ARTICLE WRITTEN & EDITED BY:
Lee Fenton
Well, this isn’t the Denis Villenieuve one.
No, long before the French-Canadian visionary decided to grace us with his reimagining of the renowned sci-fi classic, David Lynch attempted the challenging feat of adapting Frank Herbert’s ‘Dune’.
And when I say attempted, what I really mean is — failed miserably.
David Lynch’s version had some constraints due to the tech of the time – however, plenty of other motion pictures of the 80s that featured futuristic settings, managed to succeed where ‘Dune’ failed, suggesting that this film has more systemic flaws than just special FX or believability of setting.
The characters are written poorly, dialogue is atrocious, and for some reason there’s narration — in the form of inner monologues from the main character, Paul Atredies. It’s throughout the entire film. I hate this choice. Show don’t tell — is something David Lynch usually excels at — his visual motifs produce a meta-narrarive, in of themselves, at least most of his work, has that element . Not ‘Dune’.
Although, you do get some of his patented ability to make the viewer feel uncomfortable, through absurdist imagery. I mention the influence that ‘Dune (1984)’, may have had on another director’s work — in my review and analysis of the film ‘12 Monkeys’ by Terry Gilliam. Most likely — Gilliam also drew from the more esoteric works by Lynch, such as; ‘Lost Highway’, ‘Twin Peaks’, and ‘Mulhollund Drive’.
While watching ‘Dune (1984)’, a thought crept into my headspace. Why, oh why, am I so aware that I’m watching a movie? Was this the filmmakers intention…
Some directors (Wes Anderson for example) dispense with realism in lieu of creating a piece that resembles cinematic stagecraft. That is to say — Wes Anderson films are something more akin to a vibrant stage-production. When it comes to Dune ‘(1984)’, I feel this aesthetic was only partially achieved.
So, what are we left with?
Simple: uninspired and unexciting theatre. Complete with, archtypes for characters, sets that awkwardly lack volume, over-the-top performances, and writing that aged like rancid milk.
I originally watched this version of Dune in the early 2000s. It was garbage then — and it hasn’t improved in the years since.
Improving this abomination would be a miracle worthy of Mau’dib, himself.
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Rating: 2.5/10
3 oz of water recycled from your stillsuit. Yum.
PS: Man, I can’t wait to see Villenieuve’s ‘Dune 2′.
Written & Edited by: Lee Fenton
