Feature adaptation of Frank Herbert's science fiction novel, about the son of a noble family entrusted with the protection of the most valuable asset and most vital element in the galaxy.
Oh wow, this actually was cinema redefined. I will actually have to recollect my thoughts before I can give a cohesive review on what I truly felt about this film because the feeling is yet to sink in and the experience was surreal at best.
As an aristocratic family comes on a planet to monitor the control of a secret mélange, an innocent young man is pushed into an interplanetary battle between colonists and an evil invasion force. This is the plot of Dune-Part One, which is based on Frank Herbert's novel Dune. It is the first half of a story following a young man as he takes part in a fight on a futuristic planet that will transform the world.
Starring
Timothee Chalamet,
Oscar Isaac,
Rebecca Ferguson,
Jason Momoa,
Zendaya,
Dave Bautista,
Josh Brolin,
Stephen McKinley Henderson,
David Dastmalchian,
Chang Chen,
Charlotte Rampling,
Sharon Duncan-Brewster,
Javier Bardem, and
Stellan Skarsgard.
Dune-Part One is a royal and majestic film from the French auteur- Denis Villeneuve.
There is a lot that happens in Dune, and I mean a lot, but the pace never slows and the action never sags. The fast-paced action sequences keep one's attention captivated as one actionpacked sequence leads to the next. In some ways, Villeneuve constructs Dune like a bigscreen Hollywood musical. The songs in the best musicals advance the plot while dazzling us in escapist wonder. Dune has the rhythm of a musical, with each exciting set piece developing Paul's character, furthering the narrative, and raising the stakes.
This is an emotionally charged and character-driven story about a family fighting not only to survive, but also to fulfil their responsibility to ensure the survival of others.
Dune, like any good musical, creates a world that is rooted in Earthly characteristics but is wonderfully escapist. The exceptional attention to detail that goes into crafting the world of Herbert's adventure is most impressive in Dune. Dune is a masterpiece of cinematic worldbuilding. The incredible production design, costumes, and visual effects create a cohesive empire based on Herbert's imagination.
The costume designs in the film are both nods to the antiquity and foreshadowing of the next fall fashion spread. Paul's androgyny is emphasised by the magnificent ankle-length jackets that skim the sand. Dune's sense of style imbues the novel with a particular feminine spirit, with curling robes and stylish scarves harnessing Jessica's dominance and control over Paul's fate. Since George Lucas conjured Star Wars, a new world has never been so fully and richly realised visually.
The sophisticatedly encrusted sound mix that furthers the dual energies that Paul draws from his parents is equally effective in submerging audiences in Dune's environment. Furthermore, Hans Zimmer's evocative score inspires a constant sense of awe and wonder. No film has ever sounded quite like Dune, as Zimmer looks to the future for inspiration rather than the past. Zimmer creates a sonic tapestry of tribal warfare that reverberates with the anger of the gods watching the tragedy unfold using an unconventional arsenal of sounds.
As a sci-fi film, it's rare to witness a film with such a physicality in its presentation, and Villeneuve's direction is no exception. In addition to the deserts of Jordan and Stadlandet, the United Arab Emirates, and Budapest studios for some of the interiors, the House of Atrides' home planet of Caladan was shot in the Liwa Oasis in the United Arab Emirates. Using a lot of wide and medium shots, Villeneuve depicts Arrakis as a vast desert continent in which the future lies.
Greig Fraser, the film's cinematographer, does incredible work with the film's cinematography, emphasising natural lighting for many of the daytime exterior scenes on Arrakis, as well as some of the interior scenes in the caves and tunnels, and using low-key lighting for some of the night-time interior/exterior scenes. There are some rhythmic cuts that play into some of the action and drama as well as understanding when to let a shot linger for a little to drive up the suspense in Joe Walker's editing. With the aesthetic of Arrakis' city and spice refinery, the space ships, and the Harkkonens' mansion, production designer Patrice Vermette and his team, including art directors Tom Brown and Karl Probert, as well as set decorators Richard Roberts and Zsuzsanna Sipos, accomplish amazing work.
Their designs for the sophisticated suits of the House of Atrides, the dresses of Bene Gessirit, and the garments of the Harkkonen family are stunning. Artist Donald Mowat, who specialises in hair, makeup, and prosthetics, performs an amazing job with the makeup on characters like Gaius Helen Mohiam and Baron Harkkonen, who appears to be chubby despite his larger-than-life attitude. In charge of special effects. Aside from using prosthetics and digital effects to create some of the spaceships' exteriors and interiors, visual effects supervisor Gerd Nefzer and visual effects artist Paul Lambert do an outstanding job with the effects. Theo Green and Mark A.
Mangini, the film's sound editors, perform a fantastic job with the sound, which is a highlight of the picture because of the way the sand worms and thumpers appear and sound to draw the audience's attention. Music supervisors Peter Afterman and Alison Litton crafted a soundtrack that includes folk-like pieces and other electronic pieces to reflect the world that the characters inhabit.
The film's music by Hans Zimmer as I already mentioned above is sensational for its bombastic score, which features bass-heavy electronics and orchestral bits as well as vocal choirs and such, with vocal contributions from Lisa Gerrard of Dead Can Dance, to play into the film's scale. Villeneuve's previous sci-fi works, Arrival and Blade Runner 2049, had stunning visuals, but they pale in comparison to Patrice Vermette's staggering production design.
Everything in Dune feels massive, from the sprawling desert vistas to the cavernous strongholds to the gargantuan sandworms that prowl beneath Arrakis' surface, capable of swallowing mountainous harvesting machinery in a single gulp; a frantic attempt to abscond one of these gigantic beasts around the one-hour mark is one of the film's most terrifying sequences. In fact, the majority of the onscreen action is riveting, but these moments come far too infrequently, with exposition taking up a sizable portion of the film's lengthy running time. However, while the visual effects in Dune are stunning, they never overpower the story. Villeneuve keeps the character at the forefront of Dune, with the visuals taking a back seat. This decision keeps it smarter and more interesting than the average blockbuster.
Nonetheless, the completely insane interpretation of Herbert's world is unapologetically the result of an artist peeking out. Dune celebrates the power of the imagination. It's exhilarating to see Villeneuve's sense of marvel in generating a vision that's inspired his work. Beyond Dune's scale, originality, and technological brilliance, Villeneuve provides a cinematic experience that reminds spectators why they love going to the movies in the first place. From the first frame to the last, it's an exhilarating adventure. I had forgotten how much I missed going to the movies until I saw Dune on the big screen with thunderous surround sound. This is the pinnacle of Hollywood studio filmmaking: grand entertainment that engages the mind while also soothing the soul. I can't wait for the second instalment.
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