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{{Short description|1984 film directed by David Lynch}}
{{Infobox Film |
{{Use American English|date=September 2024}}
name = Dune |
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2024}}
image = Dune Cover front.jpg|
{{Infobox film
director = [[David Lynch]] |
producer = [[Dino De Laurentiis]] |
| name = Dune
| image = Dune 1984 Poster.jpg
writer = [[Frank Herbert]] (novel) <BR \> [[David Lynch]] |
starring = [[Kyle MacLachlan]] <BR \> [[Francesca Annis]] |
| caption = Theatrical release poster by [[Tom Jung]]
| alt =
distributor = [[Universal Pictures]] |
| director = [[David Lynch]]
released = [[December 14]], [[1984]] (premiere) |
runtime = 137 min. |
| producer = [[Raffaella De Laurentiis]]
| based_on = {{Based on|''[[Dune (novel)|Dune]]''|[[Frank Herbert]]}}
language = English |
| screenplay = David Lynch
budget = $45,000,000 (estimated) |
music = |
| starring = {{plainlist|
* [[Francesca Annis]]
awards = |
* [[Leonardo Cimino]]
imdb_id = 0087182 |
* [[Brad Dourif]]
|}}
* [[José Ferrer]]
* [[Linda Hunt]]
* [[Freddie Jones]]
* [[Richard Jordan]]
* [[Kyle MacLachlan]]
* [[Virginia Madsen]]
* [[Silvana Mangano]]
* [[Everett McGill]]
* [[Kenneth McMillan (actor)|Kenneth McMillan]]
* [[Jack Nance]]
* [[Siân Phillips]]
* [[Jürgen Prochnow]]
* [[Paul L. Smith|Paul Smith]]
* [[Patrick Stewart]]
* [[Sting (musician)|Sting]]
* [[Dean Stockwell]]
* [[Max von Sydow]]
* [[Alicia Witt|Alicia Roanne Witt]]
* [[Sean Young]]
}}<!--As per end credits and guidance-->
| music = {{plainlist|
* [[Toto (band)|Toto]]
* [[Brian Eno]]{{efn|The end credits states "Prophecy Theme" was composed by [[Brian Eno]], [[Daniel Lanois]], and [[Roger Eno]].}} ("Prophecy Theme")
}}
| cinematography = [[Freddie Francis]]
| editing = [[Antony Gibbs]]
| studio = [[Dino De Laurentiis|Dino De Laurentiis Corporation]]
| distributor = [[Universal Pictures]]
| released = {{Film date|1984|12|3|[[John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts#Eisenhower Theater|Eisenhower Theater]]|1984|12|14|United States}}
| runtime = 137 minutes<!--Submitted runtime: 136:37--><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.bbfc.co.uk/releases/dune-0 | title=''Dune'' (PG) (Cut) | work=[[British Board of Film Classification]] | date=November 20, 1984 | access-date=August 8, 2013 | archive-date=April 2, 2015 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402155837/http://www.bbfc.co.uk/releases/dune-0 | url-status=live }}</ref>
| country = United States
| language = English
| budget = $40–42 million<ref name="Mojo">{{cite web |title=''Dune'' (1984) |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=dune.htm |work=[[Box Office Mojo]] |access-date=August 8, 2013 |archive-date=May 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210502192320/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/release/rl3629024769/weekend/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Knoedelseder">{{cite news |last=Knoedelseder |first=William K. Jr. |author-link=William Knoedelseder |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-08-30-fi-5144-story.html |title=De Laurentiis: Producer's Picture Darkens |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=August 30, 1987 |access-date=August 4, 2020 |archive-date=March 28, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210328153738/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-08-30-fi-5144-story.html |url-status=live}}</ref>
| gross = $30.9 million {{No wrap|(US/Canada)}}<ref name="Mojo" /><br>$37.9 million (worldwide rentals)<ref name="Knoedelseder" />
}}


{{Listen|pos=right|filename=Brian Eno - Dune Prophecy Theme.ogg|title=Dune Prophecy Theme}}
'''''Dune''''' is a [[1984 in film|1984]] movie directed by [[David Lynch]] and based on the [[1964]] [[Frank Herbert]] [[Dune (novel)|novel]] of the same name. The film starred [[Kyle MacLachlan]] as the main character, Paul Atreides, and included an ensemble of well-known [[United States|American]], [[Latin America]]n and [[Europe]]an actors in the supporting roles, including [[Sting]], [[Jose Ferrer]], [[Virginia Madsen]], [[Linda Hunt]], [[Patrick Stewart]], [[Max von Sydow]], and [[Jurgen Prochnow|Jürgen Prochnow]], among others. This movie was filmed at the [[Churubusco Studios]] in
[[Mexico]].


'''''Dune''''' is a 1984 American [[Epic film|epic]] [[space opera]] film written and directed by [[David Lynch]], and based on the 1965 [[Frank Herbert]] novel [[Dune (novel)|of the same name]]. It was filmed at the [[Churubusco Studios]] in Mexico City. The [[Dune (1984 soundtrack)|soundtrack]] was composed by the rock band [[Toto (band)|Toto]], with a contribution from [[Brian Eno]]. Its large [[ensemble cast]] includes [[Kyle MacLachlan]] (in his film debut), [[Patrick Stewart]], [[Brad Dourif]], [[Dean Stockwell]], [[Virginia Madsen]], [[José Ferrer]], [[Sean Young]], [[Sting (musician)|Sting]], [[Linda Hunt]], and [[Max von Sydow]].
Although it became a [[cult film|cult favorite]], the film cost $42 million to produce and had a domestic gross of only $27.4 million. It was also criticized by Herbert fans who objected to the director's liberal departure from the novel's storyline.


The setting is the distant future, chronicling the conflict between rival noble families as they battle for control of the extremely harsh desert planet [[Arrakis]], also known as Dune. The planet is the only source of the drug [[Melange (fictional drug)|melange]] (spice), which allows prescience and is vital to space travel, making it the most essential and valuable [[commodity]] in the universe. Paul Atreides is the scion and heir of a powerful noble family, whose appointment to the control of Arrakis brings them into conflict with its former overlords, [[House Harkonnen]]. Paul is also possibly the [[Kwisatz Haderach]], a messianic figure expected by the [[Bene Gesserit]] sisterhood.
==Main cast==
(in credited order)


After the novel's initial success, attempts to adapt ''Dune'' as a film began in 1971. A lengthy process of [[Development (film)|development]] followed throughout the 1970s, during which [[Arthur P. Jacobs]], [[Alejandro Jodorowsky]], and [[Ridley Scott]] unsuccessfully tried to bring their visions to the screen. In 1981, executive producer [[Dino De Laurentiis]] hired Lynch as director.
* [[Francesca Annis]] as Lady Jessica
* [[Leonardo Cimino]] as The Baron's Doctor
* [[Brad Dourif]] as Piter De Vries
* [[José Ferrer]] as Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV
* [[Linda Hunt]] as Shadout Mapes
* [[Freddie Jones]] as Thufir Hawat
* [[Richard Jordan]] as Duncan Idaho
* [[Kyle MacLachlan]] as Paul Usul Muad'Dib Atreides
* [[Virginia Madsen]] as Princess Irulan
* [[Silvana Mangano]] as Rev. Mother Ramallo
* [[Everett McGill]] as Stilgar
* [[Kenneth McMillan]] as Baron Vladimir Harkonnen
* [[Jack Nance]] as Captain Iakin Nefud
* [[Siân Phillips]] as Reverand Mother Gaius Helen Mohiam
* [[Angélica Aragón]] as Bene Gesserit Sister
* [[Jürgen Prochnow]] as Duke Leto Atreides
* [[Paul L. Smith]] as The Beast Rabban (credited as Paul Smith)
* [[Patrick Stewart]] as Gurney Halleck
* [[Sting (musician)|Sting]] as Feyd-Rautha
* [[Dean Stockwell]] as Dr. Wellington Yueh
* [[Max von Sydow]] as Dr. Kynes
* [[Alicia Witt]] as Alia (credited as Alicia Roanne Witt)
* [[Sean Young]] as Chani
* [[Honorato Magaloni]] as Otheym (credited as Honorato Magalone)
* [[Judd Omen]] as Jamis
* [[Molly Wryn]] as Harah


