I feel like there are going to be 3 types of people who watch Dune, those who have read the books by Frank Herbert, those who have seen the old and extremely bizarre David Lynch film and those who haven’t. For those of you who have read the books, and I, to my chagrin, have not, then I believe/have been told it is closer to the source material than Lynch’s film; by a long way. For those who have seen the old film, and I have, fear not it puts that mess to bed.. and before all the Lynch fans, well, lynch me, even David Lynch hates that film… lynch, the word’s lost all meaning. Finally, if you haven’t read the book, or seen the meaningless word film, then you are in for a treat. One with lots of questions and an “aww maaan” when it ends prematurely, but a treat all the same.
As always I’m not going to bore you with reams of story plot and potential spoilers as that’s kinda what watching the film is all about but basically its Like Star Wars, set solely on Tatooine, meets Stargate, meets Game of Thrones, meets Preacher (if you know you know) and is riddled with stars from your favourite Sci-fi and Superhero films; Josh Brolin, Jason Momoa, Oscar Isaac to name but a few.
To go with these big names Dune is visually stunning, musically evocative and narratively well-paced; albeit you have understand this is the first part of what it likely to be a trilogy so there is no “payoff” at the end. Also, it doesn’t spend ages with back story and doesn’t go into loads of detail re the tech and circumstances but pretty much lets you make up your own mind and or do your own research after.. Why do they all carry blades instead of guns? Personal shields prevent fast projectiles from penetrating but slower attacks, like those from melee weapons can get through; simplz.
Fights are visceral, Characters are relatable and the setting, in what is a complex set of lore from the books, is portrayed well and despite the Fellowship of the rings, walking off into the distance sort of ending it leaves you wanting more and looking forward to the next film; definitely worth watching!
Dune is out on general release 22nd October