Dune by Villeneuve

A Review of Villeneuve's Interpretation of "Dune"

I was tempted to go and see Dune – Part 2 the day it opened but I resisted and left it for a week. A friend said that he was looking forward to my review of the movie – no pressure.

It has been eleven days since I saw the movie – enough time for the dust to settle and to reflect on the overall picture and story telling and technique and soundscape and cinematography – especially the cinematography which was brilliant.

But it occurred to me that although Dune – Part 2 could be reviewed it might be better to look at both movies because Part 2 continues where Part 1 left off. One misses so much if one opens Frank Herbert’s Dune half-way through – say at page 205 of my 410 page edition (that does not include the Appendices) where Paul and Jessica are flying through the dust storm in a hi-jacked ornithoper prior to it crashing in the desert. Why are they there? How did they get there? Who are they anyway? What is the litany against fear? What is “the Fremen desert” to which Paul refers?

So rather than review Part 2 I thought it better to approach Denis Villeneuve’s interpretation and adaptation of Dune as a whole.

It has been observed on a number of occasions that Dune was impossible to film. Yet there have been three attempts that made it to the screen – David Lynch’s 1984 movie and John Harrison’s TV miniseries Frank Herbert’s Dune  and Frank Herbert’s Children of Dune and now Villeneuve’s attempt. Three totally different interpretations of the same book.

David Lynch’s initial movie was three hours long but an hour of that was left on the cutting room floor and the theatrical version was not well received although that said, it had its moments. An extended version (2hrs 56m)  directed by Alan Smithee with a screenplay by Judas Booth is included on a special edition DVD which also includes deleted scenes.

John Harrison’s miniseries for the SciFi Channel enabled a greater amount of detail than Lynch’s version and was generally well-received. The sequel Frank Herbert’s Children of Dune rounded out Herbert’s original trilogy.

I don’t intend to do a scene by scene analysis of Villeneuve’s films. Rather a number of observations about his realization.

Scale

Dune is a large and detailed book and Villeneuve’s realization capitalizes on the scale of things. His sets, locations, vistas, buildings, space ships, crowd scenes are all enormous, as, of course, are the sandworms, revealed only partially in the first part and in full in Part Two.

Villeneuve uses space to good effect and I do not mean in the astronomical sense. The expanse of the desert frequently emphasizes the enormity of the planet and symbolizes the enormity of Paul’s task to enlist the Fremen to his aid as well as the potential of “desert power” – a factor recognized by both Duke Leto and Paul.

As the Atreides family pepare to leave Caladan, massive angular spaceships emerge from the ocean in preparation for the voyage to Arrakis. The fleets are preserved underwater – of course, because Caladan is a water planet and the ships are angular – no aerodynamics feature – but what is significant is the vast scale of these vessels.

Likewise the spice harvesters and their recovery vehicles. We see these from various perspectives throughout the movie – at Arakeen and in the desert itself. These vehicles are monstrous and it is in Part Two where the Fremen go into action against a harvesting operation that we get some idea of the scale of this machinery as Paul nimbly darts between the tank-like treads and the spice gathering teeth.

The scale of the arena on the Harkonnen planet Geidi Prime is likewise vast and Villeneuve enhances the scenes in the arena by using monochrome rather than colour. The arena is huge. The Baron’s viewing platform is almost invisible from the floor of the arena and the architecture like the Harkonnens themselves is bulky and brutal.

Minimalism

Although Villeneuve had a generous budget for his films he has used a minimalist approach to his presentation. I don’t mean this in a derogatory sense. When one compares his approach to that of Lynch and Harrison there are a number of differences. Although uniforms feature in all versions in Villeneuve’s they are simple. Lynch’s costuming and indeed his sets are elaborate and full of visual details. The science (and we must remember that the Duniverse is computer free) is more like steampunk. For Villeneuve the technology is part of the story and is vast but uncomplicated. His focus is on the desert.

.Villenueve’s Dune  is visually simple and uncluttered. It almost as if he is following Stilgar’s advice to Paul – “keep it simple…nothing fancy.”

Transitions

Dune is a story about transitions. Jessica makes the transition from Bene Gesserit to Reverend Mother or Fremen Sayyadina and she does this by the use of the Water of Life.

Paul’s transitions are a little more complex. He starts as a ducal heir but through his education and indeed self-education has an understanding the Arrakis before he arrives there. He is able to put on a stillsuit and does up his boots in a particular way that indicates he is not a novice. Paul has a developing understanding of the desert and recognizes a possible future that he in fact wants to deny. Initially he does not want to be the Lisan al-Gaib or the Mahdi but his own ingestion of the Water of Life represents the great change within his approach as well as the recognition by the Fremen that the prophecies are being fulfilled.

Paul is fatally flawed. He knows what will happen if he fulfils the prophecy.

“He could still sense the green and black Atreides banner waving somewhere ahead – still see the jihad’s bloody swords and fanatic legions.”

