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| Man versus monster! DUEL remains one of US TV's greatest, suspenseful movies. Images: UNIVERSAL. |
What should have been an ordinary day out on the road for salesman David Mann in his prideful, trusty red
Valiant, soon turns into the ultimate nightmare, as he encounters the most sinister and horrific case of "road rage" a motorist could ever endure, his life turned upside down by the beastial, unrelenting pursuit of a malevolent truck, and its equally malevolent and sadistic "driver", determined to end his life in Steven Spielberg's often nail-biting, supremely directed 1971 US TV movie DUEL (so good, it was released theatrically overseas by UNIVERSAL), made a year or two before the rising star made his truly landmark and iconic name as a visualist with the terrifying and atmospheric horror/adventure, JAWS. DUEL has a notably terrific starring role for the singular figure of Dennis Weaver, in one of his best TV performances in the build-up to his becoming a household name as lawman Sheriff McCloud. His only other "co-star" in this twisted re-working of
David and Goliath is the formidable, grim-looking diesel truck intent on bringing about his demise, with its front end looking almost like a demonic face- a downright terrifying presence chugging along with intense darkness, beyond belief speed, and sheer brutality with its sheer, bulky terror (its mysterious occupant never being fully, and leading some viewers to wonder if there ever really was anyone in there in the first place. Could the Devil himself have been at the wheel? And, bearing the battered remains of numerous out of state license plates, just how many other victims has he/
it stalked over time before Mann?
Trailer:
Duel (1971) Theatrical Trailer - YouTube |
| A fight for survival for David Mann (Dennis Weaver). |
Filmed in an impressive yet tight 12-13 days, Spielberg is ensconced as the ultimate factor for the story's success, mining it for every drop of suspense that he can get, but the impressive script and original short story idea came from the inspired and brilliant imagination of the award-winning Richard Matheson (based on a real life, downright chilling incident that happened to him in November 1963) who sadly died earlier this week at the age of 87. Easily one of horror and science fiction's greatest talents, he would pen some of the most well-known and successful forays into these genres and inspire generations of fans. Atop his wealth of novels and short stories, surely one of Matheson's all-time great sci-fi masterworks has to be his end of the world/vampire novel I AM LEGEND (of which there have been, so far, three hit movie adaptations- though an ultimate version of it has yet to be made), alongside the enduring popularity of the time travel/love story SOMEWHERE IN TIME (made into a charming film with Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour, along with a haunting score from music legend John Barry). Then there were his clever and unique forays into television, penning an original classic STAR TREK episode of the mid-sixties,
The Enemy Within (where a transporter accident splits heroic Captain Kirk into two people-on good, one bad, in the ultimate variation on DR. JEKYLL AND MISTER HYDE), then providing us with sixteen spine-tinglers going into THE TWILIGHT ZONE- his best remembered and beloved generating terror for William Shatner, who witnesses a
Nightmare at 20,000 Feet. And let's not forget the brilliant job he did adapting the witty comedy/modern-day horror adventures of sleazy but lovable reporter Carl Kolchak, as iconically played by Darren McGavin, into two ratings-busting TV movies launching a fondly appreciated one-off series into the early, seventies, plus his later popular adaptation of friend Ray Bradbury's cautionary sci-fi anthology, THE MARTIAN CHRONICLES.
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| The late Richard Matheson. Image: ULIKE. |
Great works of literature never die, and Richard Matheson's talent and humanity, plus his ability to thrill and terrify in equal measure, will live forever through them.
KOOL TV FACEBOOK page gallery: THE FILM AND TV WORK OF RICHARD MATHESON
Remember Richard Matheson by watching 16 classic Twilight Zone eps FREE | Blastr
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