"When a man is sick, he cannot work. And when a man cannot work, he is not wanted." - Richard Matheson
Good morning, House of Madness djinns:
The above quote really hits home for me, and it's from a man that has brought a lot to the table in the horror universe. "I am Legend" (2007) is probably the work of Matheson's people are most familiar with, but long before it hit the silver screen, Matheson dazzled with novels marked for feature film status such as "Stir of Echoes" (1999) and "The Legend of Hell House" (1973). Although each of these are easily worthy of a revisit, I really wanted to reminisce about arguably the greatest cat and mouse film on wheels, "Duel". Not only does it star "Gunsmoke" legend Dennis Weaver, it's also the first movie gig Steven Spielberg landed after sharpening his directing craft for several TV shows such as "Night Gallery", and "Columbo".
"Duel" kicks off with David Mann (Weaver) on a business trip, traveling through the desert to meet up with a client. It's hot, sticky, and so boring that Mann is having more conversation with himself than some married couples forcing gab at the dinner table. Soon enough, as Mann is rolling along, making good time (good thing, because he got off to a late start), he comes up behind an old tanker truck that will surely impede his travels, and make him late for his appointment. Not to worry, there's a straightaway up ahead, and Mann can use the opportunity to pass. Ahhhhhhh, much better; now the path ahead is again clear, and things are back on schedule. Wait a minute, that tanker we passed is getting close in our rearview mirror, and seems to be gaining momentum. What the fuck is going on? As the tanker roars past, Mann is baffled at the tanker's arrogance, and questions his vehicular motives. Once again the tanker slows, but this time when Mann tries to pass, the tanker speeds up, only to finally give way, and wave Mann past with his hand out of the driver's side window, implying it's safe to do so, and he is conceding the role of highway leader. As Mann starts to pass, he is almost met with a head on collision with a driver heading 55 mph in the other direction. Goofing is one thing, but borderline attempted murder is something Mann takes very seriously.
Once Mann gathers his wits and checks his underwear for skidmarks not unlike the ones he just left a mile back on the asphalt, he stops at a diner to try and settle his nerves even further. A sandwich and a drink will only cost him a few minutes on the road, and by then that old tanker will be long gone. Perfect.......wait, is that the old tanker parked out front!? It is! One problem, Mann never got a look at his face, so the asshole that gets off on road rage could be anyone in the diner, and it's the lunchtime rush. As Mann's inner panic returns with a vengeance, he confronts a patron which he deems to be THE trucker, and is quickly punched out. After collecting his teeth and pride, Mann sees the patron get into a different truck and head out on his way. Seconds later, the old tanker comes to life, and sets out along the road, hopefully far away from here.
Mann decides to give the tanker time to get a good head start, so the chances of running into his newfound enemy are hopefully between zero and HELLLLLLLLLL NO. As Mann makes his way along, he goes over what happened again and again in his head, and just wants to get to his destination, close the deal, and get the fuck home. Making good time again, things are mostly back on schedule, and this nightmare will make good pillow talk, not to mention a hell of a story for Mann's friends at the good old police department. Speaking of police, there's a phone booth up ahead at a service station, so let's just take care of this police business now, and grab a radiator hose to fix the overheating problem he's been procrastinating about doing for too long. As Mann starts to dial the five-0, he sees the tanker barreling down the scorching pavement, heading straight at him. Mann manages to dive out of the booth just in time to save his feet from introducing themselves to his spleen, and staining the pavement with his intestines. If there was ever any doubt about Mr. Tanker's intentions, those have gone right out the fucking window and into a bottle labeled 'THIS GUY AIN'T FUCKING AROUND'. After a long, arduous wait, hiding behind an embankment, Mann decides it's now or never, and continues down the road in which he's given the tanker a long head start.
As Mann drives on, he realizes it's a trap; the tanker is behind him again, and the way he's gaining, Mann better have a plan or cook one up fast in the hot desert sun. As he's driving for his life, Mann sees signs for the upcoming summit, and there's no way a truck that size can keep pace while gearing up and down for the steep inclines and hills up ahead, right? As Mann starts to put distance between himself and Mr. Tanker, that goshdarn radiator hose decides it's had enough, and quits the car business for greener pastures. FUCK. Just gotta get to the top, and then Mann can coast down the escarpment in neutral, and hopefully glide into freedom purely on momentum. As he's cruising courtesy of gravity, Mann spins out, and slams into the cliff with the tanker still in hot pursuit. Miraculously, the radiator has cooled enough that the car will start, and Mann heads up a dirt road barely ahead of his pursuer. As he reaches the top, he spins his car to face the way he came, jams his briefcase on the gas pedal, and sends old faithful charging towards the evil mechanical monster whose driver he's never seen. Shoulda stayed in bed this morning, eh Mann?
Not only was this movie ahead of its time, it also set the bar for future movies, none of which have managed to achieve the brilliance of "Duel". Did I mention this was made for TV!? Now we have the Hallmark Channel. Fuck me.
Madness Meter: 9/10
NB
