Dune (1984)

Director:

David Lynch

Writers:

Frank Herbert (novel)
David Lynch (screenplay)

Release Date:

14 December 1984 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

You are about to enter a world where the unexpected, the unknown, and the unbelievable meet.

Plot:

In the distant future, a man appears who may be the prophet that a long-suffering galaxy has been waiting for.

Plot Keywords:

Planet | Duke | Emperor | Spice | Baron

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 win & 4 nominations

Cast

Francesca Annis	...	Lady Jessica
Leonardo Cimino	...	The Baron's Doctor
Brad Dourif	...	Piter De Vries
José Ferrer	...	Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV
Linda Hunt	...	Shadout Mapes
Freddie Jones	...	Thufir Hawat
Richard Jordan	...	Duncan Idaho
Kyle MacLachlan	...	Paul Atreides
Virginia Madsen	...	Princess Irulan
Silvana Mangano	...	Reverend Mother Ramallo
Everett McGill	...	Stilgar
Kenneth McMillan	...	Baron Vladimir Harkonnen
Jack Nance	...	Nefud
Siân Phillips	...	Reverend Mother Gaius Helen Mohiam (as Sian Phillips)
Jürgen Prochnow	...	Duke Leto Atreides

Runtime:

137 min | USA:190 min (special edition)

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Italian

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby (35 mm prints)

Certification:

Iceland:L | Italy:T | Spain:13 | Argentina:Atp | Australia:PG | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | Chile:TE | Finland:K-14 | France:U | Germany:16 (special edition) | Ireland:15 | Netherlands:12 | Norway:15 | Singapore:PG | Sweden:15 | UK:15 (video rating) (uncut) (1986) | UK:PG (original rating) (cut) | USA:PG-13 | West Germany:12 | Canada:A (Nova Scotia)

Filming Locations:

Churubusco Studios, Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico

Company:

De Laurentiis

Trivia:

David Lynch turned down the chance to direct Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983) to direct Dune (1984).

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: Some shots were reversed. The most obvious is when Paul Atreides takes the Water of Life; the nose piece of the stillsuit changes sides many times during that scene.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Princess Irulan: A beginning is a very delicate time. Know then, that is is the year 10191. The known universe is ruled by the Padishah Emperor Shaddam the Fourth, my father. In this time, the most precious substance in the universe is the spice Melange. The spice extends life...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Venture Bros.: Shadowman 9: In the Cradle of Destiny (#3.1)" (2008)

I come to praise 'Dune', not to bury it...

Yeah, DUNE sure is the runt of the Lynch litter but there are still aspects of it that I really love, even for all its cockeyed, club-footed awkwardness.

I didn't see this movie for approximately a decade because it had the reputation, still held in most quarters, of being one of the most infamous bombs of recent memory. However, despite my initial indifference I caught it - by complete accident - on free-to-air TV one night and was immediately hooked from the first sight of its memorable, unexpected future-baroque production design. From that point on, being led through the strange world of the Emperor and his entourage on Kaitain, the oddly-garbed Bene Gesserit Sisterhood, and the Guild Navigator emissaries in all their variously-staged mutated splendour, I was hopelessly infatuated with all things DUNE.

Now, I am fully aware that by most conventional definitions DUNE is not a good film. Actually, since having read all the books in the DUNE saga I am astonished to think that anybody thought that such a property could ever be a commercially viable option for mainstream cinema. It has concepts that tend to demand your full attention, which is mostly box office poison. However I loved the sheer scope of it, the fact that I was being bombarded with scores of unfamiliar terms and concepts which to me had always been the essence of pure science fiction. That it made for a choppy and often confusing cinematic experience mattered to me not at all. I was too much in love with the idea of it all and the weird, alien ambiance which only Lynch could have given the movie. Atreides, Harkonnens, Mentats, Fremen, Sandworms - I just wanted more, more, more. Superb cast, alluring music, stunning visuals - all contributing to an uncommonly arresting, unquestionably unique, cinematic experience.

For all its failures I can't even imagine what any contemporary of Lynch might have done with the material. My point is this: David Lynch's DUNE, warts and all, made me excited enough to want to read all the books in Herbert's sprawling saga. These volumes had been around for years. I'd seen them gathering dust in my local public library yet I felt no compulsion to read them. After seeing DUNE I couldn't wait to rush down and grab them off the shelves. That's why I'll always defend the film and why I refuse to write it off as the disastrous failure that so many regard it to be. In my mind DUNE is a success because it completely sold me on Frank Herbert's universe - a no more strangely beautiful, intellectually stimulating nor fascinating one had I ever seen on film - and compelled me to go ever further into it. I do accept most of the criticisms that the casual moviegoer has of the film but I simply can't hate it.

In short, if you are curious about the film and are familiar with all the bad and discouraging press it has received over the years, yet remain a fan of exceptional fantasy or science fiction, do not be discouraged. You may find that it has elements that may just move you, bewilder you, or tantalise your imagination. You may come to agree, like a growing number of us, that it really is not so deserving of the excoriation that it has suffered at the hands - or pens - of its harshest critics. If you go into it with a forgiving mindset then you may be well rewarded. And then - if you haven't already - read the saga itself. It is formidably great!