I have been so excited for this movie, and beyond thrilled it is available on HBO Max. I LOVED the 1984 version of Dune which was produced by Dino de Laurentis and directed by David Lynch, the absolute A team of the time. CGI was only about ten years old in 1984, and granted watching that same movie today, the movie shows its age. But, 1984’s Dune had a true storyline and plot, it didn’t rely on special effects to carry it.
So, will the 2021 version forego storyline and character development for the splash bang of CGI? With a budget of $150 million there is plenty of money for overloading CGI.
Enough background, let's get to our story which is set very far in the future and in a faraway galaxy. The most valuable item in the universe is “Spice” a hallucinogenic which is essential to space travel as it extends lifespan and youth. Spice is only found on the desert planet Arrakis, due to the harsh environment it is harvested by massive floating harvesters at night or morning to avoid the heat of the day. Harkkonans, the harvesters of Spice, were brought to Arrakis generations before to develop harvesting techniques and machinery. They mastered harvesting with little regard to the planet and the native people of Arrakis called the Fremen. But change is in the air, and the Emperor has decried the Harkonnen to leave Arrakis and will be replaced by the leadership of Duke Leto Atreides of the House Atreides. But, what is behind the Emperor’s change of leadership on the most important planet in the universe?
The well liked House Atreides currently resides on the lush planet of Caladan. Why send someone to a desert planet with no education regarding Spice? It doesn’t matter if you are on earth or a planet a galaxy away….a set up is a set up and the Emperor is setting up Duke Leto big time. The ploy is the Emperor wants the Duke to form an allegiance with the Freman and to bring peace to Arrakis. The Duke has no choice but to agree to the transfer to Arrakis but all are not happy with the prospect of moving to a desert planet. Son Paul (Timothee Chalamet) and his mother Lady Jessica have other matters they are dealing with. Lady Jessica is a member of the Bene Gesserit, for lack of a better description, psychic witches who dress in black. Lady Jessica broke the rules by giving birth to a male child who then inherited her psychic powers. This puts her out of favor with her aunt Gaius Helen Mohiam, the head of the Bene Gesserit. Paul’s powers are tested by Gaius (not a fan of this scene) and after she confides to Lady Jessica that Paul “could be the one, to bridge space and time, past and future to bring us into a better future”. So, I guess Jessica is back into the good graces as Paul may be the long awaited Savior
Interspaced thru out we are witness to Paul’s dreams of the desert planet, battles and a strange blue eyed girl. Prior to leaving Caladan, Paul and his father visit their ancestral cemetery where Paul confides his dreams to his father who responds “dreams are great stories, but when we awaken is when we make things happen.” Paul is concerned with his leadership abilities and again asks his father “ Dad, what if I’m not the future of the house of Atreides?’ His father replies “A great man doesn’t seek to lead, he is called to it but if your answer is no, you’d still be the only thing I ever needed, you are my son.” Such a nice moment, but you sense this is the setup to dark times coming, in the cemetery surrounded by generations of deceased fathers and sons.
When the Duke and family arrive on Arrakis they find the Harkonnen disabled many of the harvesters and are not making the transition an easy one for the new leadership. On the bright side the Duke’s right hand man Duncan (played by Jason Momoa) has kindled a budding friendship with the native Fremen.
What the Duke doesn’t know is the Emperor has a side deal with House of Harkonnen to overrule House Atreides. The Emperor is threatened by the Duke’s popularity and possibly losing future control of spice, and plots a coup with the Harkonnen to eliminate the House Atreides completely.
Lets talk about the supporting cast, first I have to say this is the best performance I’ve ever seen from Jason Momoa as Duncan. Josh Brolin as Gurney, also very good and David Bautista as Beast Harkonnen, is scary good in this role. There has been so much press with Chalamet and Zendaya as Chani, but 95% of Zendaya is in Paul’s dreams, so it was a bit disappointing. She will be a major character moving forward in the future Dune Part 2.
And as for Timothee Chalamet as Paul Atreides, excellent casting. He begins as a typical teenager not wanting to practice his sword fighting, having dreams of a beautiful blue eyed girl in a desert, and he portrays it perfectly. Then Chalamet seamlessly develops Paul’s character to potential savior of the universe and Head of the House of Atreides.
As I stated in the opening I watched this at home via HBO Max, but this is the type of movie screaming for full theatre viewing. I’m not comfortable with that right now, so I’m glad it was available streaming.
My one negative is how the movie ended, it’s abrupt. I feel it could of gone a bit further to set up the sequel, but at 2 hours and 35 minutes did I really want another ten minutes? The ending was disappointing, and now we will probably have to wait 2-3 years for the sequel, so maybe it was better not to have a cliff hanger type ending?
I don’t know, but I do know I liked this movie, which was filmed beautifully, great cast and script.
Dune Part One is rated B+. As for a beverage…Paul is drinking recycled urine, sweat and tears so let’s stay hydrated and have a tall bottle of your favorite H2o.
