Dune (2020)

I saw the movie and quite liked it for its surroundings, music and visual effects. I like seeing big stone buildings and architecture displayed on screen and the movie doesn't dissappoint because that's part of the grandiosity and religious impact which is one of the core themes of the books. If this is the standard they are setting then the "Dune Emperor" (3rd movie in the series) has even grander architecture which would be exciting to watch on-screen. The acting was okayish and that's because there simply aren't good actors remaining in Hollywood anymore who can act out Frank Herbert's characters. You've got to read the books to understand why the Dune series are difficult to adapt to a big screen whilst retaining the full emotional content of the books. Mind you, the TV series were still done pretty well and I would rate them above the movie due to better dialogue.

I am definitely looking forward to the next installments and I hope they go all the way to "The God Emperor" and the rest. That would be quite a spectacle.
 
I was immersed and lost myself from the moment the movie began. Visually stunning and the sound/score was highly effective. It is very true to the book, as far as can be on screen, though stuff is left out (apparently, the directors cut is 5 hours long!! - half of the footage was cut for theatrical release!! —really looking forward to seeing Villeneuve’s completed vision). In particular, Dr. Huey and Thufir Hawat were trimmed down to a bare minimum. Director’s cut, here we go! 😁
 
I find it interesting that Atreides is a name mentioned in Greek myths. Tantalus is the head of the Atreides family. His grandson is Atreus, whose name became the name of the family. The Atreus family story is full of vengeance, adultery and cannibalism although this isn't featured in Dune.

The Atreides family myths are also mirrored in the bible. Atreus son' Agamemnon is similar to Jephthah in the bible. Both sacrificed their daughters. Jephthah is also similar to King David with similar stories and families. That there are so many references of the Atreides in myths, bible and now the Dune books seems to be hinting that the Atreides family played an important role in history. Maybe the writer Frank Herbert tapped into his past memories, or Thor's pantheum has been busy sending ideas into his mind, or he got his ideas from some intelligence agencies.

The spice melange reminds me of "loosh", the energy that's harvested by the 4D STS beings.

The sandworms remind me of the worms mentioned in the bible, such as Job 25:6 "How much less man, that is a worm? and the son of man, which is a worm?"
One of the key characters merged with a sandworm, which is another parallel with the bible.
Serpents and worms have been used interchangeably. Maybe worms represent our reptilian brains/predator's mind and the lizzies?

I do like the blend of scifi and mystical elements in the trailer and the director has created great films. The cynical side of me, however, sees this as a propaganda film to portray the Atreides as heroes without the questionable stuff that's found in the myth and bible. The media is controlled as we all know.
 
@thisplacerocks , you need to read the books to understand the symbology. Dune books started out as ecology novels as described by Frank himself and morphed into exploration of the “ultimate tyrant” idea. In the later novels, Frank explores the pitfalls of Artificial Intelligence in his own unique way. The spice represents the oil, a supposedly finite resource on Earth and the tensions it created in the middle-east during the 60s and 70s which continue still.

The Atreides name is taken from the history and the Atreides family in the books refer themselves as direct descendents of Agamemnon but not before they separated from the Harkonnens ie both of these factions have descended from the same lineage. The Earth is also referenced indirectly when the characters mention human histories and their religious follies. As any writings go, there is bound to be symbolic references to bible etc due to the way archetypes function and ideas develop in the human mind.
 
I've read the book (long long ago, probably almost 2 decades ago), saw the Syfy channel mini-series adaptations (Dune and Children of Dune), saw the 1984 film adaptation with Sting in it, saw docu Jodorowsky's Dune and, now, Denis Villanueve's most recent adaptation.

There used to be an old website (more than a decade old at least) that detailed why Star Wars was a rip-off of Dune; here is a sample of what Google search spit out: Everything STAR WARS Borrowed From DUNE - Nerdist

I loved this latest adaptation of Dune; I'd say the most recent Star Wars trilogy is the "cartoon version" of an epic space saga while this newly released Dune is the mature take on what a space saga is.

The movie is long enough as it is (2 hours and 40 mins) but there also seems to be a lot left out off the first half of the book; but I kind of like what was covered and what was left out; they covered enough of the important details of "tracking the progress/growth" of Paul without getting "stuck in the weeds" having to explain all the rich history and motivations of the various factions but leaving just enough for those familiar with the book to follow along and those without exposure to the books to have enough "nuggets" to explore the book and learn more. At least in my opinion.

Now that there is news about the 2nd movie being greenlit, I have something to look forward to; aside from the usual things we are looking forward to: meteor stike(s), earthquakes, erupting super volcanoes, thinning of the veil, the wave, economic upheaval, etc. :-D
 
Now that there is news about the 2nd movie being greenlit, I have something to look forward to; aside from the usual things we are looking forward to: meteor stike(s), earthquakes, erupting super volcanoes, thinning of the veil, the wave, economic upheaval, etc. :-D
The irony is in a strong possibility of latter becoming a showstopper for former.
 
