Dune

Dune has seen a few adaptations on the big and small screen as of now as it's source content has had a profound impact on science fiction stories ever since it's publication. It was one of the first of it's kind to introduce themes of religion and human control over ecology into the narrative, as at that time, authors thought that in futuristic all those ideals would be gone. As for this iteration, Denis Villeneuve's adaptation nails it's source content beautifully even while only telling half the story. It speaks volumes about Villeneuve as a director as well as the entire cast and crew. There is plenty of passion and understanding behind this adaptation. To those that don't have any kind of knowledge of the source content, the opening thirty minutes may be a hard watch as a lot of world building is being thrown hastily at you, but through the wonderful talents of Villeneuve and the entire cast you are completely immersed in this beautiful tale.

The plot follows Paul Atreides (Timothee Chalamet) who is the next in line of House Atreides, which has been gaining power steadily on the oceanic planet of Caladan, is tasked by the Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV to serve as fief ruler of Arrakis, a harsh desert planet. Arrakis is the only source of melange, or better known as "spice", which is a priceless substance in the galaxy that extends human vitality. Shaddam orders House Atreides to Arrakis as a power move as he believes that the influential Atreides has quickly risen in power, power that could potentially one day topple his own. This also displaces the House Harkonnen, which has ruled over Arrakis for generations with a brutal iron fist. Shaddom hopes that this move will take out two potential foes in one fell swoop. Meanwhile, Paul deals with a personal struggle of living up to the precedent that his righteous father and Duke Leto Atreides (Oscar Isaac) has set. Duke Leto has been a just and fair leader over Caladan, but knows someday all of that will be entrusted to young Paul who may not want to be a leader. His mother, on the other hand, Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson), is an acolyte of the witch like Bene Gesserit who yield advanced physical and mental abilities. These such abilities have passed down to young Paul who struggles to yield such gifts, but shows great promise. That promise leads some among the native people living on Arrakis to believe that he is the promised Messiah that will lead all to a unified front and peace.

The story isn't exactly a simple one as there are a lot of moving pieces to take in at first, but the script does a wonderful job of never making it seem overly preachy nor boring as the world building of this vast universe is pieced together beautifully. Timothee Chalamet is perfect as the potential Messiah, Paul. Paul has a lot on his shoulders as a potential king as well as leader of all mankind. Chalamet does a wonderful job of balancing being heroic but dismissive of the role in this universe that destiny has seemingly already written for him. It is a difficult balance to pull off, but he does it well. Even the visions he has of his future could easily teeter on making the character seem odd, which he is in spots, but it fits the burden that has fallen upon his shoulders.

The rest of the cast is also strong in their roles. Oscar Isaac is incredibly as Duke Leto and a wonderful father figure to Paul. The conversations between the two are filled with a tender love and respect for one another that help inform the audience on plenty of backstory for the House Atreides and their motivations. Jason Momoa also excels as Duncan Idaho, the Han Solo of this franchise if you will. He is shown to be an excellent fighter with plenty of charisma and care for Paul throughout. Rebecca Ferguson stands out as Lady Jessica, who is privy to plenty of the prophecies that her mysterious kind Bene Gesserit have conjured up and told all planets in this universe and what that may mean for Paul's future.

Hanz Zimmer, as usual, creates a masterful score throughout the lengthy runtime. He creates an eerie tone that matches the film beautifully. The true standouts of this film is that of Villenueve, Jon Spaihts and Eric Roth. Villenueve co-wrote the hearty tale with Spaights and Roth and a lesser trio of writers have tried in their wake, and largely failed. The biggest difference between this adaptation and previous attempts, is this trio seems to truly understand the weight of it's themes and it's characters. Calling the film simply a masterpiece at this point feels, misplaced as it isn't finished and hopefully through the pandemic the film receives the credit it is due so that the story can be completed. However, as it stands now as an incomplete story, the entire ride is seamless and entertaining from start to finish as well as something that can be watched multiple times and gain something new with each subsequent view. Hopefully this story becomes synonymous with other great epics such as Lord of the Rings and Star Wars.