Production Year: 1984 - Science Fiction - Director: David Lynch - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Sean Young, Dean Stockwell, Jose Ferrer, Jurgen Prochnow, Max Von Sydow, Sian Phillips, Francesca Annis, Kyle MacLachlan, Sting, Kenneth McMillan, Everett McGill more
David Lynch's baroque rendering of Frank Herbert's detailed, complex, and deliberately paced epic science-fiction novel is a muddled but visually stunning affair. It's 10991, and... more
This review already contains more than 120 words. As a Ciao member you could earn up to £5 with this review.
as originally shown theatrically, but with an improved transfer compared to the previous DVD edition and with the addition of new and archive documentary material...
Ok I'm biased Review ofDune (Special Edition)by
Anime_Raider
Advantages: An awesome epic Disadvantages: can be a little dull
Since first entering the Dune universe I hav read every book available to date, watched both mini-series and played every game I could get my hands on... It still doesn't compare to the actual awe I feltwatching this film properly for the first time.
Ok, it doesn't stick that closely to the original story (unlike the later adaptation by the sci-fi channel) and the earlier DVD edition had an odd green tone but this is IT, the reason I am now obsesive ... ...like one of the new LOTR inspired epics, a little stodgy and tough to get into, kind of like the books, if you don't have patience and you don't like this kind of thing don't watch it. If you do then it is a deffinate must, its as memorable as any film I've seen (after the first viewing I had already memorised the opening speech) and more memorable than most.
Although the storyline wavers from the books it is still engrossing. Unfortunately the ...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: Epic Sci-Fi spectacular Disadvantages: Poorly received, some naff special effects
...'s as if it has been there all along. The music comes from a most unusual source forget John Williams, Ennio Morricone, here pop band Toto give an incredibly epic score, and more interestingly still after such a successful score they never choose to continue down the path of movie soundtracks.
Dune remains a firm favourite with me as one of Lynch's more legible storytellings. It's an enjoyable and seemingly long movie that while not necessarily one you might watch repeatedly in close succession a few years between watching makes this an enjoyable sidetrack in life.
Sound And Vision
This recent specialedition release has the best quality print I have yet seen. And looks equally impressive on both traditional and hi definition television sets either with or without hi definition transmission equipment. The flaws usually exposed by hi...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Stunning landscapes and buildings, and the worms are great Disadvantages: Confusing.
...Frank Herbert's long-winded original novel, recreated lovingly in film by David Lynch, and featuring the acting talents of none other than Sting, the man currently topping the classical album charts with a compilation of Elizabethan lute remixes.
How could such a film fail?
In the event, it doesn't. The landscape of the arid planet Dune, on which Paul Atreides fights to restore his family's honour, is rendered in glorious technicolour, and the sandworms in particular make later monsters from such classics as Star Wars almost pale in comparison. Weird characters look weird, noble characters noble and so on. Whilst the CGI (or lack of it) may look slightly dated today, the film is still highly enjoyable.
The plot is complex, and as someone who has read the book I still found it slightly hard to follow. Compressing such a large work...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: Makes more sense than the Theatrical Version Disadvantages: Still doesn't do justice to the books
..., when you're reading, you can pick up on. However, translating these nauances onto the "Big Screen" is no easy task and by removing large sections, viewers were often left confused and baffled in places as to what had just happened, or why something had just happened. I should point out that I have read all six of Herbert's original Dune series, as well as the three 'House' series that his son wrote with Kevin Anderson, so I'm well versed in the world of 'Dune'. For this reason, I probably followed the movie a lot more than others might have done and probably didn't recognise where the uninitiated might struggle with certain aspects. Prior knowledge of the books isn't essential, but it probably does help.
This Special TV Edition attempts to correct some of these issues by providing some of the deleted scenes and now run...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Actor(s): Kyle MacLachlan, Francesca Annis, Sian Phillips, Max Von Sydow, Jurgen Prochnow, Jose Ferrer, Dean Stockwell, Sean Young, Everett McGill, Kenneth McMillan, Sting
Director(s): David Lynch
Genre: Science Fiction & Fantasy
Classification: 15 years and over
Production Year: 1984
Running Time: 2 hours 17 minutes
Video Category: Feature Film
Plot: David Lynch's baroque rendering of Frank Herbert's detailed, complex, and deliberately paced epic science-fiction novel is a muddled but visually stunning affair. It's 10991, and the desert planet Dune has been taken over by the Harkonnens, oppressive conquerors who desire the precious spice that lies beneath Dune's arid sands. The story concerns the attempts of a young warrior messiah, Paul Atreides, to lead the native inhabitants in an uprising against the evil empire - and battle the giant man-eating worms that guard the coveted spice. Lynch shot much more footage than ended up in the finished film, but executive producer Dino De Laurentiis didn't want a three-hour-plus sci-fi epic on his hands, so he coerced Lynch into trimming it. The result is one of cinema's most infamous cases of personal vision colliding with studio politics. Nonetheless, Lynch still manages to cram in so many visual ideas and captures the tone of the book so well that these production issues can be easily set aside once the story starts rolling. Refusing to further edit the film for television, Lynch took his name off the director and screenwriter credits. As troubling as 'Dune' might have been for Lynch, the experience greatly inspired 1986's brilliant 'Blue Velvet', for which audiences should be thankful.
Release details
DVD Region: Region 0 (All Regions)
Studio(s): SANCTUARY VISUAL ENTERTAINMENT; UNIVERSAL MUSIC OPERATIONS
Release date: 04/07/2005
No of Discs: 2
Catalogue No: SVEM 0094
Band: Toto
Music: Toto
Sound: Alan Splet
Barcode: 5050749500946
Costume Designer: Bob Ringwood
Cinematographer: Freddie Francis
Production Designer: Anthony Masters
Director of Photography: Freddie Francis
Art Director: Pierluigi Basile, Bob Ringwood
Languages
Main Language: English
DVD Description
David Lynch's baroque rendering of Frank Herbert's detailed, complex, and deliberately paced epic science-fiction novel is a muddled but visually stunning affair. It's 10991, and the desert planet Dune has been taken over by the Harkonnens, oppressive conquerors who desire the precious spice that lies beneath Dune's arid sands. The story concerns the attempts of a young warrior messiah, Paul Atreides, to lead the native inhabitants in an uprising against the evil empire - and battle the giant man-eating worms that guard the coveted spice. Lynch shot much more footage than ended up in the finished film, but executive producer Dino De Laurentiis didn't want a three-hour-plus sci-fi epic on his hands, so he coerced Lynch into trimming it. The result is one of cinema's most infamous cases of personal vision colliding with studio politics. Nonetheless, Lynch still manages to cram in so many visual ideas and captures the tone of the book so well that these production issues can be easily set aside once the story starts rolling. Refusing to further edit the film for television, Lynch took his name off the director and screenwriter credits. As troubling as 'Dune' might have been for Lynch, the experience greatly inspired 1986's brilliant 'Blue Velvet', for which audiences should be thankful.
Technical information
Special Features: Documentary - 1. IMPRESSIONS OF DUNE, Interview - 1 Frank Herbert - Author, Original Promotional Film, Trailer
Sound: Dolby Digital 2.0, Dolby Digital 5.1
Dubbing Sound: Dolby Digital 2.0 English Dolby Digital 5.1 English
Professional reviews
Review: "...Imaginative....Visually unique and teeming with incident....There's just about always something going on for the senses to appreciate....[The] cast is also first-rate..." (Variety, 05/12/1984)
Ciao
Listed on Ciao since : 02/05/2006
Compare Dune (Special Edition) to other similar Science Fiction & Fantasy