The film [[Box-office bomb|underperformed]] at the box office, grossing $30.9 million against a $40–42 million budget. At least four versions have been released worldwide. Lynch largely disowned the finished film and had his name removed or changed to pseudonyms in the credits on certain versions. The film has developed a [[cult following]],<ref>{{Cite web |date=October 24, 2021 |url=https://www.polygon.com/22738264/dune-david-lynch-explained-galaxy-brains-podcast |title=David Lynch's ''Dune'' bombed, but was actually foundational |first=Dave |last=Schilling |website=[[Polygon (website)|Polygon]] |access-date=February 8, 2022 |archive-date=February 8, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220208115151/https://www.polygon.com/22738264/dune-david-lynch-explained-galaxy-brains-podcast |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Snyder" /> but opinion varies between fans of the novel and fans of Lynch's films.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/new-dune-movie-explained-what-to-know-about-the-classic-sci-fi-novel |title=Dune Movie Explained: What to Know About the Classic Sci-Fi Novel |first=Jesse |last=Schedeen |date=October 21, 2021 |website=[[IGN]] |access-date=February 9, 2022 |archive-date=April 20, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200420215022/https://www.ign.com/articles/new-dune-movie-explained-what-to-know-about-the-classic-sci-fi-novel |url-status=live }}</ref>
==Adaptation==
Shot almost entirely in Mexico, the movie is an adaptation of the first part of a series of novels (see ''[[Dune (novel)|Dune]]'', by Frank Herbert) and containing elements from the later parts. The major plot concerned a young man foretold in prophecy as the Kwisatz Haderach who will save a desert planet from the evil House Harkonnen and cleanse the universe of evil in a religious [[jihad]].


==Plot==
The pre-production process was slow and problematic, and the project was handed from director to director. In 1971 the production company Apjac International (APJ) (headed by [[Arthur P. Jacobs]]) optioned the rights to film Dune. As Jacobs was busy with other projects (such as the sequel of [[Planet of the Apes]]) the project was delayed for another year. Originally, it was to be directed by [[David Lean]] (with [[Robert Bolt]] writing the screenplay) and scheduled to begin shooting in 1974. In 1973 Arthur P. Jacobs passed away.
In the year 10,191, the known universe is ruled by the [[Padishah Emperor]] [[Shaddam IV]]. The most valuable substance in the empire is the spice [[Melange (fictional drug)|melange]], which extends life and expands consciousness. The spice also allows the [[Spacing Guild]] to [[fold space]], allowing safe, instantaneous [[interstellar travel]]. The Guild’s leader demands Shaddam clarify a conspiracy that could jeopardize spice production. Shaddam reveals that he has transferred power and control of the planet [[Arrakis]], the only source of the spice, to [[House Atreides]]. However, once the Atreides arrive, they will be attacked by their archenemies, the [[House Harkonnen|Harkonnen]], alongside Shaddam's own [[Sardaukar]] troops. Shaddam fears the Atreides due to reports of a secret army that they are amassing.


[[Lady Jessica]], the concubine of [[Duke Leto Atreides]], is an acolyte of the [[Bene Gesserit]], an exclusive sisterhood with advanced physical and mental abilities. As part of a centuries-long [[breeding program]] to produce the [[Kwisatz Haderach]], a mental "superbeing" whom the Bene Gesserit would use to their advantage, Jessica was ordered to bear a daughter but disobeyed and bore a son, [[Paul Atreides]]. Paul is tested by [[Gaius Helen Mohiam|Reverend Mother Mohiam]] to assess his impulse control and, to her surprise, passes the test.
In December of 1974 a [[France|French]] consortium led by [[Jean-Paul Gibon]] purchased the rights to the movie from APJ. The director this time would be Chilean born writer/director/mime/composer/psychotherapist [[Alejandro Jodorowsky]].


The Atreides leave their homeworld [[Caladan]] for Arrakis, a barren [[desert planet]] populated by gigantic [[Sandworm (Dune)|sandworms]]. The native people of Arrakis, the [[Fremen]], prophesy that a messiah will lead them to freedom and paradise. [[Duncan Idaho]], one of Leto's loyalists, tells him that he suspects Arrakis holds vast numbers of Fremen who could prove to be powerful allies. Before Leto can form an alliance with the Fremen, the Harkonnen launch their attack. Leto's personal physician who is also secretly a Harkonnen double-agent, Dr. [[Wellington Yueh]], disables the shields, leaving the Atreides defenseless. Idaho is killed, Leto is captured, and nearly the entire House of Atreides is wiped out by the Harkonnen. [[Vladimir Harkonnen|Baron Harkonnen]] orders [[Mentat]] [[Piter De Vries]] to kill Yueh with a poisoned blade. Leto dies in a failed attempt to assassinate the Baron using a poison-gas tooth implanted by Yueh in exchange for sparing the lives of Jessica and Paul, killing Piter instead.
In 1975, Alejandro Jodorowsky tried to film the story as a ten hour feature, in collaboration with [[Orson Welles]], [[Dan O'Bannon]] [[Salvador Dalí]], [[Gloria Swanson]], [[H. R. Giger]] and others. The music would have been done by [[Pink Floyd]], but the project was never finished. Frank Herbert travelled to Europe in 1976 to find that 2 million dollars were already spent, not a second of footage shot, and that the Jodorowsky script would result in a 14-hour movie. The rights for filming were yet again sold, this time to Dino de Laurentiis. To this day Jodorowsky states that the movie was taken from his hands because the project was French, not from Hollywood. Some of the designs were later used in the ''[[Alien (film)|Alien]]'' films.


Paul and Jessica survive the attack and escape into the deep desert, where they are given sanctuary by a [[sietch]] of Fremen. Paul assumes the Fremen name [[Muad'Dib]] and emerges as the messiah for whom the Fremen have been waiting. He teaches them to use [[Weirding Modules]]—sonic weapons developed by House Atreides—and targets spice mining. Over the next two years, spice production is nearly halted due to Paul's raids. The Spacing Guild informs the Emperor of the deteriorating situation on Arrakis.
With De Laurentiis holding the rights for filming, he hired director [[Ridley Scott]] in 1979 (with Rudolph Wurlitzer writing the screenplay). Scott worked on 3 scripts and intended to split the book into 2 movies before moving on to direct [[Blade Runner]]. As he recalls the pre-production process was slow, and to get the project done would have taken more time:


Paul falls in love with young Fremen warrior [[Chani (character)|Chani]]. Jessica becomes the Fremen's Reverend Mother by ingesting the [[Water of Life (Dune)|Water of Life]], a deadly poison, which she renders harmless by using her Bene Gesserit abilities. As an after-effect of this ritual, Jessica's unborn child, [[Alia Atreides|Alia]], later emerges from the womb with the full powers of an adult Bene Gesserit Reverend Mother. In a prophetic dream, Paul learns of the plot by the Emperor and the Guild to kill him. When Paul's dreams suddenly stop, he drinks the Water of Life and has a profound [[psychedelic experience|psychedelic trip]] in the desert. He gains powerful psychic powers and the ability to control the sandworms, which he realizes are the spice's source.
''"But after seven months I dropped out of Dune, by then Rudy Wurlitzer had come up with a first-draft script which I felt was a decent distillation of Frank Herbert's (book). But I also realised Dune was going to take a lot more work - at least two and a half years' worth. And I didn't have the heart to attack that because my [older] brother Frank unexpectedly died of cancer while I was prepping the De Laurentiis picture. Frankly, that freaked me out. So I went to Dino and told him the Dune script was his."'' (taken from ''"Ridley Scott - The Making of his Movies"'' - by Paul M. Sammon)


