Dune

This is the latest attempt to film Frank Herbert’s impossible-to-film book Dune. Well, the first half of it, anyway, starting as the Emperor duplicitously assigns House Atreides to Arrakis, ending as Paul and Jessica join the Fremen.

There’s lots of scene-setting, lots of foreshadowing, some weirding ways, lots of enormous nearly-empty buildings, lots of sand, lots of shouting in sand-storms, and the odd sand worm. I suspect the huge vistas, the special effects, and the booming soundtrack would be almost overwhelming in a cinema. The plot stays fairly linear, and things mostly keep moving along briskly, so the over two-hour run time doesn’t often drag. Paul starts off a little sulky, but ends up ready to take on his destiny. And Jessica is suitably competent and courageous as befits one with Bene Gesserit training.

I’ll be watching part 2.

Rating: 3

[ unmissable | great stuff | worth watching | mind candy | waste of time | unfinishable ]

reviewed 18 January 2025

This is the latest attempt to film Frank Herbert’s impossible-to-film book Dune. Well, the second half of it, anyway, starting as Paul and Jessica join the Fremen, ending with Paul ascendant.

There’s lots of running around, lots of fighting with swords, some weirding ways, lots of enormous arenas filled with huge congregations, lots of sand, quite a bit of angsty mumbling, and lots of sand worms. The plot is stays fairly linear, and things move in huge leaps and bounds, leading to mental whiplash on occasions. Paul tries to avoid the horrific future of his visions. And Jessica goes full Bene Gesserit manipulator.

Rating: 3

[ unmissable | great stuff | worth watching | mind candy | waste of time | unfinishable ]

reviewed 25 January 2025