Few works of science fiction literature have proved to be as inspiring and intriguing as Dune, Frank Herbert's 1965 novel. Its popularity has reflected not only in a long-standing novel series or a video game that helped develop an entire new RTS genre, but also through three high-profile and very distinct screen adaptations. The first, David Lynch's 1984 film, received a cult status despite being disowned by its creators, while the 2000 television miniseries, although highly regarded, was considered not grand enough for those who believed that Herbert's classic could be given justice only through a grand epic on the big screen. The efforts to redo Dune in a "proper" way finally bore fruit with the 2021 film by Denis Villeneuve, which, despite critical and commercial success, in many ways embodies some of the most annoying things about twenty-first-century Hollywood.
The main problem Villeneuve faced when he tackled the new and ambitious adaptation was the epic scope of Herbert's novel. The 1984 version was a feature film, and, despite enormous efforts to be faithful to the source and provide fan service to readers, it compressed and rushed much of the plot. The 2000 miniseries was more suitable for the task with its multi-part format but faced limitations of budget and production, looking, at times, like a stage play. Villeneuve tried to square this circle with a simple solution: he would make the film in two parts, attempting to exploit the best of both worlds. Yet this solution came with a caveat: the first part was produced as a sort of test run, with the second part to be put into production only if the first proved commercially viable. This meant that fans of Dune and the film itself had to wait years for the conclusion of the saga to arrive. This practice made Dune look conspicuously like Hollywood adaptations of popular Young Adult fantasy and science fiction series that had been all the rage in the previous decade. The cynical, risk-averse approach of "let's make half a film and see if it sells" is precisely the kind of corporate thinking that has drained much of the artistry from modern blockbuster filmmaking.
The script, co-written by Villeneuve, Jon Spaihts and Eric Roth, follows roughly the plot of the first half of the novel. It begins in the year 10191, when the known universe is ruled by an Imperium – a political entity ruled by an Emperor, but with power also shared by the great noble houses, the Spacing Guild, and the order Bene Gesserit. "Dune" is the nickname for Arrakis, the desert planet where the Spice – a psychoactive substance necessary for space travel – is mined, giving ultimate power to whoever controls it. Until recently, Arrakis was ruled by House Harkonnen, whose leader, Baron Vladimir (played by Stellan Skarsgård), is the sworn enemy of House Atreides, led by Duke Leto (played by Oscar Isaac). However, the Emperor has recently switched control of Arrakis to the Atreides, but Leto is wary, suspecting a trap. He, his concubine Lady Jessica (played by Rebecca Ferguson), and their teenage son Paul (played by Timothée Chalamet) arrive on the planet, where Leto tries to forge an alliance with the Fremen, mysterious desert-dwelling locals who have learned to hate outworlders and savagely resisted the Harkonnens. The Duke is betrayed by his physician Dr. Yueh (played by Chang Chen), which allows the Harkonnens, with the help of Imperial Sardaukar troops, to attack, overwhelm the Atreides force and retake the planet. The Duke is killed, while Jessica and Paul are left in the desert to die. Paul, with his mother's Bene Gesserit training, manages to capture an ornithopter and escape. They manage to reach a band of Fremen led by Stilgar (played by Javier Bardem), which also includes a young woman called Chani (played by Zendaya), who was part of his visions.
Whether you will like or dislike the film depends very much on whether you have seen the previous two versions before. Most of the contemporary audience – especially the younger generations to whom this film, one of the more ambitious Warner Bros. projects of the decade, is tailored – is probably unaware of previous adaptations. For them, Villeneuve's Dune is more likely to be hailed as a grand film, unlike the hair-splitting grognards who remember what came before. This is a convenient strategy: by aiming at an audience with no frame of reference, the filmmakers can get away with shortcomings that would be immediately obvious to those familiar with the source material or earlier adaptations.
To be fair, Villeneuve did try to do some things differently, and some of those differences are definitely an improvement over the two previous versions. The extremely high budget resulted in much more spectacular yet believable scenes, which, together with Villeneuve's eye for visuals and great care with costumes, sets and production design, makes the film truly impressive in a strictly technical sense. There is also a great deal of effort in worldbuilding, and, for example, David J. Peterson, the creator of constructed languages for Game of Thrones, actually made the Harkonnen, Sardaukar and other factions speak their own languages. The film looks and sounds expensive, and in an era where visual spectacle is often the primary selling point, this cannot be dismissed.
Yet, at the same time, Villeneuve abhors exposition, and tries to make dialogue as sparse and laconic as possible, making the film difficult for anyone not already familiar with Herbert's world. This also narrows the space for the new cast to show some of their range, which, for example, makes Timothée Chalamet less impressive and less believable as Paul Atreides than Kyle MacLachlan was four decades earlier. MacLachlan, in Lynch's flawed but passionate film, managed to convey the inner turmoil, the prophetic visions, and the gradual transformation from sheltered noble youth to messianic leader. Chalamet, by contrast, spends much of the film staring into the middle distance with a blank expression, his character's interiority sacrificed on the altar of Villeneuve's minimalist aesthetic. The supporting cast fares little better: Oscar Isaac and Rebecca Ferguson do what they can with the material, but the script gives them little to work with beyond functional dialogue.
Another issue with the film is the rather forgettable music score by Hans Zimmer. The main lamentation theme, which repeats ad nauseam throughout the film, sounds more annoying than it adds atmosphere. Zimmer, usually a reliable composer, seems to have mistaken loud, droning noise for emotional depth. Compare this to the haunting, otherworldly soundtrack of Lynch's film by the band Toto and Brian Eno, which, whatever its flaws, was memorable and distinctive. Villeneuve's score is merely functional and, at times, actively distracting.
Some of the criticisms directed at the film concern minor alterations to Herbert's source material. The character of Dr. Liet Kynes, originally a male, was cast as a Black woman, played by Sharon Duncan-Brewster. This decision, which many saw as another example of modern Hollywood pushing DEI quotas and a "woke" agenda, was perhaps inevitable considering that the main plot point would have been, regardless, attacked by many ideologically driven critics as an unacceptable "White Saviour" narrative. The irony is that by pre-emptively caving to such criticism, the filmmakers ended up alienating another segment of the audience while satisfying no one. The gender and race swap adds nothing to the story and feels like a checkbox exercise rather than a creative choice.
Dune, which, like many films of its time, had its release postponed because of the COVID-19 crisis, had decent commercial success – just enough to warrant the second part, which was released in 2024. The third part, based on Herbert's 1969 novel Dune Messiah and titled Dune: Part Three, is scheduled for release later in 2026. One cannot help but feel that the entire project has been structured around commercial viability rather than artistic vision. The first film feels like a prologue, a teaser, a proof of concept designed to convince the studio to greenlight the real story. This is no way to adapt a classic.
In conclusion, Villeneuve's Dune is a technically accomplished but narratively hollow film that exemplifies the worst tendencies of modern blockbuster filmmaking: risk aversion disguised as ambition, minimalism mistaken for sophistication, and corporate calculation passed off as artistic patience. It is a film for an audience that has never read the book and never seen the earlier adaptations – which is, conveniently, the largest possible audience. For those who love Herbert's novel, it is a frustrating experience: beautiful to look at, but ultimately unsatisfying, a half-told story that asks for patience it has not earned.
RATING: 5/10 (++)
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