The Emperor amasses a huge invasion fleet above Arrakis to wipe out the Fremen and regain control of the planet. He has the Baron's older nephew [[Glossu Rabban|Glossu "The Beast" Rabban]] beheaded and summons the Baron to explain why spice mining has stopped. Paul launches a final attack against the Harkonnen and the Emperor's Sardaukar at Arrakeen, the capital city. Riding atop sandworms and brandishing sonic weapons, Paul's Fremen warriors easily defeat the Emperor's legions. Alia assassinates the Baron while Paul confronts the Emperor and fights the Baron's younger nephew [[Feyd-Rautha]] in a duel to the death. After killing Feyd, Paul demonstrates his newfound powers and fulfills the Fremen prophecy by causing rain to fall on Arrakis. Alia declares him to be the Kwisatz Haderach.
By 1981, the 9 year deal was expiring, De Laurentiis re-negotiated the rights again, and settled the rights for Dune sequels (written and unwritten). Raffaella De Laurentis, after seeing [[The Elephant Man]] decided that David Lynch should direct the movie, around that time Lynch was receiving several other offers, including [[The Return of the Jedi]], and agreed to direct and write Dune.


==Cast==
David Lynch worked on the script for 6 months with Eric Bergren and Christopher De Vore, eventually adapting the movie into 2 scripts. The team split up after this first attempt because of creative differences. Lynch would continue to work on 7 different scripts. His final, 135 page screenplay resulted in a movie about 4 - 5 hours in length. During post production, though, producer [[Dino De Laurentiis]] did not want to risk releasing a 40 million dollar movie that was three hours long, so he had David Lynch cut the film down to 137 minutes.
<!--- Cast, order and roles in alphabetical order as presented in end credits -->
{{Cast listing|
* [[Francesca Annis]] as [[Lady Jessica]], concubine of Duke Leto and mother to Paul and Alia
* [[Leonardo Cimino]] as [[Scytale (Dune)|the Baron's Doctor]]<ref name=":W"/>
* [[Brad Dourif]] as [[Piter De Vries]], the Harkonnen Mentat
* [[José Ferrer]] as [[Padishah Emperor]] [[Shaddam IV]]
* [[Linda Hunt]] as the [[Shadout Mapes]], the Fremen housekeeper of the Atreides' Arrakis palace
* [[Freddie Jones]] as [[Thufir Hawat]], the Atreides Mentat
* [[Richard Jordan]] as [[Duncan Idaho]], a Swordmaster of the Ginaz in the Atreides court
* [[Kyle MacLachlan]] as [[Paul Atreides]], the Atreides heir
* [[Virginia Madsen]] as [[Princess Irulan]], the Emperor's eldest daughter
* [[Silvana Mangano]] as [[Reverend Mother Ramallo]], a Fremen woman who predicts Paul's arrival
* [[Everett McGill]] as [[Stilgar]], the leader of the Fremen with whom Paul and Jessica take refuge
* [[Kenneth McMillan (actor)|Kenneth McMillan]] as Baron [[Vladimir Harkonnen]], Duke Leto's rival
* [[Jack Nance]] as Nefud, the captain of Baron Harkonnen's guard
* [[Siân Phillips]] as Reverend Mother [[Gaius Helen Mohiam]], the Emperor's advisor and Jessica's Bene Gesserit superior
* [[Jürgen Prochnow]] as Duke [[Leto I Atreides|Leto Atreides]], Paul's father
* [[Paul L. Smith|Paul Smith]] as [[Glossu Rabban]], Baron Harkonnen's older nephew
* [[Patrick Stewart]] as [[Gurney Halleck]], a troubador-warrior and talented baliset musician in the Atreides court
* [[Sting (musician)|Sting]] as [[Feyd-Rautha]], Baron Harkonnen's younger nephew
* [[Dean Stockwell]] as Doctor [[Wellington Yueh]], the Atreides physician and unwilling traitor
* [[Max von Sydow]] as Doctor [[Liet-Kynes|Kynes]], a planetologist in the Fremen
* [[Alicia Witt]] as [[Alia Atreides|Alia]], Paul's younger sister
* [[Sean Young]] as [[Chani (character)|Chani]], Paul's Fremen lover
}}


Additionally, Honorato Magalone appears as [[Otheym]], Judd Omen appears as [[Jamis (Dune)|Jamis]], and Molly Wryn as [[Harah]]. Director David Lynch appears in an uncredited cameo as a spice worker, while [[Danny Corkill]] is shown in the onscreen credits as Orlop despite [[deleted scene|his scenes being deleted]] from the theatrical release.
It is rumored that Frank Herbert saw both versions. It is said he liked the longer one a great deal and disowned the shorter one.


== Production ==
==Box office and reception==
{{Main|Dune (novel)#Early stalled attempts}}
The movie's hype was huge before release, but the film wasn't the blockbuster science fiction film the filmmakers had hoped, grossing only $27.4 million in its domestic run off an estimated $42 million budget. This might have been due to the complexity of the story, featured in the movie in a thin, loose, and dream-like trail. On his review, critic Roger Ebert wrote ''"This movie is a real mess, an incomprehensible, ugly, unstructured, pointless excursion into the murkier realms of one of the most confusing screenplays of all time"''.


===Early attempts and Jodorowsky's ''Dune''===
Fans of the book were also disappointed, and fans of sci-fi also found that the special effects left a lot to be desired. As a result of the box-office and critical failure, David Lynch doesn't like to talk about ''Dune'' in interviews, politely excusing himself as having "blocked" much from that time in his mind. It is also widely seen by critics as the worst David Lynch feature (paradoxically, it is also one of the most popular ones).
After the book's initial success, producers began attempting to adapt it. In mid-1971, film producer [[Arthur P. Jacobs]] optioned the [[film rights]] to [[Frank Herbert]]'s 1965 novel ''[[Dune (novel)|Dune]]'', on agreement to produce a film within nine years, but died in mid-1973, while plans for the film (including [[David Lean]] already attached to direct) were still in development.<ref name="nytimes production">{{cite web | url = https://www.nytimes.com/1983/09/04/movies/the-world-of-dune-is-filmed-in-mexico.html | title = The World Of 'Dune' Is Filmed In Mexico | first = Aljean | last = Harmetz | date = September 4, 1983 | access-date = October 31, 2021 | work = [[The New York Times]] | archive-date = November 1, 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20211101030112/https://www.nytimes.com/1983/09/04/movies/the-world-of-dune-is-filmed-in-mexico.html | url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="BookToScreenTimeline">{{cite web |url=http://www.duneinfo.com/unseen/timeline.asp |title=''Dune'': Book to Screen Timeline |website=DuneInfo |access-date=January 18, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110517163719/http://www.duneinfo.com/unseen/timeline.asp |archive-date=May 17, 2011 }}</ref>


