The Last Duel

Name: The Last Duel
Genre: Action, Drama, History, Thriller
Released: October 15, 2021
Duration: 152 min
Rating: 67
Cast: Adam Driver, Alex Lawther, Aurélien Lorgnier, Ben Affleck, BF Mulvey

2021

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Generally favorable reviews based on 50 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 275 Ratings

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7.3

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7.3	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 275 Ratings

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The Last Duel

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Movie Details & Credits

Twentieth Century Fox | Release Date: October 15, 2021 | R

Starring: Adam Driver, Alex Lawther, Aurélien Lorgnier, Ben Affleck, BF Mulvey, Bosco Hogan, Caoimhe O'Malley, Clare Dunne, Clive Russell, Harriet Walter, Ian Pirie, Jodie Comer, Julian Firth, Marton Csokas, Matt Damon, Michael McElhatton, Nathaniel Parker, Oliver Cotton, Sam Hazeldine, William Houston, Željko Ivanek, Zoé Bruneau

Summary: Based on actual events, the film unravels long-held assumptions about France’s last sanctioned duel between Jean de Carrouges (Matt Damon) and Jacques Le Gris (Adam Driver), two friends turned bitter rivals. Carrouges is a respected knight known for his bravery and skill on the battlefield. Le Gris is a Norman squire whose intelligence andBased on actual events, the film unravels long-held assumptions about France’s last sanctioned duel between Jean de Carrouges (Matt Damon) and Jacques Le Gris (Adam Driver), two friends turned bitter rivals. Carrouges is a respected knight known for his bravery and skill on the battlefield. Le Gris is a Norman squire whose intelligence and eloquence make him one of the most admired nobles in court. When Carrouges’ wife, Marguerite (Jodie Comer), is viciously assaulted by Le Gris, a charge he denies, she refuses to stay silent, stepping forward to accuse her attacker, an act of bravery and defiance that puts her life in jeopardy. The ensuing trial by combat, a grueling duel to the death, places the fate of all three in God’s hands.… Expand

Director: Ridley Scott

Genre(s): Action, Drama, History, Thriller

Rating: R

Runtime: 152 min

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

100

Mick LaSalle

Oct 11, 2021

The Last Duel, directed by Ridley Scott, gives us the texture of life in 14th century France, so much so that we feel that we are there, in this place that’s desperate and foreign and yet human and familiar. Read full review

Barry Hertz

Oct 12, 2021

By the time Marguerite’s chapter concludes, laying bare the wrenching source of the story’s tensions, The Last Duel will have you in the palm of its calloused hand, whether you like it or not. It is as ambitious and memorable and impressively messy a storytelling experiment as major-studio films come these days. Read full review

The Telegraph Robbie Collin

Oct 13, 2021

The Last Duel, which was adapted from a non-fiction book by Eric Jager, is a knotty, stimulating drama with a piquant #MeToo edge and the heft and splendour of an old-school historical epic. Read full review

The Film Stage Ethan Vestby

Oct 12, 2021

While it’s not a wholly interesting or original idea to take battling machismo to task by stripping violence of catharsis, The Last Duel—at least in the brutality of its eventual climax—achieves strong emotional blunt force. A sign that its lightly boring morality play and history lesson before the very pre-determined destination was worth the time. Read full review

Bill Goodykoontz

Oct 11, 2021

Comer makes Margeurite believably vulnerable and strong, haunting at times. But it’s not clear that the film is improved by the competing narratives. Marguerite’s version probably would have sufficed. Read full review

The Guardian Peter Bradshaw

Oct 14, 2021

Though flawed, its old-fashioned movie-making energy commands attention as well as its ingenious, if overextended three-act Rashomon structure, retelling the same story from three different standpoints, mostly without insisting on tricksy discrepancies. Read full review

Johnny Oleksinski

Oct 14, 2021

Degreasing a stove is a more enjoyable way to spend your Saturday night. Read full review

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User Reviews

Kilemre

Oct 15, 2021

Visceral and timely. An unbelievably powerful story with fantastic performances from all involved.

10 of 18 users found this helpful108

grckba

Jan 7, 2022

It portrays the raw, complicated and ridiculous dynamics that STILL somewhat occur when it comes to violence against women. A must watch!

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

Filmanwalt

Feb 23, 2022

You can literally split the tension built up here with a sword. The Last Duel is a medieval drama set in France with a heavy and drastically staged theme.
Structured in a change of perspective, the film tells the perspectives of the individual protagonists. Although scenarios are repeatedYou can literally split the tension built up here with a sword. The Last Duel is a medieval drama set in France with a heavy and drastically staged theme.
Structured in a change of perspective, the film tells the perspectives of the individual protagonists. Although scenarios are repeated here, they are always supplemented with interesting thoughts and statements. It is a game with how one's own perception can deviate very massively or even very slightly from the perception of the other person.

A film that is shot very cold and somber and partly in its rather few action sequences it is full of it and can be uncomfortable. At the beginning the film needs some time to get going, but then it even turns into comedy at times. But if you internalize the narrative structure, the tide turns and the tension increases more and more and finds its climax in the story of Marguerite de Carrouges, played incredibly well by Jodie Comer. But the rest of the cast is also strong with the outstanding Adam Driver (I've become a real fan of his), Matt Damon and Ben Affleck.

For me it's a great film that ends in a brilliant finale and only has some starting problems 9/10 perspectives.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

Wwilliams23

Mar 17, 2022

The Last Duel is one of the last movies I watched for my Best of 2021 list and it’s definitely making it. It’s hard to go wrong when you have names like Ridley Scott, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Adam Driver. The cast is stacked and it’s being handled by a great director. The medieval settingThe Last Duel is one of the last movies I watched for my Best of 2021 list and it’s definitely making it. It’s hard to go wrong when you have names like Ridley Scott, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Adam Driver. The cast is stacked and it’s being handled by a great director. The medieval setting is captivating. The action is brutal and fierce. The story is paced extremely well. I absolutely love the vibe and tone of the film. It feels raw and real. I thought the way it was filmed was very unique, with the different perspectives on similar events. Matt Damon, Comer and Adam Driver carry the load, with Affleck mostly supporting. The final stage of the movie is satisfying and epic, so the long runtime is justified. I was very happy with this movie, with it easily being one of my favorites for 2021. It gets better the more I think about it.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Vega8ond

Jan 16, 2022

The acting and cast in this movie were outstanding. This movie was similar to the television show The Affair in that there were multiple viewings of the same act regarding how each character viewed their involvement in the accusation. This is what creates a long runtime of about 2 hours andThe acting and cast in this movie were outstanding. This movie was similar to the television show The Affair in that there were multiple viewings of the same act regarding how each character viewed their involvement in the accusation. This is what creates a long runtime of about 2 hours and 15 minutes, making this a very heavy dialog movie. Overall, it is a very relevant movie that rings true even in today's society, the writing was on point, however, I think the main female lead was a bit too void of flaws, in a movie where every other character in the movie was vile and miserable with very few redeeming qualities. It is a very heavy dialog movie, with multiple showings of the same scene so just be prepared for some dry watching.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

GLADIADOR

Oct 17, 2021

Mostra varios pontos de vista de um crime, apesar das lutas do filme serem boas são muito rapidas.

0 of 3 users found this helpful03

Trunker

Dec 11, 2021

1. The script is a disaster
2. A poor man version of Rashomon.
3. It's just a waste of talents of an amazing cast. Simply awful.

2 of 8 users found this helpful26

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