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| Images courtesy Warner Bros. |
Frank Herbert's epic book Dune has so far proven to be quite difficult to adapt to other mediums. It's a dense piece of work filled with numerous terms that have to be learned, tons of exposition, complex political intrigue, immense world-building, and a narrative that is mostly propelled by the constant inner monologue of the protagonist Paul Atreides. David Lynch struggled with it (though he gave it a good effort) and now Denis Villeneuve is the latest director that is trying to tackle the material. Villeneuve isn't new to sprawling sci-fi or complex material having directed Blade Runner 2049 (2017) and Arrival (2016) and so far with the first part of Dune he is off to a good start.
Dune follows Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) the sole heir to House Atreides a powerful clan led by his father Duke Leto (Oscar Isaac). Leto is given domain over Arrakis, a dangerous desert planet that is also home to a valuable commodity known as "spice" which gives humans special powers. One such power is the ability to navigate space-time and it is responsible for the ability to travel between planets. Duke Leto takes over a spice-mining operation on Arrakis with the intention of gaining a massive fortune. As spice is such a valuable resource, House Atrides attracts enemies and while all of this is going on Paul is having prophetic visions that may be telling his future.
Villeneuve had his work cutout for him because not only did he have to satisfy the detail-oriented fans of the original novel, he also had to make the film accessible to those with no familiarity to the source materiel. He was more successful with the latter than the former, streamlining the complicated exposition of the book and replacing it with grand spectacle. Dune feels a bit like a cliff notes version, hitting most of the important plot points but missing some of the nuance and subtext. With the limited runtime of two films, this was inevitable, and even curtailed, there are a few moments of exposition dumping that drag the pacing of the film.
Visually, Dune is one of the most stunning films I have ever seen, filled with incredible cinematography, lighting, costumes, and vistas. The designs have some Moebius vibes, mixed with a heavy contrast sterile futurism that is intoxicating to soak in. It truly feels like one is seeing an alien universe, with few familiar things to anchor it to the real world. Hans Zimmer's score is equally epic, with a sweeping exotic influence that gives way to booming sound design.
The obvious metaphor in Dune is the idea of a society that has a precious resource being colonized by outsiders for profit, and most viewers will make the connection between the fictional spice and our real life reliance on oil. The political subtext has taken a backseat in this new version--both the aesthetic and the language of Arrakis is heavily coded middle eastern but it is definitely downplayed in comparison to Herbert's vision. There could be an issue if they don't make a sequel, because a certain part of Paul’s character arc doesn’t happen until the second half of the book and the movie ends before that change. That would leave this film in a vacuum and it might be misinterpreted as a "white savior" story when it is in fact a subversion of one (which is lightly foreshadowed).
Timothée Chalamet is perfect casting as Paul, as he has a dark haunted quality to his look and acting that embodies the complexity of the character. The rest of the cast does a fine job, but they don't feel as fully realized as Paul, it's as if they are dwarfed by the expansive visuals. Unfortunately, it makes it hard to empathize with anyone outside of Paul, but since the film mostly focuses on him it isn't too detrimental overall.
Dune is beautiful and occasionally confounding film, and it's clear that
Villeneuve was passionate about the material and wanted to do it justice. Flaws aside, it is astounding albeit unfinished piece of work that hopefully will garner enough accolades to green light the second half.
--Michelle Kisner