The film rights reverted in 1974, when the option was acquired by a French consortium led by Jean-Paul Gibon, with [[Alejandro Jodorowsky]] attached to direct.<ref name="nytimes production"/> Jodorowsky approached contributors including the [[progressive rock]] groups [[Pink Floyd]] and [[Magma (band)|Magma]] for some of the music, [[Dan O'Bannon]] for the visual effects, and artists [[H. R. Giger]], [[Jean Giraud]], and [[Chris Foss]] for set and character design. Potential cast included [[Salvador Dalí]] as the Emperor, [[Orson Welles]] as Baron Harkonnen, [[Mick Jagger]] as Feyd-Rautha, [[Udo Kier]] as Piter De Vries, [[David Carradine]] as Leto Atreides, Jodorowsky's son [[Brontis Jodorowsky]] as Paul Atreides, and [[Gloria Swanson]].<ref name="Metal hurlant">{{cite magazine|url=http://www.duneinfo.com/unseen/jodorowsky.asp |title=''Dune: Le Film Que Voue Ne Verrez Jamais'' |trans-title=''Dune'': The Film You Will Never See |first=Alejandro |last=Jodorowsky |author-link=Alejandro Jodorowsky |magazine=[[Métal hurlant]] |issue=107 |year=1985 |via=DuneInfo |access-date=February 8, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110429101454/http://www.duneinfo.com/unseen/jodorowsky.asp |archive-date=April 29, 2011 }}</ref> The project was ultimately canceled for several reasons, largely because funding disappeared when the project ballooned to a 10–14 hour epic.<ref>{{cite AV media | title =[[Jodorowsky's Dune]] |people=[[Frank Pavich]] (director) |date=2013 |medium=Documentary}}</ref>
Some praise the ''[[film noir|noir]]''-[[baroque]] approach of Lynch to the movie. Others compare it to other difficult Lynch movies, such as [[Eraserhead]], and say that in order to watch it, the viewer must first be aware of the ''Dune'' universe.


Although their film project never reached production, the work that Jodorowsky and his team put into ''Dune'' significantly impacted subsequent science-fiction films. In particular, ''[[Alien (film)|Alien]]'' (1979), written by O'Bannon, shared much of the same creative team for the visual design as had been assembled for Jodorowsky's film. A documentary, ''[[Jodorowsky's Dune]]'' (2013), was made about Jodorowsky's failed attempt at an adaptation.<ref name="Variety Cannes">{{cite web |url=https://variety.com/2013/film/news/hold-directors-fortnight-1200407774/ |title=U.S. Fare Looms Large in Directors' Fortnight |work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |first=Elsa |last=Keslassy |date=April 23, 2013 |access-date=April 30, 2013 |archive-date=April 26, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130426003118/http://variety.com/2013/film/news/hold-directors-fortnight-1200407774/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Deadline Sony">{{cite web |url=https://deadline.com/2013/07/jodorowskys-dune-movie-sony-pictures-classics-acquires-539001/ |title=Sony Classics Acquires Cannes Docu ''Jodorowsky's Dune'' |website=[[Deadline Hollywood]] |date=July 11, 2013 |access-date=December 8, 2014 |archive-date=December 10, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141210231123/http://deadline.com/2013/07/jodorowskys-dune-movie-sony-pictures-classics-acquires-539001/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
==Departures from the novel==
{{spoiler}}
The film makes numerous departures from the novel, including the following.


===De Laurentiis's first attempt===
* In the novel, the "Weirding Way", properly termed "prana-bindu training", is a super-martial art form that allows an adept like Paul Atreides to move with lightning speed. The Lynch movie replaces this with "weirding modules" (essentially, sonic guns) that amplify the user's shouts into a destructive force. This change literalizes a moment in the novel in which Paul says his name has become a death-prayer because the Fremen shout "Muad'dib!" before killing an opponent. In the movie, the Fremen actually destroy their enemies by shouting his name, leading Paul to make the remark "my name has become a killing word".
In late 1976, Italian producer [[Dino De Laurentiis]] purchased the rights for ''Dune'' from Gibon's consortium.<ref name="nytimes production"/> De Laurentiis commissioned Herbert to write a new screenplay in 1978; the script Herbert turned in was 175 pages long, the equivalent of nearly three hours of screen time.<ref name="nytimes production"/> De Laurentiis then hired director [[Ridley Scott]] in 1979, with [[Rudy Wurlitzer]] writing the screenplay and H. R. Giger retained from the Jodorowsky production.<ref name="nytimes production"/> Scott intended to split the book into two movies. He worked on three drafts of the script, using ''[[The Battle of Algiers]]'' (1966) as a point of reference, before moving on to direct another science-fiction film, ''[[Blade Runner]]'' (1982). He recalled the pre-production process was slow, and finishing the project would have been even more time-intensive:
* The character of Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen is diminished so that he contributes less to the story, even in the climactic scene. In the novel, Paul and Feyd get into a dramatic knife-fight. In the movie, there is little fighting in the climax and Feyd is overcome extremely quickly.
* The movie ends with Paul ''commanding'' rain to fall on Arrakis. In the novel, this is accomplished through years of [[terraforming]], and it does not rain for decades after Paul ascends the throne.
* In the novel, the final line, spoken by Jessica to Chani, is "Those of us who bear the name of concubine, history will remember as wives" (in reference to Paul's marriage to and refusal of Irulan). In the movie, the final line (spoken by Alia) is "He ''is'' the [[Kwisatz Haderach]]!"


{{blockquote|But after seven months I dropped out of ''Dune'', by then Rudy Wurlitzer had come up with a first-draft script, which I felt was a decent distillation of Frank Herbert's [book]. But I also realized ''Dune'' was going to take a lot more work—at least two and a half years' worth. And I didn't have the heart to attack that because my [older] brother Frank unexpectedly died of cancer while I was prepping the De Laurentiis picture. Frankly, that freaked me out. So, I went to Dino and told him the ''Dune'' script was his.
{{endspoiler}}
:—From ''Ridley Scott: The Making of His Movies'' by Paul M. Sammon<ref name="BookToScreenTimeline" />}}


==Cult success and revisions==
===Lynch's screenplay and direction===
In 1981, the nine-year film rights were set to expire. De Laurentiis renegotiated the rights from the author, adding to them the rights to the ''Dune'' sequels, written and unwritten.<ref name="nytimes production"/> He then showed the book to [[Sid Sheinberg]], president of [[MCA Inc.|MCA]], the parent company of [[Universal City Studios]], which approved the book. After seeing ''[[The Elephant Man (film)|The Elephant Man]]'' (1980), producer [[Raffaella De Laurentiis]] decided that David Lynch should direct the movie. Around that time, Lynch received several other directing offers, including ''[[Return of the Jedi]]''. De Laurentiis contacted Lynch, who said he had not heard of the book. After reading it and "loving it", he met with De Laurentiis and agreed to direct the film.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Sammon|first=Paul M. |url=https://archive.org/stream/cinefantastique_1970-2002/Cinefantastique%20Vol%2014%20No%204-5%20%28Sept%201984%29#page/n29/mode/2up |title=David Lynch's ''Dune''|magazine=[[Cinefantastique]] |date=September 1984 |volume=14|number=4/5|page=31}}</ref><ref>{{Cite AV media |title=David Lynch Interview from 1985 on Dune|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvCeLzC2sNs|language=en|access-date=October 25, 2021|archive-date=October 25, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211025161253/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvCeLzC2sNs|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theringer.com/movies/2021/10/20/22735151/dune-david-lynch-1984-movie|title=When David Lynch Took on the Impossible Task of ''Dune''|first=Keith|last=Phipps|date=October 20, 2021|website=The Ringer|access-date=April 11, 2024|archive-date=March 6, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240306204726/https://www.theringer.com/movies/2021/10/20/22735151/dune-david-lynch-1984-movie|url-status=live}}</ref> Lynch worked on the script for six months with [[Eric Bergren]] and Christopher De Vore. The team yielded two drafts of the script and split over creative differences. Lynch then worked on five more drafts. Initially, Lynch had scripted ''Dune'' across two films, but eventually it was condensed into a single film.<ref name="nytimes production"/>
Despite the original complaints by disgruntled Herbert fans, harsh criticism and box office failure, the movie has achieved a respectable cult status of which at least three different versions have been released:


