Tagarchief: Carsploitation

Duel

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

Director: Steven Spielberg
Written by: Richard Matheson
Cast: Dennis Weaver, Jacqueline Scott, Eddie Firestone

Year / Country: 1971, USA
Running Time: 90 mins.

A business commuter, played by Dennis Weaver, leaves his home in the morning unsuspecting that this will be a day from hell. He is targeted by an enormous, menacing truck for termination and he doesn’t know why. The duel of the title refers to the showdown between him and the unknown truck driver on the desert highways that lasts the entire movie.

Duel is Steven Spielberg’s masterful debut that captures the peril of an ordinary man thrust into extraordinary circumstances. Duel immediately establishes his cinematic genius. Originally made for television, the movie transcends its medium with exceptional production quality, boasting sharp editing, stunning cinematography, and masterful pacing. Spielberg demonstrates an innate ability to generate tension, crafting nail-biting action scenes that foreshadow the brilliance he would later bring to iconic films like Indiana Jones and Jurassic Park.

The running time could have been cut with ten minutes to make it perfect, but overall, he manages to maintain tension throughout its running time. The film also features clever visual metaphors, such as subtle nods to themes of impotence and primal survival instincts. The main character David Mann comments that it takes nothing to be back inside the jungle again. And that is precisely what happens to him. Instinct takes over and man becomes a force for survival. In Duel, Spielberg proves he is a director of extraordinary promise, blending tension, action, and deeper thematic layers into an unforgettable cinematic experience.

Rating:

Biography: Steven Spielberg (1946, Cincinnati, Ohio), is one of the most influential and celebrated filmmakers in cinema history. A pioneer of modern blockbuster filmmaking, Spielberg’s career spans over five decades, encompassing a wide range of genres and iconic films. Spielberg’s breakthrough came in 1975 with Jaws, a suspenseful thriller that became the first modern blockbuster. He followed this success with a string of iconic films, including Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982), and Jurassic Park (1993). Spielberg’s versatility as a director is evident in his more serious works, such as Schindler’s List (1993), which earned him his first Academy Award for Best Director, and Saving Private Ryan (1998), which won him a second. These films cemented his reputation as a master of both spectacle and substance.

Filmography (a selection): Amblin’ (1968, short), Duel (1971, TV-Movie), The Sugarland Express (1974), Jaws (1975), Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982), Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984), The Color Purple (1985), Empire of the Sun (1987), Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), Jurassic Park (1993), Schindler’s List (1993), Saving Private Ryan (1998), Minority Report (2002), War of the Worlds (2005), Lincoln (2012), Ready Player One (2018)

Double Bill #10: Dune: Part Two & Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

The two major blockbusters of 2024 have a lot in common: They are both sequels/prequels, are epic in scope, have huge ideas, and take place (almost) completely in deserts. Storywise, they are about the hero’s journey. In Dune: Part Two, we witness how the chosen one Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) develops his powers and fulfills his destiny as savior of the Fremen on Arrakis, while in Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga we see how Furiosa (Anya Taylor-Joy) became the legendary, one-armed warrior she is in Mad Max: Fury Road (2015). Furthermore, both sci-fi epics are directed by visionary directors that don’t appear to have had any studio interference. They made the films they wanted to make and both are – well there’s that word again – epic. Both movies also have fantastic villains for the heroes to stand up against. Dune: Part Two has the Harkonnens, with the psychopathic Feyd-Rautha (Austin Butler) as their latest addition. Furiosa sees the return of the cult leader Immortan Joe with his memorable skull mask and breathing tubes, but also introduces a new bad boy: Dementus (played by a hard to recognize Chris Hemsworth), who’s a depraved sort of father figure for the fiery Furiosa. The henchmen are similar as well: the Harkonnen’s soldiers and the War Boys are both white, bald and loyal without questioning. The production design is in both cases absolutely stunning and must be seen on cinema screens. Highlights: I thought the first showdown between Dementus and Immortan Joe at the Citadel and the attack on the war rig are Furiosa’s most mind-blowing sequences. In Dune: Part Two, Paul’s sandworm ride, Feyd-Rautha’s memorable introduction on the Harkonnen planet of Giedi Prime, and his ritualistic knife fight with Paul are my favorite moments. And there’s good news for the fans: Both movies clearly leave a door open for another sequel. In Furiosa’s case, this would be The Wasteland, another origin story about what happened to Max before we meet him at the beginning of Mad Max: Fury Road. Director George Miller is now 79, but he might still be up for it. It is already confirmed that Denis Villeneuve will return to wrap up his Dune trilogy by adapting Frank Herbert’s book sequel ‘Dune Messiah’. In both cases I say: Bring them on!

