I was able to see this new sci-fi epic in 70mm at the Barnsley Parkway. This the only venue in England outside London screening the title in 70mm; the 70mm IMAX version only seems to be screening in London. The production was shot using the digital Codex format. However, 70mm is superior to both 2K and 4K DCPS in quality so this is worth a trip to catch.
The title is part of an increasing franchise based on the novels of Frank Herbert. This is a vast fiction narrative which first appeared in 1965. It seems to be a sprawling epic with multiple volumes and even an encyclopaedia. There have been earlier film versions and a television series. The first part of Dune appeared in 2021 using the same format as this title.
To recap, in the first part we are in an imperial world far away in time and space. A key resource in this inter-planetary world is ‘spice’. The material is only found on a harsh desert planet, Arrakis. Planetary rulers [Houses] in the empire compete to obtain the franchise on spice. In the distant future, Duke Leto Atreides, ruler of the planet Caladan, is the current fief holder. He and his household are massacred by the House of Harkonnen who then take control of Arrakis. Jessica and her son Paul survive and flee to Arrakis. There they team up with the indigenous and oppressed native, the Fremen. The Fremen rebels come to believe that Paul is a long-awaited Messiah. And the rebels, with Paul, attack the occupying force of the Harkonnen.
In Part 2 Paul starts a romance with one of the Fremen rebels, Chani. Meanwhile Jessica becomes involves in religious rituals, part of the Fremen culture. Note, Chani is sceptical of the religious fundamentalism of the majority Fremen. There are lots of battles with the Harkonnen. One aspect of Arrakis is the existence of giant worms who feed on the spice in the desert. Paul establishes his position when he masters the Fremen style of ‘riding worms’. The climax of the film comes when the emperor, with his forces, joins in the battle with the Fremen rebels. The outcome is predictable but also, like the first part, happily sets up a sequel.
As a large screen epic Dune is pretty satisfying. The cinematography by Greg Fraser is impressive and is well edited by Joe Walker. The visual and sounds effects are equally impressive. And the locations, setting, costumes and props all show excellent craft skills. There is an amount of advanced technology, especially military hardware. Much of this is of a retro-type, harking back to the style of World War I; space travel and other aspects are more futurist. I thought the music, by Hans Zimmer, was rather over the top. The title runs for 165 minutes but it was engaging enough to hold attention for that amount of time. It is in colour and the 70mm print is in the less common ratio of 2.35:1.
The characters and plot are less impressive; rather at the level of Star Wars, at least the better episodes. The dialogue reminded me of Harrison Ford’s scathing comment years ago. I thought that Javier Barden, as the Fremen leader Stilgar, made the best fist of a performance; whilst Charlotte Rampling, as Reverend Mother Mohiam, made good use of her distinctive voice. For some unexplained reason all the leading characters are able to speak fluent English. There are invented languages in the film and much of this dialogue is transcribed in English subtitles.
I found the whole world of Dune anachronistic. We are supposedly thousands of years in the future: in another galaxy: and with sophisticated and advanced technology. Yet we find a world based on part aristocratic models and inflicted with outdated and reactionary religious and social values. The only explanation I could think of is that these stories are expression of capitalist culture and that cannot envisage a future alternative society or mode of production. It seems that this world is not properly capitalist though it is likely that there is some sort of merchant capital operating. Not only Marx and Engels, but even Hegel, would find this futurist world inexplicable.
The invented language of the Fremen does sound a little like Arabic. At one point ‘Mahdi’ rather than ‘Messiah’ is used. Comments on the original novels suggested some sort of subtext about the Middle East. All you have to do is swap oil for spice and it falls into place. Perhaps making it a pre-capitalist world in the story avoids unfortunate comparisons with the recent past and present. However, the constellation of forces in the film, as in the originating territories, and in the resolution mirror the contemporary hegemony in the region.
However, as in other sci-fi plots it all comes down to face-to-face combat and duels between a hero and a villain. These all involve knives and sword; another anachronism in supposedly advanced technological society. The Fremen also have and seem ready to use nuclear weapons; possibly a reference to an earlier novel set in the Middle East.
I suppose, [like Roy] I am a fan of SF rather than sci-fi. And these recent epics were preceded by real SF in the work of director Denis Villeneuve. His 2016 Arrival is a sophisticated SF narrative, well filmed, with a fascinating plot and a fine central performance by Amy Adams.
The Parkway have several more screenings of the 70mm print. And Wikipedia has pages on the films, the novels and the whole epic world.
The Case for Global Film 
Great piece! I really enjoyed reading this! There’s a regrettable trend for critics to have to cram information about films like fanboys rather than see the film from the POV of the audience. Dune has a large and conflicted lore, but I think this director really figured out how to cut through it incisively. You have a much better eye if a good film that I do, and consequently see better stuff; I was intrigued to see what you made of one of the best modern blockbusters.
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