[[Tom Cruise]], [[Kevin Costner]], [[Lewis Smith (actor)|Lewis Smith]], [[Zach Galligan]], [[Michael Biehn]], [[Kenneth Branagh]] and [[Val Kilmer]] either auditioned or were screen-tested for the role of Paul. Kilmer was the top choice for the role until MacLachlan screen-tested.<ref name="comingsoon">{{Cite web|url=https://mashable.com/article/dune-masterpiece-of-disarray-excerpt|title=David Lynch's ''Dune'' almost cast Val Kilmer, and more secrets from the ''Dune'' oral history|first=Belen|last=Edwards|date=August 25, 2023|website=[[Mashable]]|access-date=March 12, 2024|archive-date=March 12, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240312201326/https://mashable.com/article/dune-masterpiece-of-disarray-excerpt|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.comingsoon.net/movies/features/902475-cs-interview-kenneth-branagh-on-orient-express-thor-more|title=''CS'' Interview: Kenneth Branagh on ''Orient Express'', ''Thor'' & More!|first=Max|last=Evry|date=November 11, 2017|access-date=March 27, 2024|archive-date=March 27, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240327085230/https://www.comingsoon.net/movies/features/902475-cs-interview-kenneth-branagh-on-orient-express-thor-more|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://screenrant.com/masterpiece-in-disarray-david-lynch-dune-oral-history-book-excerpt-exclusive/|title=David Lynch's ''Dune'' Oral History Book Excerpt Chronicles One Actor's Feelings of Losing Paul Atreides Role|first=Grant|last=Hermanns|date=September 4, 2023|website=[[Screen Rant]]|access-date=April 28, 2024|archive-date=January 15, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240115123045/https://screenrant.com/masterpiece-in-disarray-david-lynch-dune-oral-history-book-excerpt-exclusive/|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Aldo Ray]] was cast as Gurney Halleck, but due to his alcoholism was replaced with Stewart.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/david-lynch-dune-mess-or-misunderstood-masterpiece/|title='Morally depraved' or misunderstood masterpiece? How ''Dune'' drove David Lynch to despair|first=Ed|last=Power|date=March 4, 2024|website=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|url-access=subscription|access-date=April 28, 2024|archive-date=April 27, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240427063929/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/david-lynch-dune-mess-or-misunderstood-masterpiece/|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Glenn Close]] tested for the role of Lady Jessica, but lost to Annis.<ref name="comingsoon"/> [[Helena Bonham Carter]] was originally cast as Princess Irulan, but she left due to scheduling conflicts with ''[[A Room with a View (1985 film)|A Room with a View]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/609065/dune-david-lynch-movie-facts|title=12 Epic Facts About David Lynch's ''Dune''|date=November 22, 2019|website=Mental Floss|access-date=March 27, 2024|archive-date=March 26, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220326191402/https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/609065/dune-david-lynch-movie-facts|url-status=live}}</ref> Madsen said in 2016 that she was signed for three films, as the producers "thought they were going to make ''[[Star Wars original trilogy|Star Wars]]'' for grown-ups."<ref>{{cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2l_UJzn7L7A|title=Virginia Madsen on ''Dune''|date=September 11, 2016|website=DuneInfo|via=YouTube|access-date=July 16, 2018|archive-date=April 24, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200424062743/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2l_UJzn7L7A|url-status=live}}</ref>
* '''''The original theatrical version''''' (137 minutes)--This version is the only director-approved and authorized version. It has been widely found on videocassette and [[DVD]].
* '''''The Alan Smithee Version''''' (approx. 190 minutes)--The less-seen 3 hour "[[Alan Smithee]]" version is a cult classic on its own. Prepared originally for syndicated television (and later seen on basic cable networks), it is now available worldwide (including the U.S.) on DVD. The missing footage includes a painted montage at the prologue, and some scenes added back into the mix, including the "little-maker" essence-of-spice scene. The TV version was edited almost haphazardly (for example, certain shots were repeated throughout the film to give the impression that footage had been added). Lynch objected to these edits and had his name removed from the credits of the TV print (his name remains on the theatrical print as it is the only version authorized by the director).
* '''''The Channel 2 Version''''' (approx. 180 minutes)--[[KTVU]], a [[San Francisco]], CA [[Fox network|Fox]] affiliate, pieced together a hybrid edit of the two previous versions for broadcast in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1992. It is essentially the TV version with all the violence of the theatrical version reincorporated into the film proper.


On March 30, 1983, with the 135-page sixth draft of the script, ''Dune'' finally began shooting. It was shot entirely in Mexico, mostly at [[Churubusco Studios]]; De Laurentiis said this was due in part to the favorable exchange rate to get more value for their production budget, and that no studio in Europe had the expansive capabilities they needed for the production. With a budget over $40–42 million, ''Dune'' required 80 sets built on 16 sound stages, and had a total crew of 1,700, with over 20,000 extras. Many of the exterior shots were filmed in the [[Samalayuca Dune Fields]] in [[Ciudad Juárez]], [[Chihuahua (state)|Chihuahua]].<ref name="nytimes production"/><ref name="Dune, Behind the Scenes">{{cite web|title=Emilio Ruiz del Río|website=DuneInfo|url=http://www.duneinfo.com/arrakis/erdr/|access-date=July 21, 2012|archive-date=November 11, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131111120740/http://www.duneinfo.com/arrakis/erdr/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Samalayuca Dunes declared natural protected zone |url=http://www.chihuahuanfrontier.com/state/news/65-samalayuca.html |website=Chihuahuan Frontier |date=June 9, 2009 |access-date=July 21, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130119015806/http://www.chihuahuanfrontier.com/state/news/65-samalayuca.html |archive-date=January 19, 2013 }}</ref> Filming ran for at least six months into September 1983, plagued by various production problems such as failing electricity or communication lines due to the country's infrastructure, or health-related problems with their cast and crew.<ref name="nytimes production"/>
An '''''Extended Edition''''' was released by Universal Home Entertainment in the U.S. on DVD on [[January 31]], [[2006]]. The DVD contained both Lynch's 137-minute theatrical cut and a 177-minute edit of the Alan Smithee TV version (the latter being presented for the first time in its original [[Todd-AO]] aspect ratio). It also featured a documentary on the design and special effects, and a separate supplementary section of outtakes and scenes not included in any previous version of the film, including an alternate ending.


====Editing====
Also, a DVD '''''Extended Edition''''' version was released in Europe in November, 2005. It includes, amongst other extras, an extended version of the film, credited to [[Alan Smithee]], which is 177 minutes long. The booklet explains this version was created for an American TV channel, and is probably the aforementioned '''''Channel 2 Version'''''. Neither the video nor the audio was remastered, exhibiting a poor TV-like quality. Despite the fact that the cover states that it is a mono soundtrack, it is, in fact, in stereo.
The rough cut of ''Dune'' without [[post-production]] effects ran over four hours long, but Lynch's intended cut of the film (as reflected in the seventh and final draft of the script) was almost three hours long. Universal and the film's financiers expected a standard, two-hour cut of the film. Dino De Laurentiis, his daughter Raffaella, and Lynch excised numerous scenes, filmed new scenes that simplified or concentrated plot elements, and added [[voice-over]] narrations, plus a new introduction by Virginia Madsen. Contrary to rumor, Lynch made no other version than the theatrical cut.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlE7DZrzik0|title=David Lynch on Dune|via=www.youtube.com|access-date=April 19, 2024|archive-date=April 19, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240419085601/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlE7DZrzik0|url-status=live}}</ref>


====Versions====
The [[United Kingdom|British]] ''[[Observer]]'' newspaper gave away free DVD copies of ''Dune'' on January 22nd, 2006. This DVD release contained no special features.
A television version was aired in 1988 in two parts totaling 186 minutes; it replaced Madsen's opening monolog with a much longer description of the setting that used [[concept art]] stills. Lynch disavowed this version and had his name removed from the credits. [[Alan Smithee]] was credited, a pseudonym used by directors who wish to disavow a film. The extended and television versions additionally credit writer Lynch as [[Judas Iscariot|Judas]] [[John Wilkes Booth|Booth]]. This version (without recap and second credit roll) has previously been released on DVD as ''Dune: Extended Edition''.


