Dune

1985 • 136 minutes

About this movie

The long-awaited film version of Frank Herbert's classic science fiction epic, Dune, explodes on the screen with dazzling special effects, unforgettable images and powerful performances. The saga of intergalactic warrior Paul Atreides (Kyle MacLachlan) and his messianic rise to leadership features an all-star cast, including Jose Ferrer, Max Von Sydow, Oscar-winner Linda Hunt and rock legend, Sting.

Ratings and reviews

DUNE 1984 VERSUS DUNE 2021 I have read the books years ago, which were well done. I have seen Dune 1984 several times over the years so I was curious to how the remake compared, since it is is 3 years shy of 40 years ago since the original. Dune 2021 does not hold a candle to the original 1984 version for several reasons. First off they dragged it out. Dune 2021 (part one) runs 155 minutes and they want you to wait for the next one. The original 1984 version runs 137 minutes and is the complete story - no part 2 needed. The casting, the story line, the filming (especially the lighting), the directing, the cinematography, and the costumes were all vastly superior in the original version. For a movie, that is supposed to offer tech that is close to 40 years newer this movie was a major disappointment. If you never read the books chance are you will not even be able to truly follow the story line. Dune 1984 goes out of its way to help make you understand the story line at least. Even the themes and presentation are terrible. For example, the Lady Jessica, a major character is both beautiful and regal in the original movie. She is quite the opposite in this new version. The same is true of other characters. Perhaps with an emphasis on diversity for political reasons in our society today, they decided to cast non-white actors into what is originally a very white movie. But Sean Young and Max van Sydow being replaced in 2021 by a Zendaya and Sharon Duncan-Brewster simply does not cut it in terms of quality of acting performances. I strongly suggest you stream Dune 1984 and watch it before ever seeing this 2021 movie and then you will quickly understand and agree that you cannot even compare the two movies. That is how much better the 1984 version is! Summary: 1984 versus 2021 version. Original much better!

I would give the movie two stars for two simple reasons: my love for Sir Patrick Stewart, and the fact that the special effects were very well done. If you have read the book prior to seeing this film, you should prepare yourself for disappointment. Many stories are left out or mutilated to the point where the viewer doesn't understand the significance of many actions in the plot. A very humorous example is the fact that the Atreides mentat is given poison in the book, and unknowingly eats the antidote with each meal as a method of ensuring he can be killed if needed. In the movie, the antidote comes from petting a white cat. I wish I were making this up. To someone who hasn't read the book, I would imagine the whole movie is confusing since it jumps from one scene to another without explaining much. Yeah it's a long book, but for a run time of over 2 hours a much better job could have been done in directing and adapting the story for the movie. Overall it's still worth watching so fans of the book can see what a mess it is. It's also a joy to see some of the faces of those in the book -- although casting Sir Patrick Stewart as Gurney is a little odd.

Pour la vision singulière de David Lynch, ce film est à voir. C'est sale, angoissant et on se projette entièrement dans l'univers de Herbert. Contrairement à la version de Denis Villeneuve, où tout est esthétique et léché, le point de vue de Lynch est de présenter l'histoire d'un seul trait. Donc, pas de suite à attendre. Évidemment, les effets spéciaux datent et il faut se remémorer l'époque dont on ne peut pas comparer à aujourd'hui.