go and give it a watch. 

Thanks for watching.

Callan