Ridley Scott is a busy man, and though it may have been four years since his last directorial effort, All the Money in the World, he’s returning this year with not one, but two movies. November will see the release of the true-crime thriller House of Gucci, but before that, The Last Duel will be released in October. The movie is loosely based on true events, as it’s about France’s last legally sanctioned duel in the 14th century. It marks the on-screen reunion between two Hollywood best friends, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, and it sees Scott’s return to one of his favorite genres, historical epics.
The Last Duel is shaping up to be one of the most thrilling medieval movies that doesn’t satirize the era or rely on the comedy of jousting. However, it’s still a couple of months until cinephiles can devour the 152-minute movie, but for those who can’t wait, other movies will help the time pass by a little quicker. From previous collaborations between the actors and director to other medieval movies, these epics will get audiences even more excited for the upcoming film.
The Martian (2015) - Available To Stream On Fubo
The Last Duel isn’t Ridley Scott and Matt Damon’s first collaboration, as they also worked together on the 2015 sci-fi movie The Martian. The film sees an astronaut struggle to survive alone on Mars, and it’s one of the best showcases of Damon’s acting, as he is in complete solitude and has to effectively carry the whole film on his soldiers.
It’s one of the most entertaining movies about a stranded character, and that’s all thanks to Damon. But aside from Damon’s performance, it’s one of Scott’s most visually stunning movies, his best sci-fi movie outside of Blade Runner, and a late-career highlight.
Gladiator (2000) - Available To Rent On Apple TV+
In the 21 years since it arrived, Gladiator has become a cinema classic, and it was already an instant classic upon its theatrical release. It has strong performances across the board, was Joaquin Phoenix’s breakthrough movie, and remains one of the greatest swords and sandals film of all time.
The film follows Russell Crowe's Maximus as he rises through the ranks to become the ultimate gladiator and avenge his family, who were murdered by the emperor. Just like The Last Duel, the movie is loosely based on real events, and Gladiator is also mostly historically accurate.
Gone Girl (2014) - Available To Stream On Hulu
Most of Ben Affleck’s output in the late 2010s has been as the caped crusader in the DCEU, but his best performance outside of Batman was in the David Fincher-directed Gone Girl.
The movie doesn’t have much in common with The Last Duel, as one is a medieval drama and the other is a thriller, but it sees Affleck at the top of his game and taking some risks too. Instead of playing the hero or the charming romantic, Affleck’s Nick Dunne is a jerk and as close to a bad person as a man being framed for murder could be. It’s his best performance in years, but his role in The Last Duel could beat it.
Army Of Darkness (1992) - Available To Stream On Cinemax
Though The Last Duel is based during medieval times, there actually aren’t all that many great movies based during that era. However, strangely enough, the noteworthy medieval movies are mostly satirical comedies, and one of the best is Army of Darkness. It’s the third movie in the Evil Dead series, but people don’t need to have seen the first two movies to get the gist.
In short, Army of Darkness is a forgotten 90s gem. It sees Ash enter a portal and land in medieval times, and, of course, it’s full of the living dead. Few movies are as creative as Army of Darkness, and for viewers wanting a medieval aesthetic, the 90s film has it in spades.
Good Will Hunting (1997) - Available To Stream On Starz
Matt Damon and Ben Affleck have a long history together, as the BFFs met each other as kids and then grew up together and hyped each other up through their acting careers. They have starred alongside each other in multiple Kevin Smith movies, but more famous than anything they've done together, they starred in Good Will Hunting.
The movie follows an unrecognized genius who is also a janitor, and he is tasked with confronting his troubled past. It was an important movie for the duo, as Good Will Hunting was written by them too, and they even won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. Now, the acting duo will reunite in their first drama together in 24 years with The Last Duel.
A Knight’s Tale (2001) - Available To Stream On Direct TV
A Knight’s Tale is another medieval movie that doesn’t take the era seriously, but is still a massively entertaining early 2000s movie. The movie wasn’t critically acclaimed, as it was criticized for being too cheesy. However, there are some great post-modern moments, as it interpolates modern pop hits into the era, and thanks to this stellar soundtrack, jousting has never been so exciting in a movie.
The film also sees an early charismatic performance from Heath Ledger, which is a far cry from his portrayal of the Joker in The Dark Knight. Likewise, Paul Bettany approaches the role of a ring announcer with a Shakespearean-like gravitas. At the very least, A Knight’s Tale is an early 2000s time capsule.
The Bourne Identity (2002) - Available To Rent On Apple TV+
Matt Damon got to where he is today mostly thanks to The Bourne Identity. Though he was a certified bankable movie star by this point, the actor wasn’t an action hero until the 2002 movie. What followed were more roles that saw Damon wielding handguns and partaking in hand-to-hand combat, whether it were in Bourne sequels or The Departed.
Still, The Bourne Identity remains one of the best. In the film, Jason Bourne, a CIA agent with amnesia, is tasked with trying to learn who he really is. The Last Duel is the first time audiences will see Damon in some kind of action since the fifth entry in the series, 2016’s Jason Bourne.
Monty Python And The Holy Grail (1975) - Available To Stream On Netflix
Monty Python and the Holy Grail is seen as the greatest medieval movie of all time, and just like A Knight’s Tale and Army of Darkness, it’s completely comedy-driven. As the film is from the iconic Monty Python comedy troupe, The Holy Grail is also one of the best movies where actors play multiple characters.
From John Cleese playing Sir Lancelot and the Black Knight to Graham Chapman as King Arthur and the hiccuping guard, the comedy troupe created some of the most wonderfully bizarre characters. They built a unique medieval world that’s full of fantasy, and it features some of the best sword fights found in a movie too.
Silence (2016) - Available To Stream On Hulu
Along with Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, Adam Driver has a main role in The Last Duel too. The actor has been all over the big screen in the past five years, and he’ll even be appearing in another Ridley Scott-directed movie due out later this year, House of Gucci. But one Driver-starring movie that went under the radar in recent years is Silence. It’s a great Martin Scorsese movie that few people have seen, and it follows Jesuit priests struggling with the challenges of their faith.
It might have been unsuccessful because of its 160-minute runtime, the dour tone, and being about Jesuit priests, but it's almost like a beautiful-looking history lesson more than anything. Like The Last Duel, Silence is an epic historical drama, and audiences should expect nothing less, as it comes from the genius mind of Martin Scorsese.
Robin Hood (2010) - Available To Stream On Fubo
Ridley Scott sticks to his guns when it comes to directing action flicks, and he has a unique style compared to the current landscape of theatrically released action movies. Compared to today’s high-octane films that are full of excitement with protagonists cracking one-liners every few minutes, Scott has always filmed with a realistic and somber tone, with a stoic and poker-faced protagonist.
Robin Hood is the perfect example of this, especially considering there have been so many other uplifting depictions of the same story. The Last Duel looks to have the same tone as Scott’s Robin Hood, as it might not be joyful or hopeful, but it’s still thrilling, and it acts almost like a b-side to Gladiator.