Film Review - Dune (12A)

 A great man doesn't seek to lead...

Of the many film releases postponed by the pandemic, Denis Villeneuve's retelling of Dune was the delay that frustrated me most. I read the first Dune novel as a teenager, and while I admired rather than out-and-out liked it, the material seemed perfectly suited to the vastness and clarity of Villeneuve's storytelling imagination. Anyone who can expand on a film as iconic as Blade Runner, complimenting it while making a sequel so much their own, is a perfect choice for Herbert's multi-planet cerebral space-opera. But with Covid cancellations cranking up the already insane hype of modern studio films to barely matchable levels, could this one do anything less than disappoint? Thankfully the answer is a solid YES.

For those unfamiliar with the Duniverse (I surely can't be the first to make that dreadful pun), here's the non-spoilery gist of the story and mythology. The desert planet of Arrakis is the richest in the/some/our(?) galaxy, due to the prevalence in its dunes of a mind-expanding substance referred to as 'spice'. This of course makes the planet and its indigenous people, the 'Fremen', prey to unscrupulous invading forces, which is why the noble Atreides family has been tasked with overseeing the mining of spice from the planet surface. But there's another reason why the destiny of Paul, son of house Atreides (Timothee Chalamet - above), is linked to the planet and its people, all to do with his mother Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson - above) and her links to a mysterious sisterhood called the Bene Gesserit. And when terms like 'fate' and 'destiny' start to get attached to a person, they have reason to start worrying about whether they should go with their family to a specified planet at all. That's without taking bitter rivalries, treachery and sand-worms the size of the Channel Tunnel into account.

The reason why the Dune novels have frequently been labelled 'unfilmable' (despite two previous adaptations) is their epic scope and sheer depth of mythology, brimming as the stories are with religious and political allegory. It's what makes Villeneuve the perfect filmmaker for the job. While his 2016 movie Arrival showed that he could do convincingly real science-fiction spectacle, the more recent Blade Runner: 2049 proved he was equal to the task of full-scale world building. The new Dune is on a whole other level of expansiveness - call it universe building on the level of Star Wars, but with a much more adult tone. This is big storytelling, but however vast, it feels solid and lived-in rather than computer-made and in any way fake. The planetary landscapes and space travel are awe-inspiring (the influence of 2001: A Space Odyssey is clear in the latter), and the interiors are intricately detailed without ever feeling cluttered. It's visually mesmerising, however restrained in its use of colour (maybe more so because of that), with Hans Zimmer's music and a rich soundscape adding to the depth and character of everything on screen. 

It's all of those audio and visual aspects, along with a roster of authentic performances from a head-turning cast, that keep viewers (well, a lot of them) absorbed in a narrative that's deliberately paced. There's a ton of set-up here - different families, races and belief systems rooted in long histories - and the film takes its time, using craft and nuanced performance over exposition to introduce us to several different worlds. Chalamet confirms his blockbuster-shouldering status as the reserved but emotionally deep-rooted protagonist, with Ferguson and Oscar Isaac rounding out the Atreides family with a true sense of familial bond (Ferguson is particularly good here). Jason Mamoa goes beardless after Game of Thrones and Aquaman as the family's charismatic master of arms, Stellan Skarsgard oozes menace pretty much literally as their nemesis Baron Harkonnen, and Sharon Duncan-Brewster is arguably most fascinating of all, as a planetologist with divided loyalties. And Zendaya shows up enigmatically in dream sequences, with the promise that her character will really matter down the line.

Because this is a Part One, and it's good to know that going in. Dune 2021 is effectively the opening to an even bigger story, one of colossal scale and moral complexity, and nothing is going to get resolved here. That's not to say the film isn't complete in itself - it's a satisfyingly complete first act. There's some relief, then, that Dune Part Two has been green-lit, so that you can go see this one in the knowledge that you won't be left hanging. And I do encourage you to see it at the cinema, in IMAX if possible, to get the full force of the film's look and have the sound run through your bones. In terms of cinematic craft alone this Dune is remarkable - if its follow-up expands and concludes the narrative in a way that matches, it'll be nothing short of a cinematic milestone. At least it's now assured that we'll find out.

Gut Reaction: Just awe. As in 'awwwww' - when do I get to see the rest?

Memorable Moment: The bit between where it starts and when it stops. Okay then - the sand-worm reveal is frickin' awesome. 

Ed's Verdict: 9/10. Subject to change in an upwards direction, if Part Two turns this from audio-visual poetry to full-on Lawrence of Arabia in Space greatness. With Denis in charge, there's a better than even chance it will.