Okay, true story, I’ve never read any of the Dune books, and I never watched the first film adaptation either. Before my time. Which meant that I went into Denis Villeneuve’s film adaptation with a clear mind and an open heart. I don’t really care about what was left out – what made it into the first Dune movie was great. I loved it. I thought it was gorgeous and well-acted. That scene where Oscar Isaac has been captured and they striped him naked on the chair? Holy sh-t. Timothee Chalamet kills it as Paul Atreides, Rebecca Ferguson is great as his witch mother and…yeah. It was just an enjoyable film.
I will go into the second film the same way – I don’t need to know the backstory or what happens in the books. People are excited to see the big new cast additions and I guess I am too. Florence Pugh has come on board as Princess Irulan, daughter of Emperor Shaddam IV. Austin Butler plays Prince Feydh-Rautha, who is apparently some kind of psychopath and serial killer. Lea Seydoux and Javier Bardem are also part of the cast now. Josh Brolin is back, as is Stellan Skarsgard, Zendaya and Dave Bautista. Here’s the first trailer for Dune 2: Bigger and Dunier.
So riding the dune worm is the equivalent of Neo dodging the bullets? It proves that Paul is The One? Some of the shots remind me of Daenerys Targaryen’s best “mother of dragons” scenes, especially Paul walking out on that cliff. Don’t tell me what happens! I want it to wash over me as I’m watching the movie. I was surprised by how much I loved the first film.
Photos courtesy of Dune/Vanity Fair Instagram.
My dad told me the story of Dune when I was 3 in the early 80’s. He just passed on Christmas. Thanks for the love of Dune, and sci fi in general.
I am more :/ at the fact that they couldn’t cast MENA actors for an epic set in the desert. At least one?
I do remember liking the books as a kid.
I love the books (well, the first two) but haven’t seen the first movie yet. The first picture with the slightly sparkly blue eyes made me laugh. Paul riding the worm is a test that all Fremen boys (rolls eyes) pass when they become of age, if I remember correctly. For Paul it was also a rite of passage, as it would symbolize he’s no longer a stranger, one of them, blah-blah. That in itself was not a big deal, but afterwards things got going.
Florence Pugh is BEC for me so I might skip this one.
It’s also the size of the worm he calls that is important. It’s the biggest one ever seen/ridden if I remember correctly.
Oh that’s right! I forgot that! It’s already a big test and then come the monster worm. The first book was great sci-fi. It really is worth reading. But the later ones, oof.
Bitch Eating Crackers? lol Although blonde, I feel Pugh was miscast. “Paul’s attention came at last to a tall blonde woman, green-eyed, a face of patrician beauty, classic in its hauteur, untouched by tears, completely undefeated.” Let’s see how she does in the role.
Dune was written in 1965, and when I was 10 (in 1995) I read them all. It looks fantastic! And to be honest…
Watching that trailer makes me really really really want to read them again lol
I have been re reading them. Brings me back to when I was a kid in the 1970s and reading them.
Florence Pugh’s headpiece in the photo intrigued me. It’s crochet!! I would love the pattern!!
Same!
I must confess the Bene Gesserit stuff was my favorite stuff in the books. After the third book or so skipped through them only reading the Bene Gesserit chapters. Saw the David Lynch adaptation opening night. Loved the new version. Am really looking forward to the second part of this one. He actually managed to make the story coherent.
I loved David Lynch version! He packed SO much material in ONE movie- which the latest version’s didn’t.
I’ve had the urge to get the Bene Gesserit…prayer? Litany against fear? Tattooed for yeeears because of them. I love!
I also love Lynch’s version- it’s so evocative of the book and gevdidvso much with so little time.
I love the Dune books- the first 3, anyway. I’ve read it so much I’ve gone thru 3 paperbacks. I’m loving TC as Paul and Zendaya as Chani. As much I love Jason Momoa, though, he was no Duncan Idaho. Like, not even a little. That casting annoyed me. But I still really like DV’s version and am looking forward to the second installment.
Also Sting will ALWAYS be Feyd to me.
Oh, so this might explain the so called :relationship” between TC and KK. TC had Dune coming up. He needed some promotion.
I don’t want to be a dick, but I don’t know if Kylie Jenner’s fans and the target market for this movie overlap very much
Hahaha!
Well…suffice to say you’re NOT a dick.
I liked the original adaptation but this is on a whole other level. The story is interesting but I loved the first movie (of this generation). Even without the story and the characters, it’s just beautiful. The scenery, the music, everything. Even if the dialogue was gibberish, I’d still watch it again.
I loved the movie. So much so, that I watched it twice in the cinema. Currently reading the books and I can not wait for the next part.
Although I was born in 1960, I only came to read Books 1-3 during the pandemic—on my son’s recommendation! Could not put them down. World building at its absolute finest. The first film did not disappoint. We can’t wait for the second!
