Based on a novel by Eric Jaeger and based on a true story, The Last Duel is a new directorial experience for Ridley Scott. The drama immediately attracted the attention of connoisseurs of this genre, because both the actors, selected with great care, and the staged plots reflect the traditions and customs of that time. And the combination of well-thought-out dialogues and attention to the costumes of the characters provides a complete display of reality.
The main storyline of the picture
The film “The Last Duel” is of the greatest interest because of its consonance with modern times. After all, the context of medieval political practices and spiritual beliefs underlying the action is also applicable to real reality, posing before the viewer questions of morality and morality that are relevant at all times.
Thanks to the director’s work and the ability of the main actors to get used to the role and convey the specific atmosphere of that time with their performance, the viewer from the very first frames becomes a real participant in the ongoing tragedy. Experiencing the vicissitudes of their lives together with the heroes, the intersection of interests and taking into account the political intrigues of the ruling circles, one can plunge into the reality of France in the Middle Ages.
What will the movie be about
The painting is based on a real story that happened in the Middle Ages in France with a woman named Marguerite de Carrouges. While married, she was raped and became pregnant. The specifics of the mores of that time assumed that a woman, entering into marriage, becomes the property of her husband, which brings him heirs. Therefore, the experiences of a woman as a person and a person who suffered from violence were not even considered by the medieval court and were not taken into account when making a decision and subsequent accusation.
However, in addition to the main line in the picture concerning Marguerite, the wife of the Comte de Carrouges, the viewer is presented with some confrontation between the two main characters of the work – Le Gris and de Carrouges. Their interests clashed over the ownership of land plots that belonged to their families. Initially, Jean de Carrouge feels sorry for having ceded the land to Le Gris. However, it turned out that there was rather a conflict between legality and the generally accepted rules of that time.
The land, which caused the strife, is confiscated by Count Pierre as a result of the accumulation of a critical amount of debt, and then presented as a gift to Le Gris. The events took place before the marriage of de Carrouges. Jean de Carrouges is characterized as a man with a strict code of honor, he was annoyed by the situation that arose with the land, although for technical reasons he was not able to claim it.
However, de Carrouges was annoyed by such indifference of his friend Le Gris, and this occasion became the first disagreement in their friendship. In the same period, the plague destroyed a huge number of people, crops, livestock, which extremely negatively affected the state of de Carrouge’s property, which makes his character more complex: temper and brokenness by circumstances appear. Such changes in his character can be explained by the fact that the financial difficulties that arose gave rise to despair in the soul of de Carrouge, he felt desperate.
What is especially interesting in the film “The Last Duel”
The greatest impression on the audience, no doubt, will be made by the seemingly incomprehensible injustice of the court when studying the case of Margaret. And the fact that as a result of the rape she became pregnant testified then only to the fact that the process itself was pleasant for the woman, which means that the fact can not be considered rape.
In addition, pregnancy could well have occurred as a result of a similar action on the part of Margaret’s husband. The Court regards the rape as merely a property crime committed against her husband de Carrouges. The question of the mental state is not even touched upon, as long as the matter does not concern de Carrouge himself.
The duel that took place between de Carrouges and his former friend became the basis for the title of the picture. As a result, Le Gris was killed, but the case was not limited to the murder. Subsequently, his dead body was abused: completely stripped, tied to a horse and dragged in this form on a rope throughout the city, after which they hung in the central square, where everyone could see him. This event took place in real life, but the picture is not covered very clearly.
Explanation of the ending of the movie The Last Duel
What was the meaning of such cruelty to a dead body? Only in the desire to hurt and humiliate the entire Le Gris family as painfully and sensitively as possible, to tarnish their name. In addition, at that time it was believed that God protects those who are innocent. And since Le Gris did not win the duel, it means that God saw his guilt, he became the most common criminal.
The last scene of the film is the close face of Margaret, who is carefully watching her growing son. The castle and the complete calm in the background, the absence of her husband speak of the opportunity for a woman to enjoy her life with her son. She is away from men and politics, enjoying freedom and happiness.
