"DUNE" 2021 version - review
Dec. 15th, 2021 10:49 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
anna_wingI went to see "Dune" last night, at a suitable social distance. It was rather good, though I remain a fan of the Grand Guignol glory of David Lynch's version. The aesthetics of this version were inventive and beautiful, and the many shots of sand, desert cities, sand, rocks and sand had me clutching my moisturiser protectively (deserts are not my favourite environment, especially hot ones). I should re-watch the Lynch, just to compare and contrast the different choices made from the plethora of possible incidents in the book.
Other thoughts:
1 Oscar Isaac and Rachel Ferguson had, I think, somewhat meatier parts than their predecessors, but lacked the iron charisma of Jurgen Prochnow and Francesca Annis. I did prefer the Lynch version of Dr Yueh to the whole 'Son of Fu Manchu' thing that this version has going on. And Linda Hunt was infinitely more exciting as the Shadout Mapes. On the other hand, Jason Momoa as Duncan Idaho was inspired, and Timothee Chalamet is very convincing as a teenager being overcome by an unfortunate destiny, (though one who could really do with a haircut, or at least a hairbrush). This version also appears to be prioritising Rabban over Feyd-Rautha as the junior Harkonnen. It would indeed be difficult to match the lunatic glory that was Sting's interpretation of the role, so, probably a good choice.
2 I don't recall Leto II wanting to be a pilot from the book (though it has been some decades...), and I am sure that there is now fanfic somewhere in which Poe Dameron was the pseudonym of the youthful Leto Atreides, adventuring in a galaxy far, far away from his own...
3 What with all the dim lighting, layers of robes, excessive facial hair, and the dust in the atmosphere, I had some difficulty distinguishing one heavily-bearded man from another, especially since most of the costumes were Variations On The Theme Of Drab.
4 The Bene Gesserit costumes were marginally more sensible than the Lynch crinolines, and the headgear offered a nice sacerdotal touch (though the Bene Gesserit are canonically a secular organisation).
5 All versions of Dune (I saw the 2000 TV miniseries too) suffer from incomprehensibility if you haven't read the book. I did think that having Princess Irulan as the explanatory talking head, while rather a blunt instrument, might have helped.
6 It remains unclear what the giant sandworms eat, though from their dentition or equivalent, they look like filter feeders.
7 The visuals of the starships were truly lovely.
8 Moisturiser, moisturiser, moisturiser...
Other thoughts:
1 Oscar Isaac and Rachel Ferguson had, I think, somewhat meatier parts than their predecessors, but lacked the iron charisma of Jurgen Prochnow and Francesca Annis. I did prefer the Lynch version of Dr Yueh to the whole 'Son of Fu Manchu' thing that this version has going on. And Linda Hunt was infinitely more exciting as the Shadout Mapes. On the other hand, Jason Momoa as Duncan Idaho was inspired, and Timothee Chalamet is very convincing as a teenager being overcome by an unfortunate destiny, (though one who could really do with a haircut, or at least a hairbrush). This version also appears to be prioritising Rabban over Feyd-Rautha as the junior Harkonnen. It would indeed be difficult to match the lunatic glory that was Sting's interpretation of the role, so, probably a good choice.
2 I don't recall Leto II wanting to be a pilot from the book (though it has been some decades...), and I am sure that there is now fanfic somewhere in which Poe Dameron was the pseudonym of the youthful Leto Atreides, adventuring in a galaxy far, far away from his own...
3 What with all the dim lighting, layers of robes, excessive facial hair, and the dust in the atmosphere, I had some difficulty distinguishing one heavily-bearded man from another, especially since most of the costumes were Variations On The Theme Of Drab.
4 The Bene Gesserit costumes were marginally more sensible than the Lynch crinolines, and the headgear offered a nice sacerdotal touch (though the Bene Gesserit are canonically a secular organisation).
5 All versions of Dune (I saw the 2000 TV miniseries too) suffer from incomprehensibility if you haven't read the book. I did think that having Princess Irulan as the explanatory talking head, while rather a blunt instrument, might have helped.
6 It remains unclear what the giant sandworms eat, though from their dentition or equivalent, they look like filter feeders.
7 The visuals of the starships were truly lovely.
8 Moisturiser, moisturiser, moisturiser...
