"The vibrant new film adaptation of the Anton Chekhov novella The Duel...nails also the essential qualities of comic indolence and dangerous yearning in Chekhov, which have proved so elusive time after time, in adaptation after adaptation.... The Duel looks beautiful, but it is not merely so. It doesn't carry the baggage of an important adaptation; it's deft, droll and languorously sexy.... This film is indeed something like a miracle." - Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune [Read the r...
Director: Dover Kosashvili.
The pivot point is an emotional and psychological triangle: a civil servant, Laevsky (Andrew Scott, appalling and appealing); his married mistress, Nadya (Fiona Glascott, a milky beauty); and a zoologist, Von Koren (Tobias Menzies, suitably rigid). The story gets going with Laevsky bitterly complaining about Nadya to an older friend, a doctor, Samoylenko (Niall Buggy). Laevsky claims to no longer care for Nadya, who, having left her husband, now inspires her lover’s contempt or, perhaps, fatigue. Like a caged animal, he wants out and claws at Samoylenko as Von Koren watches and seethes, stoking his loathing for Laevsky. For his part, by cutting to Nadya during Laevsky’s rant and capping the scene with a disapproving look from Von Koren, Mr. Kosashvili suggests that his own sympathies are divided.
By Ben Cookson Romanian filmmaking attracted world attention in 2007 when two films were honored at the Cannes Film Festival. Cristian Mingui’s 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, a harrowing portrayal of illegal abortion, was awarded the prestigious Palme D’Or, and California Dreamin’, a tale about American soldiers during the Kosovo conflict, won Un Certain Regard for its director Cristian Nemescu.Tragically, Nemescu won the award posthumously, as the young director was killed in a car acciden...