Several longer versions have been spliced together, particularly for two other versions, one for San Francisco station [[KTVU]], and the other a 178-minute [[fan edit]] from scratch by SpiceDiver. The latter cut was officially released by Koch Films (on behalf of current international rights holder [[Lionsgate]]) on a deluxe 4K/Blu-ray box set released in Germany in 2021. The KTVU and SpiceDiver versions combine footage from the theatrical and television versions, and downplay the repeated footage in the TV cut.<ref name="VW 1996">{{cite web |url=http://www.figmentfly.com/published/dunearticle.html |title=Building the Perfect ''Dune'' |first=Sean |last=Murphy |work=[[Video Watchdog]] |issue=33/34 |year=1996 |access-date=December 15, 2014 |archive-date=December 29, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141229101252/http://www.figmentfly.com/published/dunearticle.html |url-status=live }}</ref> While working on ''A Masterpiece In Disarray'', Max Evry discovered a never before-seen deleted scene which was released in restored form in March 2024.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://nerdist.com/article/watch-newly-restored-deleted-scene-from-david-lynch-dune/ |title=See a Restored Never-Before-Seen Lost Deleted Scene From David Lynch's DUNE |first=Michael |last=Walsh |website=[[Nerdist]] |date=March 11, 2024 |access-date=March 13, 2024 |archive-date=March 12, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240312132132/https://nerdist.com/article/watch-newly-restored-deleted-scene-from-david-lynch-dune/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The author also reconstructed the film's originally planned ending which is more in line with the source text.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://nerdist.com/article/watch-newly-restored-deleted-scene-from-david-lynch-dune/ |title=David Lynch's 1984 "Dune" Had a Different Ending |first=Mary Anne |last=Butler |website=[[Nerdbot]] |date=September 13, 2024 |access-date=March 13, 2024 |archive-date=March 12, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240312132132/https://nerdist.com/article/watch-newly-restored-deleted-scene-from-david-lynch-dune/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
==Influence==
*The film inspired a [[Dune computer and video games|series of video games]], by [[Cryo Interactive]] and [[Westwood Studios|Westwood]] games, including the famous [[Dune II]], its remake [[Dune 2000]] and [[Emperor: Battle for Dune]], which featured live actors (including [[John Rhys-Davies]] as the [[House Atreides|Atreides]] [[mentat]], and in its sequel, [[Michael Dorn]] as [[House Atreides|Atreides]] Duke Achillus).


Although Universal has approached Lynch for a possible [[director's cut]], Lynch has declined every offer and prefers not to discuss ''Dune'' in interviews.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.duneinfo.com/kaitain/articles/dune-resurrection.asp |title=Dune Resurrection – Re-visiting Arrakis | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090502142658/http://www.duneinfo.com/kaitain/articles/dune-resurrection.asp | archive-date=May 2, 2009 |website=DuneInfo |access-date=January 18, 2013}}</ref> In 2022, though, during an interview about the remaster of his film ''[[Inland Empire (film)|Inland Empire]]'' (2006), he admitted to the surprised interviewer that he was interested in the idea. He offered the caveat that he did not believe it would ever happen, nor that anything in the unused footage would satisfy him enough for a director's cut, as he said he was "selling out" during production. Nevertheless, he said enough time had passed that he was at least curious to take another look at the footage.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Simon |first1=Brent |title=David Lynch on remastering Inland Empire, revisiting his earlier work and the chances of a Dune do-over |url=https://www.avclub.com/david-lynch-inland-empire-interview-dune-restoration-1848795394 |website=The A.V. Club |date=April 15, 2022 |access-date=April 16, 2022 |archive-date=April 16, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220416043716/https://www.avclub.com/david-lynch-inland-empire-interview-dune-restoration-1848795394 |url-status=live }}</ref>
*The novel was also recently adapted as a three part [[Dune (TV miniseries)|miniseries]] for the [[Sci_Fi_Channel_%28United_States%29|Sci-Fi Channel]] and later released on video/DVD.


==See also==
===Canceled sequels===
When production started, it was anticipated for the film to launch a ''Dune'' franchise, and plans had been made to film two sequels back-to-back. Many of the props were put into storage after the completion of production in anticipation of future use, MacLachlan had signed for a two-film deal, and Lynch had begun writing a screenplay for the second film. Once ''Dune'' was released and failed at the box office, the sequel plans were canceled.
*[[List of fiction inspired by Dune]]
*[[List of films recut by studio]]


In July 2023, writer Max Evry, doing research for his book, ''A Masterpiece in Disarray: David Lynch's Dune'', on the first film's influence, discovered Lynch's half-completed draft treatment for the second film at the Frank Herbert Archives at [[California State University, Fullerton]]. Lynch was reached for comment in January 2024 and responded through a representative that he recalled beginning work on a script, but much like the first film, did not want to comment further. Based partly on ''[[Dune Messiah]]'', Evry described the tentatively-titled ''Dune II'' as having surpassed the novel's narrative approach in the screenplay adaption.<ref name=":W">{{Cite web|date=January 10, 2024|title=I Found David Lynch's Lost ''Dune II'' Script|url=https://www.wired.com/story/david-lynch-dune-sequel-script-unearthed|access-date=January 10, 2024|website=[[Wired (website)|Wired]]|last=Evry|first=Max|archive-date=January 10, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240110142240/https://www.wired.com/story/david-lynch-dune-sequel-script-unearthed/|url-status=live}}</ref>
==Trivia==
*[[Michael Bolton]] appears as an extra, playing drums as the knife fight between Feyd and Paul begins, in the extended DVD version of the movie.
*The costumes worn by the characters who were members of The Guild were made from used bodybags. The film crew acquired the bodybags from an old firehouse that was closing down. The actors who wore the costumes were not told about this until after filming was completed.


==Release==
{{lynch}}
===Marketing===
''Dune'' premiered in Washington, DC, on December 3, 1984, at the [[John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts|Kennedy Center]] and was released worldwide on December 14. Prerelease publicity was extensive, because it was based on a bestselling novel, and because it was directed by Lynch, who had had success with ''[[Eraserhead]]'' and ''[[The Elephant Man]]''. Several magazines followed the production and published articles praising the film before its release,<ref>{{cite news |last=Strasser |first=Brendan |url=http://www.thecityofabsurdity.com/dune/duneprevue.html |title=David Lynch reveals his battle tactics |work=Prevue |date=1984 |via=TheCityofAbsurdity.com |access-date=January 18, 2013 |archive-date=January 8, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060108065029/http://www.thecityofabsurdity.com/dune/duneprevue.html |url-status=live }}</ref> all part of the advertising and merchandising of ''Dune'', which also included a documentary for television, and items placed in toy stores.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.arrakis.co.uk/collectorsbook.html |title=The ''Dune'' Collectors Survival Guide |website=Arrakis.co.uk |access-date=January 18, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170817145239/http://www.arrakis.co.uk/collectorsbook.html |archive-date=August 17, 2017 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Home media===
The film was released on [[Ultra HD Blu-ray]] by [[Arrow Films]] in North America and the United Kingdom on August 31, 2021, a few weeks ahead of the release of ''[[Dune (2021 film)|Dune]]'', the 2021 film adaptation of the book.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.engadget.com/david-lynch-dune-4k-blu-ray-223003893.html | title = David Lynch's 'Dune' will be released on 4K Blu-ray in August | first = Igor | last = Bonifacic | date = May 31, 2021 | access-date = May 31, 2021 | work = [[Engadget]] | archive-date = June 1, 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210601000409/https://www.engadget.com/david-lynch-dune-4k-blu-ray-223003893.html | url-status = live }}</ref> This release only contains the theatrical cut of the film, as Universal removed the extended cut from circulation in North America following the DVD release going out of print and denied Arrow's request to license the cut for this release.{{citation needed|date=March 2024}}

