Tag: Frank Herbert

DUNE (2021) – Review

So, even though it’s the season of the big somber serious “award-bait” films, who’s ready for a journey back to “a galaxy far, far away”? Whoa, shut down the “hyper-drive”, I’m not talking about that one, y’know the one we all first visited back in 1977. Although we’ve been, cinematically, in this particular “star system” before. First at the movies in 1984, then on basic cable TV in 2000. It’s based on a book series with a huge fan base, although neither version pleased them (as for the 84 “take”, if you catch it on TV, the director credit is for “Alan Smithee” as the acclaimed filmmaker doesn’t want his real name on it), nor did it attract a throng of new admirers. Perhaps film tech needed to catch up to the tale’s unique requirements. Or maybe it just needs the correct director and cast. Now we can see if all three are needed for the proper screen treatment of Frank Herbert’s DUNE.

As the new film opens, we’re transported to the ocean planet of Caladan, which is ruled by the Atreides family. The young “prince” Paul (Timothee Chalamet) is in the grip of another weird desert-based dream (or nightmare). He’s finally awakened by his mother, Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson) who insists that he join her for breakfast before the day’s big ceremony. We soon learn that she is training Paul to harness the mystical “persuasion” powers he has inherited from her. After donning their formal attire, they join father Duke Letto (Oscar Isaac) and his aide Gurney (Josh Brolin). Emissaries from the ruling House Harkonnen (under the order of the Emperor) instruct Leto and his family (and military forces) to relocate to the harsh desert planet of Arrakis to supervise the harvesting of melange, AKA “spice” which possesses many amazing properties (it’s essential to space travel). Prior to the move Gurney tutors paul in combat fighting, while “ace’ fighter pilot Duncan (Jason Momoa) regales Paul with stories of his time on his future home. Later Paul undergoes a test of “pain” conducted by Jessica’s trainer, the Reverend Mother Mohiam (Charlotte Rampling). On Arrakis, the Atreides entourage is greeted by the officials, though much of the populace, including the fierce rebel fighters known as Fremen, plot to overthrow their new otherworldly overlords. But while the Atreides try to deal with the deadly gigantic sandworms that wreck the spice mining compounds, the Harkonnen, led by the cruel Baron Vladimir (Stellan Skarsgard), are plotting a surprise attack. Can Paul and his family survive all the deadly threats on their new home world?

A truly stellar cast has been brought together on this, helping to breathe life into the now 56-year-old SF classic. Hey six of them are from the MCU, and another actor swam in from the Justice League. The focus of it all is Chalamet as Paul, who, as in many adventure fables, is the youngster at the start of a “hero’s quest”. Like most teens, Paul has an obstinate streak, but he’s got an enthusiastic spirit, always seeking wisdom, even as dark forces surround him. Chalamet brings a real intensity to Paul, compelling us to be in his “rooting section”. Luckily he’s got the talented Ferguson as Lady Jessica in his corner. She challenges Paul, exhorting him to sharpen his “special skills” while trying to protect him from those said forces. Much of the same can be said of Isaac as Leto who never denies his son of his wisdom or affection, all while balancing the demands of his title. Part of Paul’s extended family is Brolin as Gurney, who puts up a tough front, although he too hopes to keep his surrogate nephew out of harm’s path. Ditto for his “almost” big brother Duncan who’s given a gregarious and snarky edge by Momoa. Lurking in the shadows, Skarsgard makes Baron a stuffed flesh pad of pure malevolence, issuing orders in a guttural growl to the hulking Beast Rabban (Dave Bautista) and craven co-conspirator (think Peter Lorre in MAD LOVE) Piter (David Dastmalchian). They’re almost as scary as Rampling who’s pure intimidation as the Reverend. On Arrakis, Javier Bader is a most charismatic and funny Fremaon rebel leader named Stilgar, while Zendaya is the desert goddess of Paul’s dreams, Chani, in a brief role (guessing we’ll see a lot more of her in follow-ups).

This is the passion project of director Denis Villeneuve, one of the more interesting visual filmmakers of recent memory (ARRIVAL, BLADE RUNNER 2049), who worked on the screenplay adaptation with Jon Spaihts and Eric Roth. And, as Denis has said in countless interviews, the scope is big, full of endless vistas best viewed on the biggest screen possible (yes, you can stream it on your HDTV, but you won’t be truly “immersed”). It could be called a cosmic LAWRENCE OF ARABIA, especially since most of the action takes place in the sands of Arrakis, where those fearsome worms seem to be more than a mile long (the use of vibrations to attract and distract them is quite engaging). The artists and craftspeople have fashioned a world similar to ours, but with fantastic flourishes. The air transports recall helicopters, though they lift via fluttering side wings like a dragonfly or hummingbird. A wrist device creates a protective blue-tinded force field around its wearer until a weak area gives off a red-tinted warning. Thousands of soldiers march in unison, sporting shell-like battles armor, while others travel the hot sands clad in “moisture suits” that cool with re-circulated sweat. But Villeneuve doesn’t neglect the human drama and family dynamics in favor of these great gizmos and “eye candy”.Unfortunately, the source material was so dense that the film ends abruptly (even at 155 minutes) leaving us wanting (much like the Hobbit trilogy or, THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, one of the book’s “spiritual children”). Perhaps it’s best to leave us yearning for more as the booming Hans Zimmer score booms over the speakers, which also sounds great with the sweeping cinematography of Greg Fraser. Yes, this is the superior film treatment, though we’re left feeling that there’s much more to be gleaned from the world of DUNE.

