In search of the definitive version
There are good reasons to think that Denis Villeneuve is the ideal filmmaker for the definitive adaptation of “Dune”. Films such as “Maelström” (2000), “Polytechnique” (2009) and “The woman who sang” (2010) demonstrated their ability to reflect human complexity. “Identical enemies” (2013) and “No man’s land: Sicario” (2015) led him to exalt emotions with the maximum use of the environment. “The arrival” (2016) and “Blade Runner 2049” (2017) positioned him among the main references of contemporary sci-fi. More importantly, the filmmaker’s own passion for Dune has enabled him to understand the needs of the project. These include a top-notch cast headed by Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, Zendaya, Josh Brolin, Jason Momoa, Sharon Duncan-Brewster, Javier Bardem, Dave Bautista, Charlotte Rampling, and Stellan Skarsgård., as well as a controversial segmentation of the novel into two parts.
“I would not agree to make this adaptation of the book with a single film,” said the Canadian at the time . “The world is too complex. It is a world that takes its power in the details”. A division that allows to delve into the noble efforts of the Atreides in Arrakis, as well as their tragic fall and that seems key to bring history to fruition for the first time in its entire history. An effort that accumulates half a century of hopes and frustrations.
Plans to bring “Dune” to the movies began in 1971, but the first truly important one did not arrive until 1975 with the mythical impossible adaptation of Alejandro Jodorowsky. A dream project that would have the collaboration of some of the great creative minds of all time such as Jean-Girard Moebius, HR Giger and Pink Floyd, as well as a cast consisting of David Carradine, Gloria Swanson, Alain Delon, Mick Jagger, Orson Welles and Salvador Dali himself as the emperor, but that became unsustainable due to its increasingly high production costs and its increasing longevity, which at one point lasted ten hours. To add insult to injury, the notion that such an uncommercial filmmaker would be unable to recoup the investment. The details and details of the film that could never materialize were recorded in the documentary Jodorowsky’s Dune (2013).
This failure, however, opened the doors for the 1984 adaptation by David Lynch. Her surreal overtones contributed to her cult status, but kept her from being embraced by lovers of the original novel. Most criticized was its 137-minute duration, which resulted in a hasty third act, which has been criticized by the director himself. “I probably shouldn’t have made that movie,” he declared after know the results , “But I saw so many possibilities for the things I loved and this was the structure I had to use to do them.”
The third and final adaptation was the 2000 miniseries written and directed by John Harrison.. It garnered rave reviews, won a pair of Emmys and even inspired a sequel, but its television character doomed it to oblivion. Efforts for a new version continued for almost 20 years, but could not be realized until now.
These antecedents do not disturb Villeneuve at all, who says he is ready to start working on the second part of the story, while allowing himself to dream of a third installment. “There is a second Dune book, Dune Messiah, which could be an extraordinary movie,” he stated in interview . “I always thought it could be a trilogy. After that, we’ll see. They have been years of work and I can’t think of going any further ”.
The foundations look solid and the possibilities for expansion are tempting. But as it is already a custom in contemporary industry, everything will depend on the public’s response, that in addition to bearing the responsibility of the box office, you must decide whether “Dune” preserves the label of maladjustment or achieves ultimate glory once and for all.