Double Bill #09: Apocalypto & Mad Max: Fury Road

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

Apocalypto (2006) opens with a little quiet before the storm; a tribe of Indians hunting a tapir, capturing it and having a pleasant night around the campfire. Then an evil tribe attacks and their harmonious lives soon descend into violent madness. Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) immediately throws you into the action and doesn’t give you a breather for at least 45 minutes. Both movies explore culture gone bad. The Indian tribes are working on destroying their culture from within, but their environment is still beautiful and rich with life. In Fury Road, civilization has already collapsed and all that is left is a desolate wasteland (it was filmed in the Namibian desert). They are both great settings for some of the most spectacular chase scenes ever committed to celluloid. In Apocalypto, it is a grueling foot chase through the deadly jungle (filmed in Mexico’s Catemaco rain forest) and a fight to the death. Mad Max throws in spectacular war machines and a stunningly visualized ride to mayhem. Both feature outrageous custom design, kinetic editing and ‘die hard’ violence along the way. Thematically, the films are very similar. In both stories, the men are the insane ones, and the (pregnant) women carry the greatest hope for humanity in these desperate times. But in both stories, at least one man is sane enough to take on the crazies and help the women, and their offspring, towards a better future. A connection between the two classics you may have missed at this point, is that Apocalypto is directed by none other than Mel Gibson, the original road warrior, who was too old to play Max in 2015. I must admit I enjoyed Apocalypto more than Mad Max: Fury Road. The latter features shots that are just mind boggling, but I didn’t feel much for the characters. In Apocalypto, I did. As a Double Bill, this works fantastically.

Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

Director: George Miller, George Ogilvie
Written by: Terry Hayes, George Miller
Cast: Mel Gibson, Tina Turner, Bruce Spence, Adam Cockburn

Year / Country: 1985, Australia
Running Time: 107 mins.

Mel Gibson returns for one last turn as Max Rockatansky, although he doesn’t need his last name anymore. Bruce Spence returns as well as pilot Jedediah. New in the cast is Tina Turner who also sings the opening song. In Mad Max, society was collapsing. In Mad Max 2, we were looking at a full blown apocalypse. In Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, civilization is trying to re-establish itself. Aunty Entity (Turner) has founded Barter Town, a desert town that runs on a new energy source: methane producing pigs.

Max finds himself vehicle-less, so he walks to Barter Town where he is forced to participate in a bloody cage fight. After surviving, he is marooned in the desert where he is found by a tribe of children who believe he is a sort of Messias. They go looking for salvation in the wrong direction (Barter Town), and eventually we get the massive desert pursuit we’ve been waiting for. This time it involves a train and an airplane and it’s quite a spectacular finale.

Unfortunately, the preceding three quarters of the movie are disappointing. Visually, it is well done, but somehow I didn’t really connect with the characters. In the first two films, the character building was not that strong either, but there it was compensated with a fantastic atmosphere and amazingly shot action scenes. In Beyond Thunderdome, there is only the final chase scene, but there is not enough ‘good stuff’ in the hour and a half leading up to it.

One image I want to praise though, which is the shot of the children climbing on a deserted airplane in the desert. This feels like a very accurate vision of where the world is currently heading. Yet, what Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome also makes clear at the end is that there is always hope to be found.

Rating:

Biography: George Miller (1945) is an Australian filmmaker, best known for his Mad Max franchise. In 1971, George attended a film workshop at Melbourne University where he met Byron Kennedy, with whom he formed a friendship and production partnership, until Kennedy’s death in 1983 (Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome is dedicated to him). Together they made the first Mad Max movie in 1979 for a budget of 400.000 Australian dollars. It earned 100 million dollars at the box office worldwide and became the most profitable film of all time (the record was not broken until The Blair Witch Project 20 years later). Miller’s Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) earned Oscar nominations for best film and director. The latest entry in the series – Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga – will be released in May 2024.

Filmography (a selection): Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024), Three Thousand Years of Longing (2022), Mad Max: Fury Road (12015), Happy Feet 2 (2011), Happy Feet (2006), Babe: Pig in the City (1998), Lorenzo’s Oil (1992), The Witches of Eastwick (1987), Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985), Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983, segment), The Dismissal (1993, TV episode), Mad Max 2 (1983), Mad Max (1979), The Devil in Evening Dress (1975, short)

Biography: George Ogilvie (1931 – 2020) was born on 5 March 1931 in Goulburn, New South Wales, Australia. He was a director and actor, known mostly for Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985), He died on 5 April 2020 in New South Wales, Australia.

Filmography: The Dismissal (1983, TV), Bodyline (1984, TV), Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985, co-dir), Short Changed (1986), The Place at the Coast (1987), The Shiralee (1987, TV-episodes), Touch the Sun: Princess Kate (1988, TV-movie), The Australians (1988, TV-episode), The Crossing (1990), The Battlers (1994, TV), The Feds: Deception (1995, TV-movie), The Feds: Seduction (1995, TV-movie), The Last of the Ryans (1997, TV-movie), The Blue Healers (2002-2006, TV-episodes)