I finally got to read the original story (e-text can be found for free here) after all these years watching the film and since I already knew it was a short story, I wasn't disapointed. I've already read a few of Conrad's books so I knew his style was old fashioned but enjoyable and this was much as I expected. I was curious to see what in the film was genuine and what was not, and sure enough one or two details I'd always noticed stood out. A particular line by Tom Conti's character, (who is very different in the story) was one of these. I suppose it must be the difference in how people write now in the twentieth century as opposed to the styles of a century and a half hence (like using the word hence).
One of the biggest surprises was the addition of an entire character to the film; D'Hubert's camp follower/lover Laura. I suppose she must serve some narrative purpose to the film, quite alot of explanation regarding D'Hubert from the original story is missing and no doubt Laura serves to build up D'Hubert's character. Either that or Gerald Vaughan-Hughes who is credited as a writer on the IMDb site felt the film required a female character.
The Duellists.
Dir: Ridley Scott.
Currently sharing the top slot in my favourite films list with 'The Seven Samurai', this is Ridley Scott's first full length motion picture, released in 1977 and filmed on so small a budget that there are no studio sets any where in the entire film. Frankly, I feel the film benefits from this. It seems real and it has that peculiar 1970's style which lends itself to authenticity so much better than anything we currently see, and that includes recent work by Scott too. I love his films, but he'll never recapture his edge I feel. 'Bladerunner', 'Alien' and this film all have that rough gritty edge that makes them work so well. Its too bad people back then didn't appreciate it and Scott had to make mediocre rubbish like 'Black Rain', 'Thelma and Louise' and 'GI Jane' just to keep going. Poor sod. Fiction set in other worlds is what he's best at but it took the rest of the world twenty years to figure that out.
Scott has always described himself as a fan of Stanley Kubrick (how could he not be) and its interesting to note that this film follows 'Barry Lyndon' by a mere two years. There are some strong parrallels between the two films, but the biggest difference I note is that this film is entertaining where as 'Barry Lyndon' isn't. 'The Duellists' has the same other world quality in abundance. I've watched this film hundreds of times and I've never ceased to be amazed at how well made it is. Every scene is framed and shot as if it were a painting by an old master, as if Ridley Scott had Whistler, Courbet and Dupre watching over his shoulder and giving him tips. The art direction is by a man called Bryan Graves who though he also worked on Polanski's 'The Tragedy of Macbeth' (another favourite from the 1970's) and 'Excalibur' by Boorman (which I didn't much care for), was never again given the job as art director!. Its beggers belief that such obvious talent gets discarded so easily and I cringe when I consider the slop that gets served up as art/entertainment these days.
The music by Howard Blake is also good. It fits the mood of the period and has a curious haunting quality. I recently acquired the soundtrack and have been enjoying it but lamenting the brevity of each track. As with Graves, Blake is another master passed over by the industry.
All told though I think my favourite scenes in the film have to be the duels and maybe this is why the audience never opened their eyes to this masterpiece. You sort of have to be in the right frame of mind to appreciate the nuances of the Napoleonic iconography inherent in the imagery. The uniforms and the lurking history, the small details.
Each duel is different and as they rise in rank, the protagonists also go from lighter to heavier weaponry, echoing as they do the rising tide of Napoleon's fortunes until finally ebbing away into old age. Both actors carry this off to perfection, especially Keitel who's brooding silences and meaningful looks carry far more weight than his spoken lines. Note that the second duellist in the video clip above is not D'Hubert.
If you consider yourself interested in either martial history or art per se, then you should have watched this film already.
Trailer.
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