The Duellists
| The Duellists | |
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Ridley Scott |
| Produced by | David Puttnam |
| Screenplay by | Gerald Vaughan-Hughes |
| Based on |
The Duel by Joseph Conrad |
| Starring |
Keith Carradine Harvey Keitel Albert Finney Tom Conti |
| Music by | Howard Blake |
| Cinematography | Frank Tidy |
| Edited by | Pamela Power |
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Production
companies |
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| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
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Release date
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31 August 1977 (France) |
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Running time
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100 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $900,000 |
The Duellists is a 1977 historical drama film and the directorial debut of Ridley Scott. It won the Best Debut Film award at the 1977 Cannes Film Festival. The basis of the screenplay is the Joseph Conrad short story "The Duel" (titled "Point of Honor" in the United States) published in A Set of Six.
In Strasbourg in 1800, fervent Bonapartist and obsessive duellist Lieutenant Gabriel Feraud (Harvey Keitel) of the French 7th Hussars, nearly kills the nephew of the city's mayor in a sword duel. Under pressure from the mayor, Brigadier-General Treillard (Robert Stephens) sends a member of his staff, Lieutenant Armand d'Hubert (Keith Carradine) of the , to put Feraud under house arrest. As the arrest takes place in the house of Madame de Lionne (Jenny Runacre), a prominent local lady, Feraud takes it as a personal insult from d'Hubert. Matters are made worse when Feraud asks d'Hubert if he would "let them spit on Napoleon" and d'Hubert doesn't immediately reply. Upon reaching his quarters, Feraud challenges d'Hubert to a duel. The duel is inconclusive; d'Hubert slashes Feraud's forearm but is unable to finish him off, because he is attacked by Feraud's mistress. As a result of his part in the duel, d'Hubert is dismissed from the General's staff and returned to active duty with his unit.
The war interrupts the men's quarrel and they do not meet again until six months later in Augsburg in 1801. Feraud immediately challenges d'Hubert to another duel and seriously wounds him. Recovering, d'Hubert takes lessons from a fencing master and in the next duel (held in a cellar with heavy sabres), the two men fight each other to a bloody standstill. Soon afterwards, d'Hubert is relieved to learn he has been promoted to captain. Military discipline forbids officers of different ranks from duelling.
The action moves to 1806 when d'Hubert is serving in Lübeck. He is shocked to hear that the 7th Hussars have arrived in the city and that Feraud is now also a captain. Aware that in two weeks time he is to be promoted to major, d'Hubert attempts to slip away but is spotted by Feraud's perpetual second. Feraud challenges him to another duel, which is to be fought on horseback with sabres. D'Hubert slashes his opponent across the forehead; Feraud, blinded because the cut bleeds heavily into his eyes, cannot continue the fight. D'Hubert considers himself the victor and leaves the field ebullient.
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