The irony is in a strong possibility of latter becoming a showstopper for former.
Nahhh, the ways C's perceive time is very different to us. I expect their is much much more human pain to experience before the comets come to put us out of our misery. In short, probably worth looking forward to the 2nd movie 😁

Ps, I really loved this movie. Never read the books and I thought it provided such intrigue that it made me super curious. Imagine how many people born after the books were written will become curious after seeing this? I'd say a lot!
 
@thisplacerocks , you need to read the books to understand the symbology. Dune books started out as ecology novels as described by Frank himself and morphed into exploration of the “ultimate tyrant” idea. In the later novels, Frank explores the pitfalls of Artificial Intelligence in his own unique way. The spice represents the oil, a supposedly finite resource on Earth and the tensions it created in the middle-east during the 60s and 70s which continue still.
The spice seems to represent several things. Oil, yes, and also a hyperdimensional resource like loosh because spice improves psychic abilities though in this case it is produced by sandworms not humans.

The Atreides name is taken from the history and the Atreides family in the books refer themselves as direct descendents of Agamemnon but not before they separated from the Harkonnens ie both of these factions have descended from the same lineage. The Earth is also referenced indirectly when the characters mention human histories and their religious follies. As any writings go, there is bound to be symbolic references to bible etc due to the way archetypes function and ideas develop in the human mind.
I get that stories share universal themes and archetypes. I'm just wondering whether there is any gnostic secret hidden in this movie like in the Matrix movies and the Truman show and books like Alice in Wonderland. Maybe my speculation is wrong, maybe it's right. When it comes to the occult, it's full of surprises. I think there may be more than a coincidence that the Atreides name is used. There are clues behind my speculation that the Atreides line is the Davidic line and Hiram line, and Agamemnon is Jephthah who is David.

Perhaps in the near future there will be a person similar to Paul Atreides or his children. I'm just wary of tyrants. Necessary for cosmic reasons but that doesn't mean an "ultimate tyrant" is 100% right.
 
That's an interesting aspect of the story. The atreides house have their own "mystics", but in the end, their bloodline and maybe some beliefs are manipulated by outside forces (the Beni gezerith in this case). This point will probably be made clearer when the lineage of Paul (through his mother) is revealed at some point. What's at play (like in reality) is that perceptions, religions, politics, etc. are all manipulated at some level or another by factions that are also manipulated. Just like outside of fiction.
 
There used to be an old website (more than a decade old at least) that detailed why Star Wars was a rip-off of Dune
That's the thing that I kept thinking about watching Dune. How so much of Star Wars is present in it. From the evil empire, to the Bene Gesserit/Jedis, to a desert planet playing prominently in the story. I never realized just how much George Lucas stole from Dune! I still quite enjoyed the movie. It's really meant to be watched in like an IMAX theater, not streamed at home. They definitely created an interesting and immersive world that kept my attention.
 
I still quite enjoyed the movie. It's really meant to be watched in like an IMAX theater, not streamed at home.

I wish. However, here in fascist Canada, the unvaccinated are persona non-grata, and cinema's a big no-no. Streaming it is.
Edit: Less than 10 minutes and I found a place to get it. It can be done.
 
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Theatres here in the States use screens out of the 50s... not much has changed since, except for platters so no projectionists are needed.
If you have access to a high def large screen tv, you have a WAY better experience with any movie. The difference is rather shocking.... the last couple of times I went to the thea tre, I asked them to check the focus... but that's the way it is and was it seems... It's been too long, I don't remember. The image quality is so bad by comparison.
The older versions of this film or that Arnold Martian movie seem campy by comparison to the remakes... so goes the times.
The only problem I had with this Dune film, is that they didn't shoot both together... the second installment hasn't been approved yet... HBO hasn't learned much in the past couple of decades... the industry knew they didn't have much time left in the 90s... 25 years later and like everything else in the OWO, planned obsolescence seems the norm... why invest in a future that you aren't in? Like the trucking issue out of South Cali.... every aspect of the problem is that none of the companies involved want to invest in their businesses... so they milk it for as long as they can without doing anything to solve their problems... It's the same everywhere... definitely a sign of the times.... endtimes.
 
but there are some issues with pacing, especially in the beginning.
For me that was a big issue. The visuals, music, some of the costumes and overall story idea are nice. But other than that, I didn't really like it that much. Pretty bland characters and relationships overall and just when the movie became more interesting, the movie ended. The main character also seems pretty emotionless most of the time. Not a very inspiring character, mostly confusing. Just my opinion, of course!
 
The main character also seems pretty emotionless most of the time. Not a very inspiring character, mostly confusing. Just my opinion, of course!
Annoying would be the first descriptif that comes to mind, but maybe that's what passes for acting these days :rolleyes:
 
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