STACK #206 Dec 2021

CINEMA FEATURE

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production process and sudden death of Scott’s brother saw the British filmmaker move on. The next attempt to bring Dune to the screen was a successful one, with director David Lynch onboard following the success of The Elephant Man in 1980. Although not a sci-fi guy, having turned down the offer to direct Return of the Jedi , Lynch nevertheless saw a lot of potential in the story despite having not previously read Herbert’s novel. Moreover, the weird and mystical elements were a perfect fit for the filmmaker, who began work on a screenplay. Principal photography began in 1983, with the finished film running almost three hours. Distributor Universal demanded it be trimmed down to a more audience-friendly 137-minutes, which bombed at the box office and Lynch ultimately distanced himself from. A 186-min version was later assembled for TV bearing the ‘Alan Smithee’ director credit (the official pseudonym used when a filmmaker disowns a project). Lynch’s Dune , while flawed, remains a fascinating attempt to film Herbert’s novel, and has since gained a devoted cult following. In 2000, the Sci-Fi Channel broadcast a three- part mini-series version of Dune , adapted by writer-director John Harrison. Running almost four and a half hours in total, it was remarkably faithful to Herbert’s novel, although the small screen budget meant it lacked the visual grandeur of Lynch’s film. However, it did win Emmys for its visual effects and cinematography (by Oscar-winner Vittorio Storaro, Apocalypse Now ). A sequel mini-series, Children of Dune , followed in 2003. Dune would return to the big screen in 2021, with filmmaker Denis Villeneuve ( Arrival , Blade Runner 2049 ) taking the helm to realise his dream project – on the condition it be a two-film deal in order to properly honour Herbert’s novel. Bearing the onscreen title Dune: Part One , the visionary director has crafted a film as immense and visually astonishing as the universe it depicts (see it in an IMAX theatre if you can). This is the definitive screen version of Dune to date, while engaging a mainstream audience by framing the journey of protagonist Paul as a coming-of-age story – albeit one with monstrous worms.

With a new big screen adaptation of Frank Herbert’s classic science fiction novel, Dune , in cinemas now, it’s time to look back at the book’s somewhat rocky road to the screen over the decades since its publication in 1965. Words Scott Hocking I t’s impossible to sum up the scope of Frank Herbert’s Dune in a single paragraph, so in a nutshell, the story passed away in 1973 prior to production commencing. The project then fell into FROM PAGE TO SCREEN

the hands of Chilean surrealist filmmaker Alejandro Jodorowsky ( El Topo ), who ambitiously conceived a 10-hour feature populated by a bizarre cast that included Salvador Dali, Orson Welles, Gloria Swanson and Mick Jagger – with production design by French artist Jean ‘Moebius’ Giraud and H.R. Giger ( Alien ), and a soundtrack by Pink Floyd. Needless to say, the excessive

follows the struggle between two great houses to control the planet of Arrakis and its valuable mind-altering spice. The focus is predominantly on a young hero, Paul Atreides, who possesses visionary powers that will make him a messiah figure. And there are giant worms lurking below the desert sands… With themes of imperialism,

DUNE: PART TWO Complex and immense, Dune isn’t exactly mainstream movie material. That is until director Denis Villeneuve turned it into a box office hit this year. With Part One having grossed over US $351 million to date, Dune: Part Two has officially been given the greenlight, with a release date set for October 2023. “ Dune is an appetiser for the second part that is still to come, which is the main meal,” promises the director.

mentalism and mysticism unfolding against an epic backdrop of sci-fi world building, Dune is a dense and heady brew indeed, and one that has proven immensely challenging for filmmakers to faithfully realise on screen. But that hasn’t stopped many from trying – some successfully, some not. The film rights to Herbert’s novel were first optioned in 1971 by

running time, huge budget, and Jodorowsky’s refusal to

compromise on either saw the project shelved, leaving Dune and cult movie fans to lament what might have been. However, the production has since been detailed in the revealing 2013 documentary feature Jodorowsky’s Dune . The rights were then acquired by Italian producer

Planet of the Apes producer Arthur P. Jacobs, with David Lean flagged as a potential director ( Dune is, after all, a kind of intergalactic Lawrence of Arabia ). However, Lean turned it down and Jacobs

Dino de Laurentiis ( King Kong ) in 1976, with plans for a three- hour film scripted by Frank Herbert and directed by Ridley Scott, who wanted to shoot it as two movies. However, the long

Dune is in cinemas now.

28 DECEMBER 2021

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