The Last Duel

A knight (Matt Damon) must defend the honour of his wife (Jodie Comer) after she accuses another man (Adam Driver) of raping her. The only way they can reach an agreement on the matter in the trial is by a duel to the death.

Like many people in 2021 this film passed me by, stalled by a reluctance to go back to the cinema and by the release of James Bond. Well we’ve all been missing out because this is a really solid piece of work from Ridley Scott, with a great screenplay by Nicole Holofcener.

The film is very rigidly set out in three chapters, each telling the same story from the perspective of one of the three lead characters. It’s a sobering look at the rough justice prevalent in medieval France (albeit on its way out when this film is set, this is indeed The Last Duel ever fought in France that was used to settle a court case) but also it is sadly still relevant. Victim blaming is all too common and people have to put a lot on the line just to be heard.

And yet while it’s a difficult watch, with each retelling of the events you are pulled deeper and deeper into the story which gives the final duel some real stakes.

What also strikes me is the nuance in every character. Matt Damon in particular is both a hero for defending his wife but also very much motivated to fight for his own honour. He sees her sexual assault as an attack on his property. At the same time, that was kind of how it was back then. It muddies the narrative and is a brave choice to leave it all in rather than go full Hollywood good vs evil.

A remarkably well considered film that carefully asks a lot of questions on the nature of truth, scandal, victimhood and even love.