Koch Films has also released what fans{{who|date=March 2024}} consider to be a more definitive multi-disc edition (available only in Germany) containing three of the four versions—theatrical, TV, and SpiceDiver [[fan edit]]—plus supplemental materials (some not available on the Arrow release) and the CD soundtrack.{{citation needed|date=March 2024}}

==Reception==
===Box office===
The film opened on December 14, 1984, in 915 theaters, and grossed {{US$|6,025,091}} in its opening weekend, ranking number two in the US box office behind ''[[Beverly Hills Cop]]''.<ref>{{cite web|title=Weekend Box Office Results for December 14–16, 1984|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/weekend/chart/?yr=1984&wknd=50&p=.htm|work=[[Box Office Mojo]]|access-date=August 8, 2013|archive-date=May 11, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130511144133/http://boxofficemojo.com/weekend/chart/?yr=1984&wknd=50&p=.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> By the end of its run, ''Dune'' had grossed {{US$|30,925,690|1984|round=-6|long=no}}.<ref name="Mojo" /> It earned [[theatrical rental]]s of $37.9 million worldwide.<ref name="Knoedelseder" /> On an estimated production budget of $40–42 million, the film was considered a box-office disappointment.<ref>{{cite news | newspaper=The Independent | title=Revenge of the epic movie flops | url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/revenge-of-the-epic-movie-flops-1942105.html | date=April 12, 2010 | access-date=July 20, 2016 | archive-date=March 12, 2016 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160312232456/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/revenge-of-the-epic-movie-flops-1942105.html | url-status=live }}</ref> The film later had more success, and has been called the "''[[Heaven's Gate (film)|Heaven's Gate]]'' of science fiction".<ref name="deadline annis interview">{{Cite web | url = https://deadline.com/2021/09/dune-francesca-annis-interview-david-lynch-venice-1234824736/ | title = 'Dune' 1984: Francesca Annis, The Original Lady Jessica, Lifts The Lid On Life Behind The Scenes Of David Lynch's Epic, The 'Heaven's Gate' Of Sci-Fi | first = Andreas | last = Wiseman | date = September 1, 2021 | access-date = September 1, 2021 | work = [[Deadline Hollywood]] | archive-date = September 1, 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210901133251/https://deadline.com/2021/09/dune-francesca-annis-interview-david-lynch-venice-1234824736/ | url-status = live }}</ref>

===Critical response===
''Dune'' received mostly negative reviews upon release. [[Roger Ebert]] gave one star out of four, and wrote: {{cquote|This movie is a real mess, an incomprehensible, ugly, unstructured, pointless excursion into the murkier realms of one of the most confusing screenplays of all time. The movie's plot will no doubt mean more to people who've read Herbert than to those who are walking in cold...<ref name="Ebert 1984">{{cite news |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/dune-1984 |first=Roger |last=Ebert |author-link=Roger Ebert |title=Movie Reviews: ''Dune'' (1984) |work=[[Chicago Sun-Times]] |via=RogerEbert.SunTimes.com |access-date=September 30, 2020 |date=January 1, 1984 |archive-date=December 20, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091220221458/http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F19840101%2FREVIEWS%2F401010332%2F1023 |url-status=live }}</ref> and the worst movie of the year.<ref name="DVDVerdict 2006">{{cite web|url=https://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/duneextended.php |first=Brett |last=Cullum |title=Review: ''Dune: Extended Edition'' |date=February 13, 2006 |website=DVD Verdict |access-date=March 14, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013114237/https://dvdverdict.com/reviews/duneextended.php|archive-date=October 13, 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref>}} On ''[[At the Movies (1982 TV program)|At the Movies]]'' with [[Gene Siskel]] and Ebert, Siskel began his review: {{cquote|It's physically ugly, it contains at least a dozen gory gross-out scenes, some of its special effects are cheap—surprisingly cheap because this film cost a reported $40–45 million{{mdash}}and its story is confusing beyond belief. In case I haven't made myself clear, I hated watching this film.<ref>{{cite episode |series=At The Movies |series-link=At the Movies (1982 TV program) |title=''Dune'' | air-date=December 1984}}</ref>}} The film was later listed as the worst film of 1984 and the "biggest disappointment of the year" in their "Stinkers of 1984" episode.<ref>{{cite episode |series=At The Movies |title=The Stinkers of 1984 |air-date=January 5, 1985}}</ref> Other negative reviews focused on the same issues and on the length of the film.<ref name="extrovert">{{cite web |url=http://www.extrovertmagazine.com/dune/dune6.html |title=''Dune'': Retrospective |work=Extrovert |via=Extrovertmagazine.com |page=6 |date=2006 |access-date=March 20, 2019 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060204032750/http://www.extrovertmagazine.com/dune/dune6.html |archive-date=February 4, 2006 }}</ref>

[[Janet Maslin]] of ''[[The New York Times]]'' gave ''Dune'' a negative review of one star out of five. She said, "Several of the characters in ''Dune'' are psychic, which puts them in the unique position of being able to understand what goes on in the movie" and explained that the plot was "perilously overloaded, as is virtually everything else about it".<ref name="NYT 1984-12">{{cite news |url=https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9F06E2D71238F937A25751C1A962948260 |title=Movie Review: ''Dune'' (1984) |last=Maslin |first=Janet |author-link=Janet Maslin |date=December 14, 1984 |work=[[The New York Times]]|access-date=March 15, 2010|archive-date=March 11, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120311010339/http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9F06E2D71238F937A25751C1A962948260|url-status=live}}</ref>

