Directed by David Lynch
Line that stays with me:
“Without change something sleeps inside us and seldom wakens”
Essay Warning: There are no spoilers or story details. I want to offer the
emotion that a film can access within us. Plus I think the best way to watch a
film is by not knowing anything about it. Just Go In…So if you haven’t watched
this film yet please don’t read this essay. Read it afterwards so we can enjoy
the “feeling” together.
I want to start this essay by saying, please watch this film
on Blu-Ray. I don’t think any other format has done this film justice. A mighty
epic hidden under murky darkness, technology has saved this film. Without
Blu-Ray, Dune is a hard film to love. You can’t see all the details and
everything looks muggy even in the DVD version. So please do yourself a favor
and watch it on Blu-Ray, give a feast to your eyes. Too much to look at it, I promise.
Dune is the sore thumb in the Lynch catalog. He’s even
admitted that maybe he shouldn’t have directed it and the film as it stands is
not truly his cut. There have been rumors of a director’s cut for years and till
this day, nothing. I don’t think he wants to go back there. Can’t blame him, that was over twenty years
ago and when you watch the film on BLU RAY!...You will know he did more than
put his time in. This is the film he decided to direct instead of “Return of
the Jedi” (George Lucas offered David Lynch to direct “Return of the Jedi”,
crazy 80’s) I’m glad he did, because he got to make a sci-fi epic that was
oddly enough truly tailored for him.
Now let’s get things straight, Dune was not a simple “Work
for hire” film for Lynch. This is a
personal epic, told through the classic Frank Herbert’s novel Dune. David Lynch wrote the screenplay and his voice
is heard all throughout the film. Luckily Frank Herbert and David Lynch have
similar visions. It’s a very interesting match especially now after watching
more of Lynch’s offerings.
Lynch, always the painter, never puts up one ugly frame on
the screen. The set designs, costumes, and makeup have been put together with
precise care. It’s a joy for me to just watch the colors on the screen and how
great they complement each other. Those
visual treats can especially be enjoyed in the various wide shots in the film.
Pause the film during one of those great wide shots and catch the massive
amount of work that has gone into this film which you probably have never
noticed. Only major flaws are the special effects but hey it was the 80’s! At least
the special effects are effective (Those worms look serious.) the same cannot
be said about every CGI mess that comes out these days. Many of the film’s important moments happen
in dream sequences, something which David Lynch has now mastered, that “Dream
Sense” in his films. If you truly want to understand Dune on another level, pay
attention to those dream sequences. It’s all about the images.
What makes David Lynch’s Dune so exciting to watch though is
the same energy that makes all his film exciting to watch, he’s not afraid to
make a FUCKING MOVIE! I don’t know what it is these days, filmmakers have
become wimps, afraid to make a movie a MOVIE, and instead we get crappy
personal sappy sad stories that we are supposed to “relate” to. Watch “2012” if you want a sample of that
nonsense. Heroes in movies used to be just that, heroes, we’re supposed to be
watching a “Hero’s Journey”. Great
directors know that you have to take a risk and make people believe in some
crazy shit. Whether it’s Indiana Jones or Travis Bickle (Taxi Driver) great
films don’t tell you about a sad story, it shows it to you, that way you and
film are on the same page. This is where
Dune truly excels, it’s not afraid to be a movie with its over the top dialog
and score. It plays every scene with epic intentions as it should.
Great Over the top dialog
examples: Let’s enjoy them, thank you David Lynch!
·
Gurney Halleck: Behold, as a wild ass in
the desert, go I forth to my work.
·
Paul: Father... father, the sleeper has
awakened!
·
Piter De Vries: It is by will alone I set
my mind in motion. It is by the juice of Sapho that thoughts acquire speed, the
lips acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by will alone I set my mind
in motion.
·
Gurney Halleck: Not in the mood? Mood's a
thing for cattle and loveplay, not fighting!
·
Baron Harkonnen: He who controls the
Spice, controls the universe!
·
Alia: And how can this be? For he is the
Kwisatz Haderach!
·
Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV: Bring in
that floating fat man, the Baron!
·
Paul: I remember your gom jabbar, now
you'll remember mine. I can kill with a word.
·
David Lynch Cameo: But sire we can’t
leave all this spice. (Every time I hear
that line I instantly become the happiest person in the world, and the line
that comes after that puts me over the top: DAMN THE SPICE! )
Dune is the story of young Paul Atreides, the chosen one who
must rise up against the evil Baron Harkonnen, save his people and avenge
his father’s death. It takes place in the year 10,191 and the film’s outlandish
theme was created by Brian Eno, now doesn’t that sound epic. Every scene in the
film plays out with that sort of bravado. Whether it’s the voiceovers from
various characters, or Patrick Stewart charging into war with a Pug in hand (Classic!)
the film never distracts you with “Reality” instead it pulls you in with its
compelling characters, twisting storyline and powerful images. It helps that
David Lynch knows how to create a great villain. In this film, Baron Harkonnen,
with all those disgusting pimples gushing with pus, is one of the nastiest
villains ever put on screen. It makes rooting for Paul very easy and gets you
wrapped up in the story. These elements I’m speaking of are the fundamentals of
a great film. Not being afraid to show people another world, and delivering
that vision with hardcore dedication. Movies (Documentaries not included)
should not be too concerned with “Reality” but more concerned with a “Reality”
maybe one we can’t see, thus letting us dream. I believe filmmakers should take
us to another place and time. Make that place real and let us be voyeurs. There
is nothing worse than a sappy movie trying to “connect” with you, with
characters you don’t give a damn about.
Dune talks like a movie, acts like a movie, sounds like a movie and looks
like a movie, wish more new film directors had Lynch’s balls. Nothing is spoon
fed in DUNE you must use your brain to keep up and to truly discover all the mysteries
within.
The last thing I want to say about this classic film is
that it is my favorite coming of age story. Maybe because the coming of age
story is so hidden, just like it is in real life. Many people say The Graduate
(Great Movie) is their favorite coming of age story but I’m not the college
type and its message is too direct for me. Unfortunately, coming to terms with
your future and the man you will become is not. It is very hazy and complicated
becoming a man. Paul goes through it in Dune, just like we do. From losing his
father, to rising into a bigger position in life, he faces this and more all
the while scared yet hopeful. Just like us he must concern himself with war,
while still trying to answer the simple/complex question: “Who am I”. That’s
where I think Dune succeeds like some sort of miracle. You are trying to grow
up, to become the man (Or Woman), many people want you to be and even you want
to be, but you don’t know yourself that well yet, you do not know if you are up
for the task plus there’s a war and innocent people are dying. Paul dreams and
wakes up searching for signs, looking for that next step in his life, and
there’s no Yoda. Just his dreams, his parent’s guidance (Some of us don’t have
that) and pure hope. That’s where Dune succeeds and mirrors itself with its
striking images. The dark beautiful truth of becoming a man, you will do it all
by yourself.
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Rutz Classic Movies is dedicated on writing film essays for films that
in Rutz's opinion, have not gotten the credit they deserve.
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