@Kaiser, don’t feel obligated to read it – life is short and there are so many good (better) books. For my generation, “Dune” (also “Steppenwolf”) was like the “Harry Potter” of its day. I haven’t seen the new ones, but the original movie was very true to the book, and thus a surefire cure for insomnia.
If you feel the need for sci-fi in your life, read some Connie Willis! (You’re welcome!)
It’s so fun seeing so many Dune fans here in the comments!
My mom got me to read it when I was young and I’ve read them all, even the newer ones from Brian. My husband and I bonded over a shared love of the books and our daughter’s name is Leta.
I loved the first movie and how subtle some things were. I feel like a lesser director would have crammed it so full of action it would have stripped away the meaning of the moments. I can’t wait for the new one!
I LOVE DUNE! I saw the movie when it came out and loved it in the theater, even though I didn’t really understand it. I read the book later, saw the movie again, and thought it was ridiculous. Then I read all 6 books, loved the way the Paul story, which is a basic “revenge tale,” was swallowed into a bigger story of power and governance of a planetary empire, via the all-women Bene Gesserit. I love the way that we don’t end with the standard revenge plot ending–Paul’s triumph and leadership of the Fremen creates an entirely new set of problems. I was always the kid who wondered what happened after the story was over, especially the stories that gave a “happily ever after” ending. Dune explores all of the consequences of assuming power over a galactic empire, how difficult it is to hold that empire together, and how easy it is to become trapped by the very myths you fought so hard to create.
I advise anyone who has read the first book (and liked it–fine if you don’t) to definitely read books 2 and 3: Dune Messiah and Children of Dune, to see the complete arc of Paul’s story. I also advise people who are still interested in the world of Dune after that (and many aren’t) to slog your way through book 4: God Emperor of Dune–which may seem like a chore–it was for me at first, but I came to appreciate it much later, and then read 5 and 6–which is the story of the latter day Bene Gesserit in a fight for their very existence. Skip all the Brian Herbert books (the new Dune Universe books)–they are just cash grabs–poorly written and bad world building. The 6 Dune books stand on their own.
I love all six books too and have read them all multiple times since the 80s when I first read them as a teen. I actually love 4, and 6 has generally been my favorite. But in rereading them before the first Dune movie came out 3 and 5 really hit home – the fanaticism that’s central to both of those books really took on new meaning in a post Trump world. It was like Herbert could see the rise of the MAGA hordes.
So, so true about the fanaticism. There’s a Youtube channel I like named Quinn’s Ideas that does a great job deconstructing and discussing the elements of Dune. He’s a young black guy and he’s really well versed in the Dune universe–his videos are really well-researched and thorough.
I love Darwi Odrade–book 6 has become my favorite as well after multiple reads of the whole series. I love how the consequences of Paul’s actions resonate over thousands of year, and how leaders can be deified, and then fall under the weight of their own mythology.
I LOVED the books but am still not on the Timothee as Paul train – lets see how he pulls off this part of the story. The rest of the cast is pretty much spot on – am just depressed as Oscar Issac won’t be in it.
I haven’t seen Dune 1 yet (not sure what I’m waiting for–maybe I’m waiting to see it closer to when Dune 2 comes out)–but he has to be better than both Kyle Maclachlan (much too old) and the guy who played Paul in the SciFi channel adaptation, (which warmed my heart, even though it looked really cheap–it reminded me of a Dune school play. But the actor who played Paul was woefully miscast). At least Timothee has a look that fits Herbert’s description–undersized, sinewy. Jessica looks great, even though i really liked the Jessica in the David Lynch film, and the Jessica in the Children of Dune sequel. ( I still think of James MacAvoy as Leto 2).
A young James McAvoy would have made a great Paul – Paul is a complex character esp in the 2nd half of the book where he starts and leads the bloody and violent Jihad.
Timothee as Paul in the first part of the book kinda works but am not sure he can pull off the Paul that emerges in the 2nd half.
I think Oscar will be present and accounted for – but just in flashbacks (the books have many). Timothy grew on me (and believe me I wasn’t much of a fan at first).
I haven’t read the books but really enjoyed the first film, even though I watched it on a plane. The new trailer looks amazing, can’t wait!
There’s no film that have me more excited and screaming like a little girl (I’m a tall gay man) like these movies!
I haven’t felt this level of anticipation since Matrix or hell, even Titanic. Or Lord of the Rings!
I’m absolutely in love with the director and his creative mind, so ahhhhh can’t take it! Want to watch it Now.
The Dune movies makes me actually want to go to the cinema. And I hate people.
I was not a huge fan of Lynch’s Dune. It was okay. Had a great cast.
I went to see this one, not sure if I’d like it, but I REALLY DID.
And I am looking forward to this one!
This is my husband’s favorite book, so even though I haven’t read it, he has told me all about it. I like Zendaya and was blown away by Rebecca Ferguson in the first, so I am looking forward to the second.
