The Last Duel

Set in 14th century France and based on a true story, this he said/she said/he said tale is absolutely gripping. Margueritte de Carrouges accused Jacques Le Gris of raping her while her husband, Jean de Carrouges, was away from home.

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As each person is telling their version of the story to the court, we see the same set of scenes from three perspectives (which explains why the movie is so long). Like a game of Telephone, the recollection of each person of the same events varies wildly.

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Ridley Scott’s signature brooding, dark feeling really works to give the film depth and to remind us of how things were back then. People were filthy, the clothing was ridiculous, the people in power were self-indulgent and insipid, and violence was commonplace.

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For me, though, this isn’t really about a duel or a trial or even a rape. It’s about an extremely strong woman who was wronged and had the fortitude to stand up in front of the king and a room full of people and say out loud everything that happened to her and ask for justice. What a courageous woman!

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Remember that, back then, women were not seen as humans with agency. They were someone’s property and the scapegoat for every unfortunate event in life. At that time, if a woman was raped or a couple was unable to conceive a child, it was presumed to be her fault.

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If her husband had died in the duel, everyone would believe that Margueritte had lied and falsely accused an innocent man. And if her husband had died, that would mean that God had made a judgement in the matter and Margueritte would be killed. It was total bullshit.

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But Margueritte had elevated ideas about integrity, justice and truth and, in the end, she won.

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