Duel (Collector's Edition)
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Movie Reviews of Duel (Collector's Edition)
Movie Review: Terror In Broad Daylight...
Summary: 5 Stars
DUEL is one of those TV rarities, a well-made horror movie that actually works! You know the story. Businessman, Dave Mann (Dennis Weaver) ends up behind a big, rusty fuel truck on his way to a meeting. After passing the slow-moving vehicle, Mann gets caught up in a cat-and-mouse / life-and-death struggle for survival with the maniacal truckdriver. What I like most is the fact that the entire tale unfolds in the wide open countryside, in broad daylight. No dark, misty streets. Both predator and prey are seen in full sunlight, under bright blue skies. This makes DUEL all the more frightening and real. Writer Richard Matheson (Night Stalker / Night Strangler) spins another of his impressively scary yarns. Director Steven Spielberg isn't known for horror movies, but he has had some experience in the field (He directed 2 first season episodes of Night Gallery). The tension and suspense he creates in DUEL is relentless, unheard of in television (especially in the wacky 70s). Dennis Weaver is oddly perfect in his role as victim-turned-victor. Starting out calm, he slowly gets nervous, then spends a lot of time being terrified, finally getting fed up and determined to put an end to the insanity. And just who IS that mysterious truckdriver anyway?? The truck itself is a demonic presence, a juggernaut of death! The movie JEEPERS CREEPERS pays homage to DUEL (check out the kids' first encounter with the Creeper's truck). DUEL would make a great double feature w/ THE CAR. Highly recommended...Movie Review: Minimalism at its most entertaining and intense!
Summary: 5 Stars
It's interesting to think how "Duel" is the film that broke Steven Spielberg through and helped make him the household name he is today. "Duel" is a highly entertaining and suspenseful movie, and one thing that makes this movie so great is how minimalistic the whole thing is! Think about it; how many movies can you name where the whole film is basically one giant chase scene? Any movie that can pull such a feat off and be interesting all the way through is a surefire winner in my book, and "Duel", being such a movie, earns a spot amongst other classic horror/suspense movie that I've seen.
With so little to work with, it makes it that much easier to add detail to everything. Details that were worked to perfect include that of the truck: If you look, it has a railroad track with a bunch of license plates on it...hhmm, a giant truck with the license plates of other cars on its front. Yep, we have a serial killer on the loose! Speaking of which, I also find it curiously interesting that they never show the face of the truck driver, which highlights that the scariest thing about evil is the unknown factor behind it.
Overall, "Duel" is a feat that probably couldn't be pulled off by just any writer and still be as good as it is. "Duel" is a movie that will have you on the edge of your seat almost from the start, and all the way through to its heart-pumping, and satisfying, conclusion! Thanks for the time, and peace.
Movie Review: Rage against the machine?
Summary: 5 Stars
I guess The twilight zone was, with absolute conviction, the main inspiration's source for Steven Spielberg in this hair raising and unequal duel between a simple man, who chose an unfortunate evening to meet a real mad driver who suffers undoubtedly of serious emotive and emotional disturbance when decides to make a race plenty of suggested and evident violence.
Few times in the screen you will be tied to your seat as in this picture. And through your emotive memories you have found as I do in my personal case, with this kind of guys who simply play to be the death's emmisares driving any kind of vehicle. All his inner anguishes and impotence state make of them assume the total command of the highway, until the transit authority makes its appearance.
But knowing Spielberg, his message goes far beyond still, I have not any doubt, the metaphor is overclear. The Vietnam affair still resounded and the use of the machine as death's device was in last instance another way to express and exert violence, may be you call urban violence but this germen lives in our souls and has nothing to do with tension states or worst still a honor question.
Dennis Weaver made a terrific role as the frightened driver who tries to keep the relative control of its own when he has to face during ninety minutes with this absurd and merciless nigtmare.
The first little gem of Spielberg!
Movie Review: DUEL is cool
Summary: 5 Stars
I found out about the film DUEL through the special edition of JAWS. Those of you who have seen it know that during that documentary, Steven Speilberg speaks of how he feels JAWS and DUEL are related. After seeing that, I made it my personal quest to find the film DUEL, but because of where I live, this was very difficult. In fact, it took me a good year and a half, at least. I found it while visiting family back home, and it was SOOOO worth the wait. The story centers on David Mann (Dennis Weaver, in a role he oughta get more credit for) a rather timid salesman on a drive through the Mojave Desert for an appointment. He is so naive as to cut in front of a diesel truck. Next thing he knows, the crazy driver is in relentless pursuit of Mann. Taht's about all there is to this movie, but what's cool is that the driver of the truck, save for his hands at the steering wheel and his cowboy boots, is never, NOT ONCE seen in this movie, making it twice as scary as it already was. It's really quite easy to feel sorry for poor old David. The crazy trucker tries shoving him into an oncoming train for God's sake!!! As a Horror film, it's right up there with THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT, CHILD'S PLAY, PSYCHO, SCREAM, and NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, which is not an easy rank to shoot for. Leave it to Speilberg to pull of the impossible.
Movie Review: VALIANT ROAD RAGE
Summary: 5 Stars
33 years later, DUEL remains an excellent exercise in filmmaking. Based on a Richard Matheson short story, Steven Spielberg's first real directing effort stands as one of the most sublimely suspenseful films made. Although a TV movie, it ranks up there with some of the cinema's most interesting and different thrillers.
The story is pretty simple and one millions of commuters will find familiar: a traveling salesman (played laconically and superbly by Dennis Weaver) is late for an appointment. So he does what any driver would do: he passes a fuel truck. But it seems the driver doesn't want anyone to pass him, so he returns the favor, many times. It becomes clear that this particular trucker is a vengeful, actually psychotic man, as he relentlessly pursues Weaver, obviously to kill him. Spielberg made the wise choice of not showing us the truck driver, so in essence, the truck itself becomes the Freddy, Jason, Michael Myers, etc. of the film.
DUEL doesn't have splashy effects, no bloodshed, and a slam bang of an ending. If it seems preposterous and dated, remember it's 1971, folks, and this kind of movie wasn't being made. Spielberg and Weaver are to be commended on taking so little and winding up with so much.
An innovative film, and evidence of great things to come from Spielberg.