IMDb > The Duellists (1977)
The Duellists
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The Duellists (1977) More at IMDbPro »


Overview

User Rating:
7.4/10   5,484 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 211% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Ridley Scott
Writers:
Joseph Conrad (story)
Gerald Vaughan-Hughes (writer)
Contact:
View company contact information for The Duellists on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
31 August 1977 (France) more
Genre:
Action | War | Drama more
Tagline:
Fencing is a science. Loving is a passion. Duelling is an obsession.
Plot:
Set during the grand, sweeping Napoleonic age, an officer in the French army insults another officer and sets off a life-long emnity... more | full synopsis
Awards:
Nominated for 2 BAFTA Film Awards. Another 2 wins & 2 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(4 articles)
Movie Alert! Four Back-to-back Winners On TCM Tonight
 (From CinemaRetro. 7 November 2009, 2:09 AM, PST)

Horror Plus Sci-Fi: Alien
 (From Screen Rant. 10 October 2009, 8:06 AM, PDT)

User Comments:
One of the few great, timeless movies. more (71 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Keith Carradine ... D'Hubert

Harvey Keitel ... Feraud

Albert Finney ... Fouche
Edward Fox ... Colonel
Cristina Raines ... Adele
Robert Stephens ... Gen. Treillard
Tom Conti ... Dr. Jacquin
John McEnery ... Chevalier
Diana Quick ... Laura
Alun Armstrong ... Lacourbe
Maurice Colbourne ... Second
Gay Hamilton ... Maid
Meg Wynn Owen ... Leonie
Jenny Runacre ... Mme. de Lionne
Alan Webb ... Chevalier
more
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Also Known As:
Duel (UK) (working title)
more
Runtime:
100 min
Country:
UK
Language:
English | Russian
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono
Filming Locations:
Aquitaine, France more

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
In the notes for the liner of the soundtrack album, the writer states that Michael York and Oliver Reed were director Ridley Scott's first choice for the lead actors but "proved to be unavailable". more
Quotes:
[first lines]
Narrator: The duellist demands satisfaction. Honour, for him, is an appetite. This story is about an eccentric kind of hunger. It is a true story and begins in the year that Napoleon Bonaparte became ruler of France.
more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Creating a Myth... the Memories of 'Legend' (2002) (V) more
Soundtrack:
Bist du bei mir more

FAQ

What is the location of the castle ruin at which David Carradine and Harvey Keitel fight their final pistol duel?
more
13 out of 14 people found the following comment useful.
One of the few great, timeless movies., 6 May 2000
10/10
Author: matija from Ljubljana, Slovenia

Often, when you watch a movie, you can tell when it was made.

It deals with the mores and prejudices of the time it was made. The costumes are done without attention to detail or the hair-styles of the leading actors don't belong to the time when the movie is supposed to be taking place.

Not this movie.

It deals with timeless themes: courage, fate, inevitability,

honor. The costumes are impeccable, and even the hair-styles change as time progresses, exactly as the fashions changed during the times of the Napoleon. Without knowing the actors (though the cast is composed of excellent, justifiably famous artists), there is no way to tell it was made in 1977. It might have been made yesterday, or it might have been filmed on the spot.

If you enjoy a movie where attention was paid to every detail to make it a true piece of art, if you enjoy dramatic photography thoughtful themes, and just the barest suggestion of dry humor, this is the movie for you.

Was the above comment useful to you?
more (71 total)

Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for The Duellists (1977)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
The only historical inacurracy? yohojohn
Based On True Story! ergomane
What happened to the screenwriter ? Monsieur_Smith
Keith Carradine: Taller Mark Hamill? jmartineau-1
Is this at all like The Prestige? psurmenian1
d'Hubert is ambidextrous kristianln
more

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