3 Out of 4


DUNE opens in select theatres everywhere and begins streaming for 30 days on HBO Max beginning on Friday, October 22, 2021.

JODOROWSKY’S DUNE – The Review

Jodorowsky's Dune

For students of cinema, several films-that-were-never-made have been the subject of articles, books, and documentaries. Historians enjoy imagining just what movie delights almost happened, that were stopped by different circumstances, often budgetary. I recall seeing production art for Willis O’Brien’s teaming of titans in “King Kong Meets Frankenstein”. Before George Pal produced the definitive big screen version, Ray Harryhausen shot test footage for a proposed “War of the Worlds”. And animation buffs have wondered at the pencil test sequences Looney Tunes wildman Bob Clampett whipped up to try to sell MGM on a cartoon short series based on “John Carter of Mars”. And in this “what if” study, there would need to be a sizable sidebar on the unfilmed works of Orson Welles. Years before Coppola, Welles tried to adapt Conrad’s “Heart of Darkness” for the movies along with comics’ “Batman” and “Don Quixote” (Terry Gilliam’s attempt on that character was the subject of a great doc, LOST IN LA MANCHA). Now the story of one of Welles’s unmade acting roles is part of the fascinating new documentary JODOROWSKY’S DUNE. Call this new film a super “making of” DVD or BluRay extra for a film that only exists in unrealized dreams..

Well, it’s dreams and a massive hernia-inducing book chock full of glorious art (sketches, visualization paintings, costume designs, and storyboards). As the doc begins, film maker Nicolas Windinf Refin (DRIVE) boasts about “seeing” the epic mid-1970’s Alejandro Jodorowsky-directed movie adaptation of writer Frank Herbert’s science fiction 1965 classic “Dune”. The phrase “seeing” refers to Refin visualizing the movie in his imagination as Jodorowsky took him through the book and acted out scenes. After leaving copies of this huge tome at several studios, he has one of only two copies supposedly left. The film then delves into the life story of Jodorowsky who first made his reputation as a director of experimental theatre in Mexico before turning to film in the late 60’s and making a cult midnight movie hit with his 1970 film EL TOPO (starring himself). After his next film in 1973, THE HOLY MOUNTAIN Jodorowsky joined forces with a French businessman Michel Seydoux for his next movie project. Although he had never read the novel, after hearing raves from several friends Jodorowsky decided he would adapt Herbert’s “Dune”. The film tells the story of how he enlisted artists (Chris Voss, HR Giger, and Jean “Moebius” Giraud), musicians (Peter Gabriel, Pink Floyd, Magma) special effects techs (Dan O’Bannon future co-writer of ALIEN), and actors (David Carradine, Mick Jagger, Salvador Dali, his son Brontis, and, of course, Mr. Welles) to be part of the doomed enterprise (I remember reading of the film’s impending release in mid-70’s horror and SF movie fan magazines and tabloids such as “The Castle of Frankenstein” and “The Monster Times’). The doc traces the project from inception to dissolution with a look at the adaptation that was later made, 1984’s DUNE directed by David Lynch, and the legacy and influence of this legendary undertaking.

Documentarian Frank Pavich keeps the film moving at a brisk pace for all of its ninety minutes. Many of the interviews are standard talking heads, but thankfully the most prominent one is the ‘mad genius’ himself Jodorowsky. With his flowing white hair and beard and his eyes still blazing with passion, he’s an engaging silver lion who seems decades younger than his eighty-plus years. He still retains a fire, a passion for this unfinished, unfilmed work. His tales of trying to gather cast and crew sound more like a warrior inspiring an army or a slightly unhinged messiah assembling his flock to create a cult rather than a motion picture. He tells Welles that his favorite French chef would be on set during production in order to get his committment. He meets rock icons Pink Floyd at the mythic Abbey Road Studios and berates them for eating hamburgers and not giving him their full attention. The best recollection may be from the late O’Bannon via an audio interview (illustrated with some wonderful whimsical graphics). He tells of a talk in which Jodorowsky bent reality like Mandrake the Magician or Doctor Strange, thanks, in large part, to the powerful potent herbs they shared. And then there’s the art, the dazzling, glorious art! We see Voss at his studio displaying the mind-boggling designs for different transports. Giger talks from a museum exhibit as his gorgeous, but often disturbing art is shown. But this film is truly a tribute to the titanic talents of Moebius. The tragedy of his passing two years ago is driven home by the wondrous costume sketches and storyboards (these comic strips are brough to life via CGI movie magic). We never hear him speak, but the master’s incredible work speaks volumes about the film fantasy denied to us. But there is that Lynch film and we do get Jodorowsky;s surprising and hilarious reaction to it. The film ends with the makings of a movie conspiracy. Those massive production books were supposedly lost by the studios, but Pavich finishes the film with side-by-side comparisons to its pages and scenes from future fantasy epics ranging from the campy 1980’s flicks of FLASH GORDON and MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE up to THE MATRIX and PROMETHEUS. Co-incidence or conspiracy? It’s a pretty persuasive argument. Well, here’s a fact that’s very clear: JODOROWSKY’S DUNE is one of the best making of documentaries about a film never made. Oh, to have a time machine (and load of cash to invest)…

4.5 Out of 5

JODOROWSKY’S DUNE opens everywhere and screens exclusively in the St. Louis area at Landmark’s Tivoli Theatre

Jodorowskys-Dune-Movie-Poster