DUNE 1984
A film review by Timothy Voon
Copyright 1997 Timothy Voon
2 :-) :-) for the Spice of Life
Directed by David Lynch Cast Francesca Annis, Leonardo Cimino, Brad Dourif, José Ferrer, Linda Hunt, Freddie Jones, Richard Jordan, Kyle McLachlan, Virginia Madsen, Silvana Mangano, Everett McGill, Kenneth McMillan, Jack Nance, Sian Phillips, Jürgen Prochnow, Patrick Stewart Paul Smith, Sting, Dean Stockwell, Max von Sydow, Sean Young. Based on a novel written by Frank Herbert
When one attempts to recreate a science fiction masterpiece, and a novel as thick as Dune, it had better be well done, or there will be cries of lynching or stoning from an angry mob. I cannot say that Dune is exceptionally well done, when a good second half of the novel is compressed into minutes of narration to help shorten the movie. So my after thought is that perhaps a mini-series may have done this Epic novel more justice than a feature length film.
One has to at least commend David Lynch for attempting a feat as difficult as Dune. Although the special effects are not wiz bang spectacular, he has managed to recreate the feel of the desert planet Arrakis (aka Dune), which is the taste of Spice itself. Spice is the most precious commodity in the universe. He who controls Spice controls the world. For with it space travel or jumping is made possible, and it is only found on one planet in the entire universe, on the desert planet of Dune. The political scene is of an Emperor who controls the Spice but is worried about the ascendancy of a rival House Atreides. To secure his throne, he pits one powerful House against another. Namely Atreides against Harkonnen, in order to weaken them, yet strengthen his own seat.
David Lynch best known for his dark, gothic, new age features like Twin Peaks, in some ways is ideal for a movie like Dune. After all, one needs a director to match the likes of the twisted yet brilliant mind of author Frank Herbert. A prime example of the darker side, is the homoerotic scene where a young man brings flowers in to the throne room of the raving mad Baron Harkonnen. The obese and disfigured Baron approaches the boy with a look of insatiable lust before ripping out his heart plug. As the boy is dying, the Baron bathes in his victim's blood before climaxing with an orgasm. The other scene of note is when an enemy of the Baron is made to suffer by being made to shamefully milk the antidote from a cat to counter the effects of a poison. Now if these scenes do not encompass the meaning of perversity, I'm not sure what does.
On a lighter and brighter note, less shadowed by the darker side of Herbert and Lynch. This movie captures and recreates the wonders of dry desert winds beating against frail human flesh; in a wilderness where water is as precious as blood. Here the protectors of Spice are giant Sand Worms which tower over the precious commodity like monolith Colossi. This is a world where Bene Gesserit priestesses mind bend and control the feeble minded, and the Fremen await the coming of a foretold Messiah to inflame their blood with long awaited freedom. This is the legacy of Dune.
Although Lynch has failed to recapture the immensity of the epic events that unfold in the novel, he has succeeded in recreating the unique flavour and feel of this most inspired of Herbert's works. On Dune, Spice is the essence of life.
Timothy Voon e-mail: stirling@netlink.com.au
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