And as it is recorded in Dune Messiah which is set twelves years in the future his jihad has killed sixty-one billion people across the known universe, but according to his prescient vision, this is a fate far better than what he has seen. Paul is beleaguered by a need he sees — to set humanity on a course that does not lead to stagnation and destruction, while at the same time managing both the Empire and the religion built around him.

Paul is aware that death follows him but proceeds nonetheless, initially reluctantly but later aggressively.

There are a couple of scenes that are quite spine-tingling, both of which involve Paul advancing his case to the Fremen. The first is in the South Seitch which is a stirring scene that utilizes scale, light and space. Paul does not use the Bene Gesserit “Voice” to achieve his end. What he does is puts forth his personality which he does in the second crowd scene before the attack on Arakeen. Villeneuve uses a technique that is present in a number of scenes starting with space occupied by one person approaching a brow of a hill or a high place. Then below unfolds another space – populated with thousands. It is here that Paul cries out “Ya hya chouhada” the Fedaykin battle cry “Long live the fighters.”

Both scenes are beautifully realized and present vital steps on Paul’s journey to his fate and to his doom.

Secondary Characters

Although Paul is the main focus of the story, this instalment allows other characters to come to the fore, most notably Fremen warrior Chani (an impressive, physically committed performance from the magnetic Zendaya). But Austin Butler, playing Feyd-Rautha, the psychopathic nephew of Stellan Skarsgård’s levitating despot, Baron Harkonnen is a standout. He tests the calibre of a freshly sharpened blade with his extended tongue, before trying it on the throat of one of his slaves. He projects malice and threats at every stage.

Stilgar is another standout supporting character who develops from his first encounter with Duke Leto to Paul’s mentor. The scene before Paul does his solo ride on the sandworm is a mixture of seriousness and humour, emphasizing the developing relationship between Paul and Stil. But gradually Stilgar transitions from mentor to disciple as well as trusted supporter.

The way Stilgar manifests his loyalty and devotion is quite different to Gurney Halleck, retainer of Duke Leto, swordmaster and another of Paul’s mentors. Gurney is devoted to the Duke – both Leto and Paul. His is the attitude of a loyal retainer. Stilgar, on the other hand, is devoted to the idea of the Mahdi. Both Stilgar and Gurney are fanatically loyal but Villeneuve subtly demonstrates different ways of manifesting that loyalty

Times

Villeneuve has played around with timing in his story and has adopted a very linear approach to the story. The action encompassed by the two movies is within a span of less than nine months. When Paul and Jessica are stranded in the desert, Jessica is pregnant. At the end of Part Two she is still pregnant. Thus the focus of the story is on Paul and his development rather than exploring some of the other aspects of Frank Herbert’s creation. And this leads to another issue.

What’s Missing

There is a lot of Herbert’s story that is missing in Villeneuve’s adaptation. That is understandable. One of the reasons why Dune was said to be unfilmable is because it is so complex and many-layered. So Villeneuve has stripped the story down to its essentials – again the minimalist approach.

Thufir Hawat, the Atreides Mentat who appears in Part One is missing from Part 2. There were scenes that were filmed that explored Hawat's role in the second half of the film, they were cut to streamline the story. Villeneuve decided to center the influence of the Bene Gesserit behind the scenes rather than look at Hawat's fate.

If his story had been included, it would have been devastating for fans of the character who haven't read the books. Part 2 leads the audience to believe that Hawat died in the assault on House Atreides in Dune, but it turns out that he was captured by the Harkonnens and taken to work for them. He is instrumental in the hunt for the Fremen warrior Muad'Dib but doesn’t know Paul is alive and is Muad'Dib. When Hawat discovers this and faces his role in the attacks on the Fremen, he takes his life out of loyalty to House Atreides.

In Part 2 Jessica is pregnant with Alia throughout the movie but speaks with her from inside the womb. Additionally, Paul has a vision of Alia as an adult, played by Any Taylor-Joy, after he drinks the water of life and can see the past and future. Adult Alia reveals that he is a descendant of House Harkonnen and that Jessica's father is Baron Harkonnen, the man who murdered Paul's father, Leto.

However, these events are vastly different as, in the books, Alia has already been born and is an active character in the narrative. Alia is a toddler in the book but has the mind of an adult. She helps Jessica make Paul the Lisan al Gaib. In Part 2, Paul is the one who kills Baron Harkonnen out of vengeance, but it's the child Alia who does this in the book. Part of this change is due to the smaller time jump between movies than in the book, so it makes sense for Alia to be unborn.

Count Hasimir Fenring is a close friend of the Emperor Shaddam IV but makes no appearance although he  is a prominent enough character that he almost kills Paul. He is not only a friend but an advisor to the Emperor, which would have placed him in the scenes between Shaddam and his daughter, Princess Irulan (Florence Pugh) when the Emperor seeks counsel about how to deal with the revolting Fremen.

He and Paul share a unique connection because Fenring was also a result of Bene Gesserit breeding and was once thought to be the Kwisatz Haderach. This is the super-being that the Bene Gesserit spent generations trying to create through the genetic manipulation of bloodlines and teaching certain men in their ways.