I will say, my understanding is that Feyd is supposed to be really good looking, so it’s weird that Austin Butler was picked and then uglified. But maybe he is still the best looking harkonen, even with the bald head and no eyebrows
I literally only remembered that Timothee and Florence were Laurie and Amy in Little Women after watching the trailer, and I loved them together in that. It’s gonna so trippy seeing them as Paul and Princess Irulan, given what I know of that relationship in the books.
I wonder how much of the saga Denis Villeneuve will actually adapt? Dune gets EXTREMELY fucking weird. Iirc, the first two books are the only even remotely narratively normal. I love the themes and subversion explored, but I really don’t know how a mainstream, blockbuster kind of adaptation would handle God Emperor. Denis probably sticks strictly to Paul’s story.
It would make sense to do books 1,2,3 as 5 movies: Dune 1 and 2 for Dune, 1 film for Dune Messiah, and 2 films again for Children of Dune. I thought the sci fi channel Children of Dune was a better adaptation than its Dune–it looked better, and was acted better. They made a good decision to age Ghanima and Leto 2 to teenagers. I don’t think any 9 year old pair of actors could really have the gravitas to come across as pre-born (containing all the memories of every ancestor in their lineage–basically old before birth).
God Emporer would be a tough film to tackle–not much happens narratively, and the God Emperor would be hard to bring to life. CGI? How to create an image that’s believable, magestic, terrifying without looking laughable? The last 2 books could be a movie each–there’s a lot of territory, but they could be streamlined I think because there’s a lot of fast-paced action.
I don’t know that there would be enough interest to sustain a film exploration of all 6 books as major motion pictures. Maybe streaming for the last 3 books? They require a lot of engagement from the 1st 3 books–they aren’t really stand-alone, and they are much more complex than say Star Wars (and you can see how Star Wars borrowed a neck of a lot from Dune).
Always more Dune! I’m so excited!! I hope they go on to do all the original books.
I read the books and am a super fan. I can’t wait until part 2 comes out. I don’t think much was left out of the first one. People who hadn’t read the books were upset that Zendaya’s part seemed small. It is not. She should really come into play for this part and the rest of the seasons.
Chani doesn’t even show up until after Paul gets to Dune other than in his dreams, so that was a weird critique to me. I guess they over-promised Chani in the ad campaign? Maybe they needed Zendaya to get butts in seats?
I adored the most recent movie! It was as if Denis Villeneuve crawled into my brain and brought the Dune of my imagination to life. I am uncontrollably excited for the next installment. But…what did they do to poor Austin Butler? When he was cast I thought “Perfect!”. Without giving too much away, his character might turn out to be as twisted and brutal as the rest of his family, but he doesn’t look it. He is supposed to be a charming, beautiful baby-faced killer and the trailer has him just looking like a monster.
He isn’t really described as beautiful–he’s a sullen teenager in the book who’s bored and sneaky–plotting against his uncle. I think the beautiful might have come down the line from Sting wearing the speedo in the film, even though he was also too old for Feyd. He was more “charming” in the SciFi channel series. If I recall–everything about Geidi Prime was monstrous–when Count Fenring and Lady Margot went there, they were desperate to leave as quickly as possible after Lady Margot completed her mission. They lamented what Feyd could have become had he been raised by the Atredies. But the no hair design, from stills I’ve seen, is due to the planet, right? The planet was a hell-hole, a toxic place. It’s cool that they give that toxicity a visual representation. I think of Geidi Prime sometimes when I think of climate change deniers–they want to make Earth into a toxic waste dump like Geidi Prime.
I loved the Dune books (well the first one the most then they got progressively worse – stopped after the Giant Worm pontificating one, book 4) – but it SUCH great world building and scifi. Not constant battles like in most scifi (although obviously plenty of it). I loved all the versions of Dune, even the weird David Lynch one. I am excited that they actually are completing the story.
I loved the book, but was underwhelmed by the movie. Too much like the last Blade Runner- colour scheme too dark, too long, too much try-hard on being a “serious movie”. I also don’t like how they did Jessica. I’ll probably watch pt 2, but not too excited for it.
Now the Dune series is something they should actually make into a tv show!
I have yet to finish the first film. I couldn’t get through it the first time I tried. Important stuff took place at night and I had zero idea of what was happening. My ADHD brain was very distracted trying to wrap my brain around each element of the new world and I felt like I was dropped into the 6th book of a 7 book series. Plus my tv is old. That means old speakers too and everything I stream on HBO seems to feature mumbled/whispered dialog and blaringly loud music and other noises. I can tell you that there were 5 footsteps and a cello playing but not what anybody whisper mumbled. This time I’m watching with audio description and subtitles and it’s helping a lot. Except I got up and wandered away at some point and forgot to pause it. I will try again later. A half hour at a time may be all I can say pay attention to.