DUNE REVIEW

 *MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*

There’s no denying that Denis Villeneuve is one of the best visionary filmmakers working today. In the last decade, he’s found success with films such as Prisoners, Sicario, Arrival and Blade Runner 2049. This is why Villeneuve was the ideal choice to adapt Frank Herbert’s novel, Dune, into a feature film. The book has already been adapted into a film in 1984 by director David Lynch but the results were disastrous as it failed to impress at the box office with critics describing it as too dry and a truncated adaptation of Herbert’s book. With a higher budget, better special effects and a talented ensemble cast, is Denis Villeneuve’s Dune a successful adaptation of its source material?

A mythic and emotionally charged hero's journey, Dune tells the story of Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet), a brilliant and gifted young man born into a great destiny beyond his understanding, who must travel to the most dangerous planet in the universe to ensure the future of his family and his people. As malevolent forces explode into conflict over the planet's exclusive supply of the most precious resource in existence-a commodity capable of unlocking humanity's greatest potential-only those who can conquer their fear will survive.

Making a film adaptation of Dune has been a longstanding dream project for Villeneuve, however, he didn’t think he would succeed in getting the rights to Herbert’s book. After establishing himself as a skilful and unique visionary filmmaker with Arrival and Blade Runner 2049, Herbert’s son, Brian, who was the author of later books in the Dune series, confirmed that Villeneuve would be directing the project. Fortunately, the hard work has paid off as Villeneuve has succeeded in adapting Dune into an epic and spectacular science fiction film. I think that the film will mean more to those who have read the novel as they’ll have a better understanding of the story and know who the characters are and what they represent in regards to the narrative. However, Dune is worth watching for those who enjoy watching science fiction films that prioritise a compelling and original story and interesting characters over artificial special effects and underwhelming action sequences. 

The main issue with Lynch’s take on Dune was that it struggled to include all of the book into its 137 minute runtime. Because the book features complex ideas and themes within its story, adapting it into a feature length film with a running length of roughly two hours was always going to be challenging, however, Villeneuve made the decision to split the book into two parts. This decision was a risk as, at the time of its release, a Part Two hadn’t been announced as the producers wanted to wait for the box office results of its opening weekend before confirming a follow up. Fortunately, at the time of writing this review, Dune has impressed at the box office, making over $41 million, leading to a sequel being confirmed. A release date is yet unknown, however, it will most likely be released within the next two years. Understandably, many may be disappointed that Dune doesn’t cover all of its source material and ends quite abruptly, however, for those who can’t wait to find out what happens next can easily pick up a copy of Herbert’s book. 

Because I hadn’t read Herbert’s book or seen Lynch’s infamous 1984 adaptation, I had no idea what to expect from Dune, however,  I mainly wanted to watch it as Villeneuve is one of my favourite directors and I was impressed by the talented actors appearing in the film. Since its release earlier this month, Dune has been praised by critics with most of them saying that its issues, including its unwieldy source material, are “overshadowed by the scope and ambition of this visually thrilling adaptation”. This is how I felt about Dune as, although I wasn’t always sure about the characters and story, I was blown away by the incredible visuals brought to life through Villeneuve’s unique filmmaking talents. Although in the United States it has been released simultaneously in cinemas and on the home streaming service, HBO Max, there’s no denying that Dune was a film made to be experienced on the big screen. It’s a film that needs your 100% attention which is why I’m happy I was able to watch it at the cinema as, if I had watched it at home, I would’ve lost interest and become confused as I’m easily distracted at home. Dune will most likely frustrate impatient viewers as the film takes its time introducing the characters and setting up the story.

Dune features an impressive ensemble cast, however, only a handful of the actors appearing are given enough screen time to leave a lasting impression. The standout is, unsurprisingly, Chalamet who has previously appeared in critically acclaimed dramas such as Lady Bird and Call Me By Your Name and recently had a role in Wes Anderson’s latest film, The French Dispatch. As Paul, he delivers a strong performance. Both Rebecca Ferguson and Oscar Isaac stand out as his parents, Jessica and Leto, who is the ruler of House Atreides. Other memorable performances are delivered by Jason Momoa as one of Paul’s mentors and the sword master of House Atreides, Duncan Idaho, and Josh Brolin as the weapons master, Gurney Helleck. What’s most surprising and also disappointing about Dune is that, despite featuring prominently on the poster and in interviews as part of its marketing campaign, Zendaya has little screen time as Chani who is a mysterious young woman that Paul has visions of throughout the film. The two meet towards the end, with Villeneuve promising that she’ll have a bigger role in part two.

After originally being scheduled for release in 2020, Dune has finally been released and, for fans of Frank Herbert’s novel, is certainly worth the wait. It benefits from Denis Villeneuve’s unique vision as he has created one of the year’s most visually stunning and spectacular looking films.

8/10