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Rating: 4.5 out of 5
“I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone, there will be nothing. Only I will remain.”
I watched the original Dune, which is still a meh movie. The film was okay, but the only good thing is the quote, “He who controls the spice, controls the universe.” When I heard a remake of the movie would be made, I didn’t even give it a chance to see it in the theatres. I figured it would be another terrible movie. I waited years to watch this film and debated whether I wanted it. One day, it was on HBO Max, and I decided to give the movie a chance. HOLY SHIT, did this film blow my mind. It is my new fantasy film. I read the book, and it almost matches it. There is so much I love about this film.
Directed by Denis Villeneuve, who co-wrote the screenplay with Jon Spaihts and Eric Roth, Dune is part one of the 1965 novel of the same name from Frank Herbert. The movie follows Paul Atreides and his family of House Atreides after they are ordered by the emperor to take over the spice trade on the desert planet Arrakis. The year is 10191, and the balance of power and the tide of war is about to descend upon House Atreides. Duke Leto Atreides (Isaac), the ruler of the planet Caladan, has been ordered by the supreme ruler, Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV, to replace Baron Vladimir Harkonnen (Skarsgård) and House Harkonnen as the spice producers on the desert planet and sole spice producer, Arrakis. The spice is what makes the universe go and is needed by all. Paul Atreides (Chalamet), the Duke’s son, has been having intense visions but also has been trained as one that is forbidden. Paul finds himself caught in a battle that will destroy his entire house. The emperor had teamed with the Baron to destroy House Atreides. On the planet of Arrakis, whispers have been going through the lands and the mysterious, blue-eyed Fremen that a messiah will free them and the lands. Is Paul the messiah they speak of?
I want to first give it up to director Denis Villeneuve. I loved the way he made this film with the tone, atmosphere, and feel of the film. He took the book and made it into what it should’ve been. This is one of my new favorite movies because of the direction, tone, and everything else. I am stunned that he wasn’t nominated for best director at the Academy Awards. It is shameful and disrespectful because Villeneuve put out a fantasy masterpiece.
The film takes with it from the book. In an excellent way. At the center of the story is Paul Atreides. He is the Duke’s son but also has been training as a Bene Gesserit, which is a no-no. What I like about the story and film is that you can see all the pieces moving into place around Paul. Paul has vivid dreams of the future. He sees himself leading the Fremen but also causing mass genocide and destruction. Also, in his dreams, he sees a girl he is supposed to fall in love with on the lands of Arrakis. He sees the death of his friend Duncan but also getting mentored by Jamis, one of the Freman’s best warriors. These dreams cause Paul stress and sadness as he doesn’t know what to do with them.
Within Paul’s story is the spice, and those who control the flow of the spice are the actual rulers of the universe. The spice is harvested on the barren desert planet of Arrakis with deadly, big-ass worms. What I love about the story is the political backstabbing and games that go on to control the spice. House Harkonnen has controlled the spice, but the emperor plots to destroy House Atreides with them. House Atreides is seen as the benevolent house and lives on the planet of land and water. Got it so far. Also mixed in all this are the Fremen, natives to Arrakis, and the Bene Gesserit, an exclusive sisterhood whose members possess advanced physical and mental abilities. This is a cocktail of shit about to go down and explode.
The story picks up significantly when House Harkonnen, backed by the emperor’s elite warriors, attacks and destroys House Atreides. That shit is wild and insane to look at. I want to say that during this time, Duncan showed he was the hardest muthasucka in the entire universe. Homeboy took on people left and right. My favorite scene was when he was taking the ship. He fought three dudes and killed them. The other dudes were like, take the ship because you are too hardcore for me. His final scene was also intense as he took on the elite of the elite and brought down ten dudes.
What I want to talk about is that Paul, being the center and seems to be a god, doesn’t have a full view of the future. That his dreams are not set in stone. As stated earlier, Paul dreams of Jamis giving him words of wisdom and guidance. When the time came, Jamis and Paul fought to the death. This scene was crucial as it showed that Paul had to kill his former self or boyhood to become a man and the messiah the Fremen spoke about. This scene is also important as we don’t know what the future holds for Paul. If one vision is wrong or can be changed, then many other visions he has can be changed.
The visual and special effects were out of this world and a highlight of this film. Whoever did them needs to be applauded because they were eye-opening to watch. Watching the sheer size of the ships when they descended upon the world was something to look at. They didn’t even stop there; they showed the subtle wind on the sands of Arrakis that looked like waves. One scene told it all; it was the worm scene. When Paul came face to face with the worm, he looked so small. I was expecting a roar from the worm, but its sheer size told it all in this film.
I want to give props to Hans Zimmer. This dude right here knows how to make original scores for films. He is a genius and on another level. I don’t know how he doesn’t win the Academy Award each year because when he makes music, the dude goes hard. The music will keep you engaged in this whole film.
The acting is spot-on with each character. There are many to speak about and I am going to try and give each one their props in a quick sentence or two. Timothée Chalamet as Paul Atreides was excellent, and I thought he was a great choice for the character. As Paul, he showed that he was young but had a lot of potential to become what he was destined to be. Sometimes, he was dramatic, but the scene that he was overly dramatic was spot-on for the situation. Rebecca Ferguson as Lady Jessica was another great choice. Ferguson showed Jessica as someone who loved her son and the Duke yet was bound by her Bene Gesserit rules even though she broke them. I loved Ferguson as this character.
Oscar Isaac as Duke Leto Atreides was another excellent choice. As the Duke, he was fair, kind but knew he had a job to do even if he could see the end results a mile away. I want to give some love to Josh Brolin as Gurney Halleck. He was the weapons master of House Atreides and one of Paul’s mentors. Dude never smiled, and I loved the scene where the Duke asked him to smile, and he said he was. I know he will have a more prominent role in the second film, but I wanted to see this dude go off.
Stellan Skarsgård as Baron Vladimir Harkonnen was straight-up terrifying and menacing. The original film had this character as a boiled mess. This version had the Baron menacing, and I freakin loved it. His pale skin illuminated against the black background. His voice sounded cunning, but he knew death was close. Following close behind was Dave Bautista as Glossu Rabban. He was ruthless and wanted to see nothing but death and destruction.
Jason Momoa as Duncan Idaho was honestly my favorite character. Damn did Momoa show this dude going hard in the paint. He was the most exciting to watch and seemed to have such coolness and swag. Zendaya as Chani was cool. She was in the movie for about 5 minutes and didn’t say much. I know she will have a more significant part in the next film. Javier Bardem, as Stilgar, had an aura about himself and that we will get more from him in the next movie. I don’t know how the man’s knees could take it when sitting like that, but I give it to him.
Dune is one of my favorite films of the year. I am happy that I took the time to watch it. I can watch this film repeatedly because it is that good. The acting, story, visual effects, music, and everything associated with a movie were on point. I can’t wait until Part 2 comes out. He who controls the spice, controls the universe.
BONUS CLIP!!!
