I’ve debated whether or not Duel
deserves to be called “the only Made-For-TV movie to make this
list.” The version I watched was the extended, 90-minute version,
specifically made for theatrical release in Europe. That said
though, it never got a theatrical release in its country of origin
(the United States) as far as I can tell, and it was made to be shown
on television. However, I’ve decided that this is a stupid
question to be asking, and I’ve limited myself to “this is a good
movie, that we probably wouldn’t remember if it hadn’t been
directed by Steven Spielberg at a time when no one cared who
Steven Spielberg was.”
The movie is about at traveling
salesman (Dennis Weaver) who passes an 18-wheeler. The driver, who
we never see clearly, passes him back in a fit of road rage. This
game continues until the next stop. And from there on the movie
becomes a game of cat-and-mouse from one stop the next, with the
truck driver becoming increasingly aggressive and increasingly
violent towards the salesman, eventually trying to kill him.
It would probably be a mistake to say
that either character undergoes “development.” We don’t find
out a lot that’s significant about the salesman, and we find out
nothing about the driver. However, in place of traditional
development, we have the two characters gradually adapting to the
situation. The salesman’s priorities shift as the driver becomes
more aggressive. Initially, he’s simply concerned about getting to
his destination. Then he’s concerned about avoiding the truck
driver. And finally, he’s simply trying to ensure his own
survival.
The truck driver meanwhile starts out
as merely being annoying before his driving becomes frantic and
dangerous. This creates a fairly episodic narrative, in which the
tensions gradually rise as the incidents between the two drivers
become increasingly deadly. For the first hour or so of the movie,
the truck driver seems unwilling to harm the salesman while witnesses
are around. So the salesman is able to stop at a diner to reflect on
his situation, as well as seek out a confrontation with the truck
driver in person. However, this doesn’t work out, since he’s
unable to determine which diner patron is the truck driver.
The final straw which brings us into
the last act of the film appears to be the salesman trying to contact
the police. The truck driver levels the phone booth, and from then
on pays no regard to witnesses. His sole focus is now murder.
The movie is not realistic. There are
times when the salesman is out of the truck driver’s sight, so
logically he should have the option of taking another route or
turning around entirely, but this option is never even considered.
His only attempt to simply avoid the truck driver is to stop his car
by the side of the road and take a nap, which proves completely
ineffective since the truck driver simply waits for him. Still, the
purpose of this movie is not to portray a realistic method of dealing
with road rage. It’s to put two characters into conflict, from
which only one of them can emerge. That’s literally in the title
of the movie.
Of course, I suppose that you could
justify the duel portrayed in this film as simply being a matter of
pride. Dennis Weaver does an excellent job of establishing the
salesman as cocky, but not unlikable. Meaning that towards the end
of the movie, his attempts to “win” the duel don’t necessarily
come across merely a struggle to survive, because he’s scared.
He’s also mad, and that shines through the performance.
The movie also benefits vastly from a
premise that allows most of it to be shot on ordinary roads with two
vehicles. It never feels cheap, although the budget is clearly quite
low. This is more or less what it would look like if an insane truck
driver tried to kill a travelling salesman.
This is a fun movie, and I recommend
it. It’s short enough that it doesn’t overstay its welcome, and
while plenty of Spielberg’s later work may have been better, I
really don’t see any flaws in this movie to speak of.
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