Dune (1984) - er, yeah, lol

by LoveUniHateExams 22 Replies latest social entertainment

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  LoveUniHateExams

  So, I saw Dune (1984) yesterday. I knew it wasn't gonna be great, but deary me.

  I'm not gonna lie - this film is not good, in fact it's laughably bad in places.

  First, I'd like to know the thought process that went behind choosing David Lynch to write/direct. Lynch is a talented guy but he makes weird little films which aren't to everyone's taste. For a potential sci-fi block-buster like Dune, you need someone who will make a great spectacle which will have broad appeal. And Dune fails, in every way possible. The special effects are bad, the action scenes didn't get me excited, the writing, the dialogue the acting ... I could go on and on.

  I gotta say, I like David Lynch. The Elephant Man (1980) is a masterpiece, Mulholland Drive (2001) is very good, The Straight Story (1999) isn't often mentioned but is very good, Eraserhead (1977) is interesting, so is Blue Velvet (1986).

  But Dune was a total misfire. I haven't read the novel, so I don't know how much crap in the film was also in the book. I don't know how much control Lynch had over the film, maybe the producers or film company grabbed creative control from him.

  Thoughts?
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  dropoffyourkeylee

  The 1984 Dune was pretty lame, I have to admit, but I still found it interesting to watch.

  There is a brand new Dune movie out this year, though, which some are saying is really a good adaptation of the book Dune. I think it covers the first half of the book, and another movie is planned/hoped for. I don't think it is released yet in the US, but it has been released elsewhere already.

  I've become a fan of Quinn's Ideas, a youtuber with a lot of enthusiasm for science fiction. He has rekindled my interest in Dune, prompting me to reread some of the novels.
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  truth_b_known

  This version of Dune was butchered down to fit the 2hr mark. I have seen the extended version. I even found a fan edit on YouTube that is pretty decent.

  I was about 10 when the film came out. I was captivated by it. I read the entire series after that.

  The SyFy network made a miniseries which I believe you can watch for free. They also followed it up with Children of Dune which combined books 2 & 3.

  I am looking forward to seeing the new movie. It appears to be following the book.
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  punkofnice

  I saw it back in the day and then went away and forgot about it because it just wasn't anywhere near memorable
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  Vidiot

  The new Dune remake is terrific.

  It adapts the first half of the book, with more to come.
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  Simon

  The books are amazing, esp. if you read the entire series, but no one is going to be making those into movies I guarantee!

  Yeah, that movie was so bad it went full circle and became a cult classic.

  I'm looking forward to seeing the remake. I hope it lives up to my expectations.
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  Etude

  Yes, the 1984 version missed the mark. But, I have to consider the times and how poor CGI technology was then. I mean, it was at the level of Pacman. We are now "light years" away from that type of production.

  I had the good fortune of reading the trilogy years before seeing the movie. In a way, the movie managed to capture the feel of the book and some of the Reverend Mothers' nuances. But the story couldn't possibly have been told in that movie. It was too short. Without having read the books first, the movie left one confused and incomplete. The same thing applied to LOTR. There was a version back in the 70s that sucked. It had to wait until the present to have been made and made well enough.

  Now, it looks like another attempt at the Dune tale will materialize into a movie to be released in a few days! The question is, will the movie be a trilogy like LOTR or another "one-shot" condensed version?
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  Rafe

  Saw both movies now and I would have to say one word for both ... Boring

  Some books/stories just don't make for good engaging movies.
  
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  Simon

  Dune isn't a trilogy. If you stop at book 3 you're missing out on a lot. Yeah, a lot of it is weird, but everyone you thought was a hero or even a main character in the original books turns out to be someone else towards the end.

  If you read them, you'll understand why they will never be made into a movie. People thought "Foundation" would be difficult? That's simple by comparison.
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  Etude

  Well, I call it a trilogy because it was Frank Herbert who wrote and completed the first 3 books. I could not get past the rest.