Dune

Released: October 21st 2021

Directed By: Dennis Villeneuve

Cast: Timothee Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson Josh Brolin, Oscar Isaac, Dave Bautista, Javier Bardem, Sharon Duncan-Brewster

Being a rampant defender of cinema lockdown was a particularly troublesome time for me. In a world where streaming only gets bigger and bigger it becomes hard to justify why spending £10 to GO to the movies to see a film is worth it. Enter Dune. Some names have become synonymous with the cinema experience, none more so than Dennis Villeneuve, and Dune is a spectacular example of this, showing the beauty of film it al its aspect. Dune is based of the book of the same name and one would hope it isn't spoiler free to mention that this is Dune part 1 of two ( or three ). Going in knowing very little about the story I was worried about whether it would get too caught up in itself and produce something that leaves me confused rather than entertained. Boy was I wrong. Dune is an absolute spectacle of a film, easily making its way to the top of the year's releases.

To start with lets just talk about the visuals, seeing as the film advertises itself as a visual spectacle. Everything in this film is made for the big screen, from the settings to the characters and costume to the giant space worm, like Blade Runner 2049 every scene of this is artwork and at no point do you feel detached from it, the rendering is absolutely on point ( especially the giant space worm ). All the battle scenes look incredible, and while only getting lost in them once or twice for the most part you can understand what is going on throughout. Tying it all together is the glorious soundtrack of one Hans Zimmer along with some of the best sound design of any film, and all comes to a point where you are completely immersed in what is going on.

Now considering it is a part one of however many some forgiveness must be issued in terms of pacing. Now while at no point is it boring or even slow for that matter it can feel a little odd considering how they have chosen to break up the film, which on the one part is fine because we have yet to see what comes next, however at some points leave it a little anticlimactic. And while some films have the same issue others, like Deathly Hallows part 1 for example, have managed it really well. However as said it doesn't take too much away from the film and perhaps with the addition of part 2 it can feel a bit more complete in itself.

Much has been levelled at the outstanding cast for this film, and are all brilliant in each of their respective roles. Obvious standout in Chalamet and for me Ferguson whose relationship is so visceral throughout. There is a small issue with such a large cast of struggling to get true development out of each of them, however I think it does well to build where necessary ( minus one or two characters... ). However it is highly impressive for such a detailed story to be so concise and to not lose the audience and to make it interesting at that. While there is a lot of houses and planets and families going around the whole thing it does do well to show you truly what is going on. The only real issue I have with it is the fact that it suffers from part one syndrome of having a lot, and I mean a lot, of setup for what is to come, which is fine for the most part but can become very forced at times.

Despite this however it has made me look at Blade Runner 2049 ( a top tier film for me ) and question which is peak Villeneuve, and its honestly had to say. Dune is a stand-out film of the year, one of the few which tempts me back to screens but wholly one which makes me urge people to the big screens to see it. It is an experience and requires all of this to make it what it is which is truly breathtaking, both visually and story-wise.

My Rating 9/10

Image: Warner Bros ©