I once taught a high school writing class, and as part of a unit on story elements, I used to show the students Duel as an example of those elements in its simplest, but most effective, form. While the kids generally liked the movie and understood the importance of character, setting and plot, I remember one particular kid's comments after the movie was over:: "That was cool," he said. "But I must have missed something. Why was the truck driver trying to kill that guy?" "No reason is given," I replied. "That's what makes it such an effective story." "But who was he? The movie never showed us who he was." A few other students nodded in agreement. I paused while I search for the right words. " Duel isn't about the who or why. It simply puts one man in a situation that he must get out of. Who the driver is, and why he's going after David Mann isn't important." "That's stupid." "Why is it stupid? Do you always feel like everything has to be explained?" "Well, yeah." The kid rolled his eyes like I was an idiot. "Nobody's gonna try and kill a guy for no reason!" Again, more rumblings of agreement from surrounding students. "So you're saying showing what the driver looks like, and giving him a reason for trying to kill the main character would have made it a better movie." The kid nodded. "Sure. It would have made it more realistic." (sigh) ... This is probably why a movie like Duel couldn't be made today. Everyone's always gotta have everything spelled out for them. Maybe it's because I spend a lot of my time around young adults (seemingly the target audience of a lot of Hollywood movies), but it's sad a classic story like Duel seems lost on a lot of people, who've grown up being spoon-fed plot revelations at the ends of the thrillers they see. No one's willing to simply accept a simple scenario and go with it. I would imagine any attempt at a remake would offer some lame-ass explanation for the trucker's motives, in addition to showing what he looked like

Besides being renowned as Steven Spielberg's first full-length film, made as part of ABC's Movie Of The Week series in the early 70s, Duel is classic storytelling in its purest form. Based on a short story by Richard Matheson, the film has David Mann (Dennis Weaver, in an underappreciated performance) as a salesman on route on a desolate California highway to an important meeting. While on the road, he comes across a beat-up semi-truck driven by an unseen driver. While it initially seems as though the trucker is simply playing around with Mann, it soon becomes apparent that he means to kill him...for no reason whatsoever. This cat-and-mouse game becomes increasingly dangerous as the film progresses, culminating in a purely visceral showdown between the two drivers. Duel is arguably one of the greatest made-for-TV movies ever made, mainly because it's a theatrical film trapped in a TV-movie's body. Even this early in his career, it is clear Spielberg possesses a singular talent, and it's great watching his skill even with such limited financial resources (the movie was shot on a low budget in only 12 days). With hindsight, we can see certain shots and elements which would be prevalent in his first big film, Jaws . And, despite my former student's misgivings, Duel works simply because of its simplicity...it intends to be nothing more than an exercise in visceral terror. Logic and realism take a backseat to whatever moment exists on the screen.

Steven Spielberg continues his streak of not providing an audio commentary with any of his movies, but for the release of Duel , we are compensated with a 35 minute conversation with Spielberg about the making of the film; he offers numerous anecdotes about the restrictions put upon him by ABC, and the creative ways he overcame certain obstacles included with the rigid shooting schedule. He also points out a few instances in which he himself is in the film. Also included is a 10 minute featurette about Spielberg's directorial career before he graduated to theatrical films, as well as original author Richard Matheson's input about the short story and subsequent movie on which it is based. Other features include cast & crew bios, as well as the movie's original trailer. Similar Films: Joyride; The Car; Breakdown; Jaws; Killdozer; The Birds

Along with Jaws , Duel is probably Spielberg's greatest example of pure visceral filmmaking. Though originally a made-for-TV knock-off, the movie transcends its origins to become a true classic example of supreme storytelling., despite what some of my former students raised on Scream movies may think.