The Duel (2016)

Entertaining from beginning to end, it maintains the spirit of the franchise while establishing it's own seal with a fun cast

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

I'm not sure what director Kieran Darcy-Smith was going for when he made 2016's The Duel (my latest review). Muddled yet scenic, draggy yet periodically violent, "Duel" is one unclear Western.At a running time of 110 minutes, "Duel" sure does feel like three long hours. It takes place oh about 100-plus years ago with vague, plot elements from Gang of New York and bearings straight from 1978's Days of Heaven. Star Woody Harrelson plays a creepy preacher and talks with a Southern drawl for the millionth time. Co-star Liam Hemsworth plays a pretty Texas Ranger and has a bland disposition in the acting department. Finally, Alice Braga plays Hemsworth's character's wife, a non-outlaw who becomes mysteriously ill and feels downtrodden. Oh yeah, there's another Days of Heaven reference I forgot to mention. Braga looks a little like Brooke Adams. Adams was Terrence Malick's cutesy muse from back in the day.Anyway, the story is as follows: David Kingston (Liam Hemsworth) has been tapped to investigate some murders and disappearances in a small, Old West frontier town. He also has been sent to keep an eye on the town's chief officer, Abraham Brant (Woody Harrelson). Brant looking kinda similar to Harrelson's own Mickey Knox, killed Kingston's father over twenty years ago. Is Kingston bent on revenge towards Brant? Is Kingston just doing his job as a responsible Ranger? Is Brant gonna have another sermon with snakes being passed around in his congregation? Is this movie ever gonna lead somewhere? Oops, I'm going off on a tangent. Sorry.In conclusion, The Duel is slow-burning and almost devoid of conflict. And whenever said conflict does exist, well it is artificially forced upon us, the audience. There's the occasional stabbing, a final gunfight amidst rock formations, a couple of killings by way of game-like shooting, and a dark, saloon standoff between good and evil. If you don't fall asleep during "Duel", you'll occasionally catch these moments (only briefly though). If you do fall asleep during The Duel, well you aren't breaking any laws. Do yourself a favor, rent something from Clint Eastwood or George Stevens instead. Rating: 1 and a half stars.

We rented this movie and I was horrified and disgusted by it, I do not want to ever see a movie as gross and stupid as this again as long as I live. This is not a well thought out critical review, and there's a good reason for that. This movie doesn't deserve one. It's just ugly and awful without a single redeeming characteristic. I have few enough years left in my life, I refuse to waste them on ugly trashy movies that are upsetting and simply gross. No good acting here, no wonderfully written story, no adventure or interesting plot, just humans behaving badly and I must highly and unequivocally NOT recommend it.

Creepy Western with its Paranormal Conceits never quite Grabbing the Movie and Maintaining. It can be Disturbing at times and Slants towards the Unusual. But these Genre-Bending Elements lose their Grip and Slip.It's a Well Mounted Movie with some Sharp Cinematography and the Acting is Fine all around with Woody Harrelson's Quirky Persona put to Good use and Liam Hemsworth as the Stalwart Texas Ranger never wavering from Determined Grit. His Wife (Alice Braga), along for the Ride, encounters Forces Beyond Her Control and Her Side Story may be the Film's Unexplored Territory.Violent as an Arty Western needs to be, but the Movie loses its Uniqueness and Impact when it Strays from the Spiritual Good vs Evil Stuff and Returns to the Standard Western Template. A Western not for all tastes, but Good Enough for Fans willing to Explore the Unusual in the Genre.A Missed Opportunity but still Worth a Watch.

Lately I have been watching lots of blacklisted screenplay films. Some of them were really good, but most of them were not. This is one of those, and I'm not convinced. The story wise, it was decent, until the secret was revealed. After that part, it's become completely uninterested. Because that twist was not par with any decent western film. In fact, it was same as what we had seen in those that sets in the modern day themes, but here it was in the second half of the 1800s.So the story was the bad thing for this, but the actors were good. I liked the Liam Hemsworth. Woody Harrelson was not bad either, but his negative kind of role pushes us away from liking him and so the Alice Braga. It opened well, but did not develop and end well. If you are looking for a good western with the story, this is not for you. You should not try this just for the performances, because I don't think it is worth that much. Definitely, I won't recommend it on that ground, but there's always people for all kinds of films, so I won't surprise if you say it is a better film than what I said.4/10