The 562nd film I have seen in theaters…

The spice must flow! 40 years later!

In the year 10,191 (20,000 or so years in our future), the Galactic Emperor has given the planet Arrakis to Duke Leto Atreides. It is the most valuable planet known to man and it is also a trap. We follow the Atreides as they settle on “Dune”, fight off threats, form alliances, and try to survive the desert planet. Eventually, Leto’s son, Paul, leads a rebellion against the Imperium that threatens the stability of the galaxy.

As this was re-released for not only it’s 40 anniversary but the release of Dune Pt 2, I shall also compare these to the newer performances.

The Atreides

Kyle Maclachlan stars as Paul Atreides. The guy was a decent actor, even back then. He carries the movie well. That said, Timothee Chalamet eats Maclachlan’s lunch in this role. I can’t entirely blame Kyle though as the script for the modern version is superior, particularly in showing Paul’s torment.

Francesca Annis is Lady Jessica, the Duke’s concubine. I liked this performance. Of the three adaptations of Dune, the newer might have the upper hand though, again due to the quality of the writing. This version is missing the element of Jessica using the Fremen’s religion against them.

Jurgen Prochnow kills it as Duke Leto. I think Oscar Isaac brings a little more to the role, but this was excellent casting. This guy should have been a bigger star.

Richard Jordan plays Duncan Idaho, for maybe 2 minutes. This guy was not very good as the famous swordmaster. He also stunk as Dirk Pitt in Raise the Titanic. Jason Momoa is better in every sense. Physicality, likeability, writing, performance.

Freddie Jones wins the Thufir Hawat showdown. I was surprised by how little 2021 Thufir was used in the film. My assumption was scenes left out in the final cut. This guy, bushy eyebrows and all was great.

I love Dean Stockwell. He was a fantastic actor. He did quite a lot with the minor role of Dr Yueh. I credit the success to 2 things: the acting and the writing. David Lynch put more emphasis on this guy’s relationship to the Atreides. This was the major failing of the 2021 version. Despite the longer run time, a while film dedicated to the first half, Yueh was not developed enough.

The story is that David Lynch accidentally cast Patrick Stewart as Gurney Halleck. It was a great accident to have lol. I give Stewart the win here ONLY for the scene where he carries a fucking pug into battle.

The Fremen

No contest. Max Von Sydow wins the match. Brewster did well, but Max is a cinema legend.

I really like Everett McGill. His Stilgar was stoic as fuck, but let’s be honest. There was no nuance or character there. Javier Bardem was superior. The Fremen as a whole are far better portrayed in 2021.

Sean Young did not have much to do here. Actually, Zendaya may have already done more in 2021’s half of the story than Young did in the entire story. Zendaya wins. Not even close.

The Villains

Jesus Christ on a popscicle stick. Kenneth McMillan is very much the novel’s baron, physically at least. The performance was terrible though. He spends entire scenes flying around in circles screaming/laughing maniacally. It actually prompts laughter. Stellan brings the threat. the evil. Clearly the winner

I always liked Paul Smith. He was awesome in Popeye. Again, he doesn’t do much here other than eat food and scream/laugh. Batista wins.

How could I choose any other photo? I actually liked Sting as Feyd. This was good casting. I cannot comment on Austin Butler yet as the movie has not yet released, but Sting was good.

I always enjoyed Brad Dourif as Piter De Vries, but even I must admit he was overacting the fuck out of this role. Distractingly at times. He takes the edge over the 2021 Piter in that he has more to do here. 2021 is barely in it.

Jose Ferrer is the Emperor and Sian Phillips is the Reverend Mother. Ferrer was another fantastic actor and did well as the Emperor. Christopher Walken is a better actor though. I cannot wait to see his Shaddam.

Sian Phillips carried this role well. She had the necessary presence to pull this off. Rampling is about even with her so far.

Nostagia is a funny thing. For decades this was the only version of Dune I had. I grew up with it and I do love the movie. Is it any good though?

Nope. The movie is not. lol.

The design of this movie, the casting, the music, the editing is all very well crafted. The biggest failure is the script. It is just not well executed. The greatest sin for me is the ending. Paul cannot summon rain. He does not usher in peace. He is not “the messiah”. He is a dictator. He brings a holy war to the galaxy that kills billions. He is not a hero. 2021 Dune seems to understand this. Lynch did not.

4/10