Duel

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Duel

TV-PG

1971

1h 35m

Mystery & Thriller

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

90%

Tomatometer

48 Reviews

84%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

David Mann (Dennis Weaver), a mild-mannered electronics salesman, is driving cross-country on a two-lane highway when he encounters an old oil tanker driven by an unseen driver who seems to enjoy annoying him with dangerous antics on the road. Unable to escape the demonic big rig, David finds himself in a dangerous game of cat and mouse with the monstrous truck. When the pursuit escalates to deadly levels, David must summon his inner warrior and turn the tables on his tormentor.

Critics Consensus

Duel makes brilliant use of its simple premise, serving up rock-solid genre thrills while heralding the arrival of a generational talent behind the lens.

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Desmond Ryan

Philadelphia Inquirer

Feb 21

3.5/4

Weaver gives us a nicely calibrated trajectory of rising panic.

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Mitchell Beaupre

Little White Lies

09/22/2022

4.5/5

This is a film stripped back to its bare essentials, and Spielberg thrives in having to get creative to make each moment feel as fresh and energised as the last.

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Kevin Maher

The Times (UK)

05/29/2021

4/5

A shoestring marvel.

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Nov 8

3.5/4

Duel gets plenty of mileage (no pun intended) out of its simple premise.

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Joshua Ryan

Movies We Texted About

Jul 19

8/10

Duel is a perfectly assembled thriller that signaled the arrival of a masterclass filmmaker and serves as a time capsule of early 1970s cinema.

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William Stottor

Loud and Clear Reviews

07/11/2024

4/5

Duel is one hell of a ride and Spielberg at his finest—playful, refined and above all else, entertaining.

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B B.

@betbro Apr 8

Great story, scenery.

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Tyler N

@RT33166214 Apr 3

Solid movie. Must have been amazing for its time. I was hoping for a motive but never got one. On the other hand, cool how they never showed the villain. Or maybe they did and we never knew who it was. Maybe it’s revealed online. I’ll take a look. If you want a high-intensity road rage film, go for it. Maybe 5-10 minutes too long at the end but a good watch.

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Joel H

@RT47793553 Mar 23

Duel is one of reasons I am always nice to truck drivers on the road. This is my worst nightmare. Our protagonist, David, is endlessly stalked and harassed by a mysterious and persistent antagonist, just because he inadvertently ticked the driver off. With this film, Steven Spielberg shows that he knows how to build suspense with silence, create connections without chatter, and manage to keep audiences engaged the whole time. It’s impressive how the story continues to be compelling despite the repetitive nature of the plot. Despite a few minor speed bumps, Duel is an effective and realistic thriller.

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Mate P

@matepolcz Mar 2

Duel is an interesting film to say the least. The protagonist is layered enough to make us care about him, but he makes so many mistakes that usually makes me hate characters like this. But in this film, it's perfectly balanced by a disgusting antagonist. Steven Spielberg is definitely before his prime at this point, but he showed many of his capabilities in this film. The use of sound and score create tension perfectly. The cinematography is good and the editing is really great. It feels a lot like the first two Mad Max films. I thought this would be a small budget film and it certainly isn't a big budget one, but some of the shots looked better than they should've. The stunt work is amazing and the performances are very convincing. Duel is the first film Steven Spielberg directed alone and he showcases much of his talent so early on.

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Nick C.

@dmcrra35 Dec 16

Silly cat and mouse caper.

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Horror fan 4

@Horrorfan4life Nov 11

This was a good road rage thriller. However to call it one of the greatest made for TV movies is a stretch. Dennis Weaver was great. Tim Treakle

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Synopsis

David Mann (Dennis Weaver), a mild-mannered electronics salesman, is driving cross-country on a two-lane highway when he encounters an old oil tanker driven by an unseen driver who seems to enjoy annoying him with dangerous antics on the road. Unable to escape the demonic big rig, David finds himself in a dangerous game of cat and mouse with the monstrous truck. When the pursuit escalates to deadly levels, David must summon his inner warrior and turn the tables on his tormentor.

Director: Steven Spielberg
Producer: George Eckstein
Screenwriter: Richard Matheson
Production Co: Universal TV
Rating: TV-PG (L), PG
Genre: Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 1, 2015
Runtime: 1h 35m