Dune (Mini-Review)

Dune Part 1 is the latest adaptation of Dune by Frank Herbert. A vast political conspiracy haunts House Atreides as they assume stewardship of Arrakis. House Harkonnen prepares to attack House Atreides so they can reclaim control of Arrakis and the Emperor doesn't interfere as he wants both Houses to weaken each other. As these political maneuverings go on, Paul Atreides seeks to understand the mysterious visions he's been having that indicate he may be a destined messiah. Dune Part 1 was released in 2021. It was directed by Denis Villeneuve. It stars Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, and Josh Brolin.

The last time I read Dune was in high school and I graduated college in 2009. I meant to have gotten further along in my Dune re-read (reading chronologically and, yes, counting the Brian Herbert books) before the movie's release, but my vertigo has paused it. I was doing full length Patreon Exclusive Reviews but may switch to non-exclusive mini-reviews just to hopefully finish the series before Dune Part 2 hits theaters.

Not a lot of movies need to be seen in theaters. But others are cinematic enough that seeing them in theaters changes the entire experience. While I watched Dune Part 1 at home, I could tell that certain parts were intended to be seen on a big screen. Though I don't agree with Denis Villeneuve reprimanding people for not going to movie theaters during a pandemic.

I am a big fan of David Lynch's adaptation of Frank Herbert's book. I haven't seen any of the other adaptations of the Dune series because of that. Was Lynch's version accurate? No. Did it get me into the Dune series? Yes. So I admit to comparing certain scenes to the original adaptation. While I will always love Lynch's version, this movie made some vast improvements. Such as the personal shields actually looking good instead of goofy.

It was great seeing Jason Momoa as Duncan Idaho. He really brought both charm and physical prowess to the character. You could really believe that he was one of the best fighters in the galaxy. Even when Duncan is faced with overwhelming odds, he doesn't show an ounce of fear. If there are adaptations of the rest of the series, there is a way for him to return in later films.

One of the most important things in an adaptation of Dune is the giant sandworms aka Shai-Hulud. This movie makes the creatures appear scary and unstoppable. There is nothing that could stand in their way. At one point Jessica and Paul are inches away from being consumed by Shai-Hulud. While I knew that they couldn't die in the first movie, a part of my mind still worried that they would. I can't wait until we get a real good scene of people calling and riding a sandworm as in this movie we only got a single shot of someone riding one of the creatures.

I liked the contrast of Caladan and Giedi Prime. Caladan is natural with not too heavy of a focus on machines. Giedi Prime, on the other hand, doesn't have an inch of grass to spare. So it becomes easy for the audience to think of House Atreides as all good and House Harkonnen as all bad. I am hoping to see more of Giedi Prime in the next film. Though that probably won't happen.

I would recommend Dune Part 1 to fans of the books. I would also recommend Dune Part 1 to science fiction fans.