Duel (DVD)

Before there was Christine and before there was The Creeper with his "BEATINGU" truck, there was the ultimate portrayal of road rage in Duel.

Duel is a 1971 TV movie of the week starring Dennis Weaver as David Mann, an easygoing traveling salesman who unintentionally draws the attention of the psychotic driver of a huge semi truck. The words "TV movie of the week" certainly don't sound too appealing -- particularly one that's over 30 years old -- but Duel is special. It's the feature-length directorial debut of Steven Spielberg and is based on a short story by Richard Matheson, the renowned author of horror (I Am Legend, Hell House) and suspense (several Twilight Zone and Night Gallery episodes).

A simple story made complex and nail-bitingly suspenseful with its brilliant direction and innovative music score, cinematography and editing styles, Duel more than stands the test of time. It's effective because it plays upon the fears of a lone man on an isolated and dangerous piece of road -- it's a situation we can all put ourselves in (sans our cell phones) and ask, "What would I do?" Dennis Weaver is perfect as the everyman whose emotions run from annoyance to amusement to alarm. Once he knows that the truck driver isn't kidding around, Mann tries everything to shake him. Everything he does plunges him deeper into danger. We never see the wheelman of the truck (is he even human? Why is he so hell-bent?), but the vehicle itself is character enough -- like a rusted, battle-worn Goliath bearing down on David, the honking, tenacious truck seems to have a face, a voice, and a bad attitude of its own.

This new-to-DVD version has some added scenes, making it the same as the European theatrical release (the U.S. television version tells us a bit less about Mann in that it doesn't include the telephone call home to his wife and few other little insights).

The additional release material pushes Duel over the edge when deciding to buy or not to buy. Whether you're a longtime fan of the movie or if you've never seen it, this disc is home library-worthy because of the fascinating recollections of Spielberg on the making of this film and subsequent ones (bits and pieces of Duel found its way into Jaws, 1941, and always). He graciously gives credit where credit is due to his talented and then more-experienced crew (particularly the editor, Frank Morriss, and composer Billy Goldenberg), and talks about how he took the bull by the horns and did things his way in the face of an astoundingly short shooting schedule (10 days, which he went over by two). It's a really compelling story, even if you're not particularly interested in filmmaking. The featurette nicely complements the static shots of Spielberg sitting in his office talking with film clips and still photos. There are also some funny gaffes revealed.

The two other featurettes are "Steven Spielberg and the Small Screen" (which explores his early career in directing episodes of Night Gallery, Columbo, and Marcus Welby, M.D.), and "Richard Matheson: The Writing of Duel" (an entertaining and informative glimpse into the author's state of mind when he wrote Duel -- both the short story and the teleplay -- featuring brand new interview footage). Production notes, a photo gallery, and theatrical trailers round out the additional release material.

(by Staci Layne Wilson)