I watched The Last Duel earlier and wow, I'm still processing it. I feel like it'll be one of those movie that stays in your head for a really long time.
It was a obviously quite a difficult watch in places but I'm so glad I watched it. I knew so much about it going in but it still had me so gripped and tense it was incredible. I literally knew what was going to happen but my heart was still pounding and I had so much adrenaline running through me that I literally was shaking for hours afterwards, such an intense film.
It's the first film I saw in theatres since pre-pandemic and it made me fall in love with the cinema experience again, a film like that needs to be seen on the big screen.
The acting was absolutely incredible, Jodie was phenomenal, I've seen the majority of her previous work and I know she's good but her performance was oscar worthy. Adam was fantastic as always, so good to the point where my stomach would churn everytime he came on screen. I love Adam so much and I know how sweet he is in real life so for him to be able to make me nauseous just be being on screen just showed how brilliant he was in that part, he gave me such bad vibes. There were parts where he drew me in though too, I thought he would be an out and out villain but he really wasn't. The character had so many layers and he played them all perfectly!
In fact every actor played their part so perfectly, I didn't want each chapter to end. I'll be honest, I went to see the film for Adam and Jodie but Matt Damon and Ben Affleck were also amazing, Affleck's character had some great comedy moments that I wasn't expecting too and he really lifted the film when it needed it, an unexpected delight!
The three chapter structure was so good too, it dragged in places but I'm so glad they chose that structure, it highlighted just how good the acting was considering the events and lines stayed the same but the scenes had completely different intentions. It was a brave move but I'd never seen anything like it, it was like reading a book but seeing the action play out in front of your eyes!
I love films that suprise me and everytime it switched points of view my opinions of characters kept changing and I found that so clever, subtle changes in dialogue and acting told so many stories, it was so clever.
The characters felt so human and real, I would have loved to see whole movies dedicated to each of them, I truly felt like we were stepping into their lives for a short time and we were only seeing a snapshot. It felt like all of them had real lives beyond the timeline of the film and I couldn't get enough of them!
The locations and costumes were perfect too and the lack of music most of the time made it feel so natural. It was such an immersive experience, I felt like I was there with the characters.
The fight scene was absolutely brutal but so well filmed, I've not seen a decent medieval knight movie in ages so I was loving it, even knowing the outcome of the duel didn't stop me wondering was going to happen next, I was truly gripped!
The whole film really moved me, I thought maybe the themes of sexual assault would feel a bit forced for a modern audience but I didn't feel that at all, it was such a powerful story and knowing it was real made it so much more so. She was such a strong woman to go through what she did and refuse to back down until justice was done. It breaks my heart to think of the countless women who never got justice or who's husbands lost their duels and condemned their wives to death. The opinions of the time astounded me, I'd forgotten what silly things about science and religion they used to believe were true, some were laughable, others horrifying. The misogyny of the times blew me away. Again, I knew what it was like back then for women but seeing it potrayed on the big screen really hammered home how lucky I as women to live in this day and age and how lucky I am to live in this day and age at all. The film highlighted to me just how hard life was back then for everyone without modern conveniences and the whole film has really stuck with me.
Not a film I'll watch again in a hurry but a masterclass of acting and filmmaking and I recommend it to everyone. Once again so thankful to Adam for introducing me to films I wouldn't otherwise watch, now please play someone nice again, watching you play such dispicable people physically hurts me 😂