Media in Review: Dune

Dune is a titan of science fiction text and Frank Herbert's world-building prowess stands up to the best in the genre. With a massive universe, an intense political theatre, and cut-throat dynasties fueled by capital greed, all interspersed with intense combat--both against political enemies and against the ludicrous beast that is the Arrakian frontier-- how does Dune translate to the silver screen? Here's what Madeline Short and Riley Rogers have to say.

With a star-studded cast, I was expecting to be blown away by the new Dune adaptation. I walked into the theater with high expectations. And I was disappointed.

To be fair, I had pretty much no idea what the movie was about. My aunt recommended it, and I liked the cast, so of course, I was going to see it, but I walked out feeling underwhelmed. The movie that was longer than 2 hours I felt could have been summarized by a brief 2-minute flashback at the beginning of the next movie. Although the brilliant cast did well, I did not feel that they could save the movie from being slightly boring.

For the contents of the movie itself, I did find it interesting, but not as action-packed as I would have liked. It was a lot of talking, and I was expecting more action than what was present. Although, I enjoyed the ending, and thought that they set up the sequential movies wonderfully.

Overall, I would give this movie a 6/10. I did not hate it, but I did not particularly enjoy it. The acting was great, although, in my opinion, it was too long a movie, and the storyline didn’t meet my expectations. However, regardless of how I felt about this movie, I know I will definitely be watching the next one.

- Riley Rogers

I’d be lying if I said I planned to see Dune because the book created the modern sci-fi genre, or because it had some ineffable impact on my childhood as seems to be the case for so many others, including the director Denis Villeneuve. I can definitively say my motivations were not that pure.

No, I’d seen the posters and maybe half a trailer a year ago and the only thing that stuck out to me was that Zendaya and Timothee Chalamet were cast in it—along with what seemed to be half of A-list Hollywood. Forget the desert planet and the weird hype about the giant worm: there’s nothing quite like Zendaya to make me see a movie. Though, if that’s your only reason for going, be prepared to sit through a two-hour and thirty-six-minute movie for a total of seven minutes of Zendaya screen time—which was one of my only complaints walking out of the theatre with my friends.

That, and maybe the length. It is truly a long movie, and it’s not afraid to remind you of that. There is only one large action scene in the entire movie and it lasts all of ten minutes. Everything else is politics and a truly insane number of names that are almost impossible to remember. One of my friends, I believe, called it “a slog,” and while I heavily disagree, I can’t say they’re entirely wrong.

And yet, in the first month it was out I saw it three times in theaters and I’d just as soon see it another three.

Because it may not be for everyone but it is undeniably an experience, and one I immensely enjoyed.

The scale of the entire movie, the entirely new galaxy, is clear in every shot—from our main character Paul Atreides (Timothee Chalamet) a mere speck on a beach as a spaceship rises out of the ocean behind him, to the maw of the sandworm that everyone's heard so much about as it devours a sand crawler. And Villeneuve does not sacrifice art for this scale as so many blockbuster films have tended to do in recent years, instead using it to enhance the cinematography. It is truly beautiful: the spice, a hallucinogenic substance found in the desert, glittering over the sands of Arrakis, the elaborate and varied costumes and cultures—from the noble and military garb of House Atreides to the functional sand suits of the Fremen—and the beautiful shots he crafts from a mix of practical and VFX worlds.

And, obviously, the beauty of the cast cannot be denied.

Timothee Chalamet has perfected the angst of a teen boy in any age or universe, and this experience gained from his other projects, like Call Me By Your Name and Ladybird, shines in his portrayal of Paul Atreides, the young troubled son of a duke: Paul is struggling with the weight of his future as any teenager can understand, while also coming into his almost witch-like powers, inherited and learned from his mother. And all of this in the midst of a brewing war. Chalamet captures this perfectly, delivering lines like “But grandfather fought bulls for sport!” with all the whiny energy of a teenager denied the thing they want, while bringing all the weight of Paul’s frequent visions and the dread they conjure to every conversation, especially with his mother, the Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson).

She and the rest of the cast shine, especially her and Oscar Isaac, Paul’s father the Duke Atreides—together, with Paul, a picture of a family that is tormented by circumstances they cannot control that threaten to tear them apart. And, of course, no one can deny the talent of Zendaya. Despite her limited screen time, her ethereal and haunting presence hangs over the entire story through Paul’s beautiful, and sometimes horrifying, visions—always invoking a sense of unease and a story of giant proportions that perhaps neither Paul nor the audience truly understands yet.

And the sound design and score masterfully designed by Mark Mangini and Hans Zimmer respectively are half of this epic feel. I saw it once in a theater with surround sound and a woman in the row in front of me had to frequently cover her ears, the music a swelling pulse I could feel in my bones. I couldn't get enough—the deep echoing of the Sadukaran throat singing, the high-pitched humming of the ornithopters, and of course, the experimental sounds Zimmer conjured to perfectly sonically match the unfamiliarity and weirdness of an entire unknown galaxy.

And so for a supposedly unadaptable 700-page slog, the day after I saw the film I went out and bought the book, and if that’s not the point of an adaptation—and the mark of a good one—I don’t know what is.

- Madeline Short