It’s always a treat when writers such as Jeremy Dick of MovieWeb bring a jewel like this to the attention of the public, and we can’t help but push it along in the same manner by having our say as well. The Last Duel already sounds like it might be an interesting movie given the title, but the fact that the legendary Ridley Scott is directing something that only makes it that much better since you can imagine that with his skill and vision it might be something that could easily be one of the next big things coming. After all, this is the man that brought us Alien, a movie franchise that has been allowed to kind of dwindle in popularity over the years but is still quite iconic, and as a result his name has been synonymous with greatness for quite some time. Plus, the movie will reunite two actors that haven’t been seen to work together for a while now, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. Can you believe it’s been since Good Will Hunting that they managed to work together? They used to seem inseparable at one point, but if there’s any weak link in the movie it could possibly be the casting since the two of them have both done a great deal of good in their careers, but there have been moments when they’ve been less than convincing in their portrayal of certain characters.
Keeping that in mind, the story seems to be easy enough to get behind since it’s a revenge story that’s based on a book of the same title, which is said to be a true story of crime, scandal, and trial. Two French warriors in the 14th century who are best friends, Jean de Carrouges and Jacques Le Gris. When Jean goes to war and returns he levels an accusation at Jacques that he is guilty of raping his wife. Unfortunately it would seem no one is willing to believe the story, so Jean then goes to the king of France to appeal the case, and it is then decided that the two will have to duel to the death to settle the matter. The winner would of course be chosen by God and thus proven innocent. As an added bit of drama Jean’s wife would be burned at the stake if he lost. You’ve got to hand it to justice back in the day, ruled as it was by religion in some ways, it was brutal and it was final.
If the story sounds compelling then it’s likely because revenge stories usually are. But one concern that seems to have raised its ugly head is the idea of Affleck and Damon, both men who were affected by the MeToo movement, having anything to do with a story that has something to do with rape. It does seem like a touchy subject given that fact, but like Ben Pearson of Slash Film I think I’ll go ahead and wait and see just what the movie will be like before condemning it outright for an arbitrary ideal that has been seen to crumble around the edges in the last year or two. That’s right, I said it, the MeToo movement has done its fair share of harm to itself as well as those it targeted, whether they were guilty or not, and targeting movies such as this for no better reason than the idea that they’re including a plot point that is pertinent to the story is a bit of nonsense that is easily ignored and hopefully pushed past.
It does sound as though Scott wants to push through this project and get it done so that he can move on to other ideas and movies that he might have on his dash at the moment, but there’s also the thought that this project might be tabled if there’s simply too much resistance to the idea of rape being added in, and of Affleck and Damon being involved in a very direct manner. The kind of criticism that is going to seek to condemn entertainment at this point is a bit ridiculous to put it lightly, since movies, music, and TV shows are often fictional, and even in the case of factual accounts or disturbing images that might appear on the screen, there is always the idea that despite how disturbing it can be, there is no glorification of rape, no ideal that would in fact create the ‘rape culture’ that some folks seem to think exists. It is entertainment, no matter how disturbing it tends to get at times. Hopefully this movie will continue forward and find its way to the screen, as it sounds like a compelling story that will highlight the very skewed sense of justice that existed back in the selected time period.
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