However, instead of rising to power, as Paul does, Fenring does the bidding of the Emperor and confers with his wife. It ishis knowledge of the Bene Gesserit ways that prevent him from killing Paul when the Emperor orders it.

In Part 2 the only mention of a Fenring is in the form of Lady Margot a Bene Gesserit who is sent to the home planet of the Harkonnens to determine if Feyd-Rautha is controllable.

In the book, Chani and Paul have a son, Leto II, who is a casualty in the war against the Harkonnens. This loss is a definitive moment for both Chani and Paul, as it strengthens their bond and cements their joint hatred for the Harkonnens. Similarly to other changes, this decision could be attributed to the shorter time jump and the decision to make Chani a character that voices the evils of the Bene Gesserit influence.

Leto II does not appear at all and indeed the relationship between Paul and Chani differs from that in the book. Chani’s motivations and beliefs alter. She serves as a foil to Paul and the religious fundamentalists of the Fremen, and when Paul decides to feed into the Lisan al Gaib prophecy, she turns against him. In the book, she stays by his side, even after he marries Princess Irulan as an alliance.

What happened to the Spacing Guild and the Guild Navigators? We get a glimpse of a Heighliner in Part 1 but apart from that – nothing. Spice enables space travel. It is an essential element for Guild Navigators. And the Spacing Guild is involved in the Arrakis Conspiracy – the Spice must flow – so when Paul threatens to destroy the Spice that is a threat to the fabric of the Imperial civilization.

Does this matter? To the Dune purist it probably does. But then dropping Tom Bombadil and the Fog on Barrow Downs from The Lord of the Rings would probably upset LOTR purists. It is important to remember that movies of books are translations from one medium to another. In addition they are almost inevitably adaptations. Much of the internal dialogues that may take place in a book would be difficult to render visually. So sacrifices must be made. There is also the question of time. Alejandro Jodorowsky’s proposed adaptation was anticipated to run for 14 hours! The studio cut one hours out of David Lynch’s adaptation. Harrison’s “made for TV” adaptation had a little more leeway because it was screen episodically. But there are also budgetary constraints. So what we have is Villenuve’s interpretation of Herbert’s book.

Summing Up

Both films are gorgeous. Best seen on the biggest screen available with great sound. There is so much spectacle it’s a little overwhelming at times. And it’s all so well-crafted. Other than the lack of sweat—still odd for such a hot planet—Arrakis feels real and we see much more of it this time around.

The brief, horrific scenes of the Harkonnen home planet of Giedi Prime are some of the best in the film. The arena fight with Feyd-Rautha was almost entirely devoid of color and was shot with infrared cameras. Cinematographer Greig Fraser does some truly incredible work here. It’s quite striking.

And it is in the cinematography that Dune is most successful. Greig Fraser, who won the Oscar for cinematography the first time, exceeds himself in Part 2 with stunning use of color and light. It’s in the manner the sun hits Chalamet’s face at a certain angle or the wildly different palettes that differentiate the Harkonnens and the Fremen.

The browns and blues of the desert culture don’t feel arid as much as grounded and tactile, while the Harkonnen world is so devoid of color that it’s often literally black and white—even what look like fireworks pop like someone throwing colorless paint at a wall.

Hans Zimmer’s Oscar-winning score differentiates the cultures, finding more metallic sounds for the cold Harkonnens to balance against the heated score for the Fremen. I found Zimmer’s  performance of a selection from the soundtrack live to be magnificent, mysterious and eerie. It is used from time to time in both movies including when Paul rides the sandworm.

The whole soundtrack features some absolutely breathtaking vocal performances. Some of the vocals seem to be using actual words rather than just making random sounds, but I have no idea what language they are from. I think they are what are called “non-lexible vocables.” One set of vocals (which is in the live performance below) was by Loise Cotler who performed what Zimmer called “the cry of the “banshee” It is the intonation that is more important than the meaning.  The live performance is here and a seven minute selection is here.

Paul resembles Lawrence of Arabia (T. E. Lawrence), a British soldier who led Arab forces in a successful desert revolt against the Turks during World War I. Lawrence employed guerrilla tactics to destroy enemy forces and communication lines, and came close to becoming a messiah figure for the Arabs. This historical event led Frank Herbert to consider the possibility of an outsider leading native forces against the morally corrupt occupiers of a desert world, in the process becoming a godlike figure to them.

But a primary theme of Dune and its sequels is Frank Herbert's warning about society's tendencies to "give over every decision-making capacity" to a charismatic leader. He said in 1979,

"The bottom line of the Dune trilogy is: beware of heroes. Much better rely on your own judgment, and your own mistakes."

He wrote in 1985,

"Dune was aimed at this whole idea of the infallible leader because my view of history says that mistakes made by a leader (or made in a leader's name) are amplified by the numbers who follow without question."

In a 1970 interview, Herbert noted that the character of Paul was constructed to express "the conflict between absolutes and the necessity of the moment".

In some respects Paul emerges from the movies not as a hero or a “good guy” but a person who chose his fate and now has to live with the consequences of that choice.