Dune (Blu-ray) – Movie Review

Frank Herbert’s Dune series of books has somewhat shaped the ecological Sci-Fi scene. Dune put his writing career on the map, and it spawned a movie back in 1984. Sadly, the movie was not that much of a success and only gained its cult status over time. Now, however, with more modern techniques at hand in the movie industry, a new rendition of Dune was crafted by Denis Villeneuve, the creative genius behind Blade Runner 2049. We were not sure what to expect of this 2021 version of Dune, and while we expected a bit more action, we loved the end result.

The story of Dune is as simple as it is complex. It’s basically all about betrayal and a lust for power, but with a lot of finer intricacies thrown into the mix. We get to know the members of House Atreides, who are tasked to govern the desert planet Arrakis. Duke Leto Atreides (Oscar Isaac) is tasked to harvest Spice from the barren planet, while keeping the local populace under control. The Duke brings his son, Paul (Timothée Chalamet) with him, as well as his mistress Lady Jessica Atreides (Rebecca Ferguson), and of course his vast army. Sadly, the previous rulers, House Harkonnen, are clearly not happy with the emperor’s decision of putting House Atreides in control of the Spice harvest, and thus they wish to destroy the Atreides army, its ruler, and its heir. What was supposed to be a fairly peaceful transfer of power soon becomes a bloodstained struggle.

If you’re expecting an action-packed experience, you’ll be sorely disappointed when watching Dune. This first movie will basically set up the stage for things to come in the sequel. The background is properly being painted, the atmosphere is being built, the viewer will get enough information to learn about the different houses in the Dune universe, and you’ll get a true ‘Fellowship of the Ring‘ introduction, where all major characters will go on their life-altering voyage. Even though we mentioned this movie is not an action-packed experience, there is never a dull moment to be found throughout the movie’s 155 minutes’ worth of footage. Denis Villeneuve uses the same skills that he displayed when making Blade Runner 2049, making sure the viewer is occupied by looking at the tiniest details that bring this barren world to life. There is ample information, enough action to drive you to the edge of your seat, and just great characters propelling the story forward. It’s a great mix, resulting in nearly perfect flow and pacing.

The casting for this movie is spot on. This project is backed by many huge names in the industry, and we found their performances of bringing this strange universe to life very realistic. Even though Zendaya is one of those actresses that is now basically cast for every big project, she does adapt well to the role that is laid out for her. Nonetheless, the most surprising performance may come from Timothée Chalamet, the protagonist of this story. He puts down his performance as a humble nobleman’s heir perfectly, and you end up sympathizing with him as the movie progresses. His character shows a lot of evolution throughout the film, while others stick closer to the archetype they were given. We have to give a lot of props to Stellan Skarsgård, who performed his role as Baron Vladimir Harkonnen with a heavy full bodysuit, who had to undergo around seven hours of makeup every day to transform him into the eerie baron.

The Blu-ray version of this 2021 rendition of Dune comes with more than an hour’s worth of extra content. Not only will you learn more about the creative process that went on behind the scenes, but you’ll also get to explore the lore of the Dune universe. Thanks to this, you’ll get more information about the different Houses, the sandworms, the spice, and so on. There’s a lot of content to explore here, and it’s all divided into bite-sized chunks, making sure you can easily catch up on whatever you like in whatever order you want. As a whole, this adds a lot of value to buying a physical copy of the film.

Conclusion

Dune is an absolute cinematic experience of epic proportions when looking at how Frank Herbert’s story is brought to life with our modern technology. As was already clear with Blade Runner 2049, Denis Villeneuve knows how to create a proper atmosphere and a certain indescribable tension throughout the entire length of the film. If you’re into slow-burn epic tales, then you’ll love this new rendition of Dune. If you’re looking for flashy constant action, then you might be somewhat disappointed by this atmospheric masterpiece.

Ibuki

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Aspiring ninja.

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