BSA 104 (Scriptwriting) Week 4 : Duel Review

This week in class we watched Steven Spielberg's first feature film, a made-for-TV movie called Duel, we were tasked with using the review structure to sum up our impressions on the film:

The film follows a man on a road trip who comes across a truck driver who decides to terrorize him. While it starts somewhat innocently, the name of the game soon becomes "survival".

The movie is very tense, something Spielberg is very good at making the audience feel. I don't think I felt too much watching the film, personally I found myself appreciating the technical elements more. The character is supposed to be relatable as an every man, the problem is that he's a middle aged man from the 70's. Whether it's this or the fact that I felt the movie was predictable (there's no way he's going to die), but I didn't find myself that engaged in the characters plight, making it harder for me to feel the tension.

I think Spielberg does a good job with the tension though, technically its very well done, its a very interesting situation and the film lingers on the more dangerous sequences.

The lead character is very much a blank slate, he has very simple goals and doesn't have any real reason to keep on going. We like him though because of his transformation into an active protagonist. He seems pretty scared but still takes steps towards fixing the situation, the diner scene for example. The movie does a good job of giving the protagonist a clear arc.

There aren't really any side characters, the ones that are present aren't on screen much. This is a one man show, we don't even get to see the bad guy. In a way that makes him more threatening though. Not being able to tell why someone or something does what it does is sometimes scarier than understanding its motives. It is kind of disappointing never finding out who the bad guy is, especially since the movie teases us with his identity. There is potential for exploring a cool villain here, it's hard to say if that would have been a good idea though.

The movie was very well paced, its a marathon of tension, but it's never just one type of action we see. There are many different little situations created from the same core idea and kept me entertained throughout. Variety in a film like this is very important, Duel demonstrates it well.

It was hard staying awake when the character falls asleep though. It's such an all-out movie that when we get a moment to breathe we feel the same way as the character - tired. This isn't good as it disengages us from the movie, this is especially bad for a TV movie.

Overall I really enjoyed Duel, its a well made movie that displays Spielberg's skills as a thriller director.