''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' gave ''Dune'' a less negative review, stating "''Dune'' is a huge, hollow, imaginative, and cold sci-fi epic. Visually unique and teeming with incident, David Lynch's film holds the interest due to its abundant surface attractions, but won't, of its own accord, create the sort of fanaticism which has made Frank Herbert's 1965 novel one of the all-time favorites in its genre." They also commented on how "Lynch's adaptation covers the entire span of the novel, but simply setting up the various worlds, characters, intrigues, and forces at work requires more than a half-hour of expository screen time." They did enjoy the cast and said, "Francesca Annis and Jürgen Prochnow make an outstandingly attractive royal couple, Siân Phillips has some mesmerizing moments as a powerful witch, Brad Dourif is effectively loony, and best of all is Kenneth McMillan, whose face is covered with grotesque growths and who floats around like the [[Blue Meanies (Yellow Submarine)|Blue Meanie]] come to life."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://variety.com/1983/film/reviews/dune-1200426103/ |title=Movie Review: ''Dune'' |work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |date=December 31, 1983 |access-date=February 20, 2019 |archive-date=February 21, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190221054800/https://variety.com/1983/film/reviews/dune-1200426103/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Richard Corliss]] of ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' gave ''Dune'' a negative review, stating, "Most sci-fi movies offer escape, a holiday from homework, but ''Dune'' is as difficult as a final exam. You have to cram for it. [...] MacLachlan, 25, grows impressively in the role; his features, soft and spoiled at the beginning, take on a he-manly glamour once he assumes his mission. [...] The actors seem hypnotized by the spell Lynch has woven around them—especially the lustrous Francesca Annis, as Paul's mother, who whispers her lines with the urgency of erotic revelation. In those moments when Annis is onscreen, ''Dune'' finds the emotional center that has eluded it in its parade of rococo decor and austere special effects. She reminds us of what movies can achieve when they have a heart, as well as a mind."<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,923850,00.html |title=Cinema: The Fantasy Film as Final Exam |first=Richard |last=Corliss |author-link=Richard Corliss |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |date=December 17, 1984 |access-date=March 15, 2010 |archive-date=March 29, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160329141459/http://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,923850,00.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Film scholar [[Robin Wood (critic)|Robin Wood]] called ''Dune'' "the most obscenely [[Homophobia|homophobic]] film I have ever seen"<ref name="Robin Wood">{{cite book|last=Wood|first=Robin |author-link=Robin Wood (critic) |title=Hollywood from Vietnam to Reagan |publisher=Columbia University Press |year=1986|page=174 |isbn=978-0-231-05777-6}}</ref>—referring to a scene in which Baron Harkonnen sexually assaults and kills a young man by bleeding him to death—charging it with "managing to associate with homosexuality in a single scene physical grossness, moral depravity, violence, and disease".<ref name="Robin Wood" /> [[Dennis Altman]] suggested that the film showed how "[[HIV/AIDS|AIDS]] references began penetrating popular culture" in the 1980s, asking, "Was it just an accident that in the film ''Dune'' the homosexual villain had suppurating sores on his face?"<ref name="Altman">{{cite book|last=Altman|first=Dennis|author-link=Dennis Altman |title=AIDS and the New Puritanism |place=London|publisher=Pluto Press |year=1986 |page=21|isbn=0-7453-0012-X}}</ref>

Critic and science-fiction writer [[Harlan Ellison]] reviewed the film positively. In his 1989 book of film criticism, ''[[Harlan Ellison's Watching]]'', he says that because critics were denied screenings at the last minute after several reschedules, it made the film community feel nervous and negative towards ''Dune'' before its release.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Lafrance |first=J.D. |url=http://www.erasingclouds.com/wk2905dune.html |title=''Dune'': Its name is a Killing Word |magazine=Erasing Clouds |issue=38 |date=September 2005 |access-date=June 12, 2010 |archive-date=April 15, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110415235845/http://www.erasingclouds.com/wk2905dune.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Ellison later said, "It was a book that shouldn't have been shot. It was a script that couldn't have been written. It was a directorial job that was beyond anyone's doing ... and yet the film was made."<ref>{{cite web |title=Looking Back at All the Utterly Disastrous Attempts to Adapt Dune |url=https://www.vulture.com/2017/03/looking-back-at-all-the-utterly-disastrous-attempts-to-adapt-dune.html |website=Vulture |date=March 9, 2017 |access-date=May 11, 2022 |archive-date=April 21, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200421075009/https://www.vulture.com/2017/03/looking-back-at-all-the-utterly-disastrous-attempts-to-adapt-dune.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Daniel Snyder also praised elements of the film in a 2014 article which called the movie "a deeply flawed work that failed as a commercial enterprise, but still managed to capture and distill essential portions of one of science fiction's densest works." Snyder stated that Lynch's "surreal style" created "a world that felt utterly alien [full of] bizarre dream sequences, rife with images of unborn fetuses and shimmering energies, and unsettling scenery like the industrial hell of the Harkonnen homeworld, [making] the fil[m] actually closer to [[Stanley Kubrick|Kubrick]] (''[[2001: A Space Odyssey (film)|2001: A Space Odyssey]]'') than [[George Lucas|[George] Lucas]]. It seeks to put the viewer somewhere unfamiliar while hinting at a greater, hidden story." Snyder praised the production and stated that Herbert had said he was pleased with Lynch's film.<ref name="Snyder">{{cite web |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2014/03/the-messy-misunderstood-glory-of-david-lynchs-em-dune-em/284316/ |title=The Messy, Misunderstood Glory of David Lynch's ''Dune'' |last=Snyder |first=Daniel D. |date=March 14, 2014 |work=[[The Atlantic]] |access-date=September 21, 2015 |archive-date=May 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210502192322/https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2014/03/the-messy-misunderstood-glory-of-david-lynchs-em-dune-em/284316/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Colin Greenland]] reviewed ''Dune'' for ''[[Imagine (game magazine)|Imagine]]'' magazine, and stated, "Anthony Masters's magnificent design features none of the gleaming chrome and sterile plastic we expect of space opera: instead, sinister paraphernalia of cast iron and coiled brass, corridors of dark wood and marble, and the sand, the endless sand..."<ref name="Imagine24">{{cite journal | last = Greenland|first = Colin |author-link=Colin Greenland| title =Fantasy Media | type = review | journal = [[Imagine (AD&D magazine)|Imagine]] | issue = 24| pages =47 | publisher = TSR Hobbies (UK), Ltd. |date=March 1985| issn = }}</ref>

Science-fiction historian [[John Clute]] argued that though Lynch's ''Dune'' "spared nothing to achieve its striking visual effects", the film adaptation "unfortunately—perhaps inevitably—reduced Herbert's dense text to a melodrama".<ref>{{cite book |last=Clute |first=John |author-link=John Clute |title=Science Fiction: The Illustrated Encyclopedia |place=New York |publisher=Dorling Kindersley |year=1996|page=282 |isbn=0-7894-0185-1}}</ref>

The few more favorable reviews praised Lynch's [[Film noir|noir]]-[[baroque]] approach to the film. Others compare it to other Lynch films that are equally inaccessible, such as ''Eraserhead'', and assert that to watch it, the viewer must first be aware of the ''Dune'' universe.

On [[review aggregator]] [[Rotten Tomatoes]], ''Dune'' has an approval rating of 36% based on 117 reviews, with an average score of 5.6/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "This truncated adaptation of Frank Herbert's sci-fi masterwork is too dry to work as grand entertainment, but David Lynch's flair for the surreal gives it some spice."<ref name="RottenTomatoes">{{cite web |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1006364-dune |title=''Dune'' |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |access-date=October 4, 2021 |archive-date=December 28, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121228011219/http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1006364-dune/ |url-status=live }}</ref> On [[Metacritic]], the film has a weighted average score of 41 out of 100 based on 20 critic reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/dune |title=''Dune'' (1984) Reviews |website=[[Metacritic]] |access-date=January 9, 2023 |archive-date=October 5, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211005002159/https://www.metacritic.com/movie/dune |url-status=live }}</ref>

As a result of its poor commercial and critical reception, all initial plans for ''Dune'' sequels were canceled. David Lynch reportedly was working on the screenplay for ''[[Dune Messiah]]''<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.davidlynch.de/duneinttrans.html |title=Visionary and dreamer: A surrealist's fantasies |magazine=Cinema|via=DavidLynch.de |issue=12 |year=1984 |access-date=January 18, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151104222520/http://www.davidlynch.de/duneinttrans.html |archive-date=November 4, 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref> and was hired to direct both proposed second and third ''Dune'' films. Lynch later said:

{{blockquote|I started selling out on ''Dune''. Looking back, it's no one's fault but my own. I probably shouldn't have done that picture, but I saw tons and tons of possibilities for things I loved, and this was the structure to do them in. There was so much room to create a world. But I got strong indications from Raffaella and Dino De Laurentiis of what kind of film they expected, and I knew I didn't have [[Final cut privilege|final cut]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://moongadget.com/origins/dune.html|title=''Star Wars'' Origins: ''Dune''|website=Moongadget.com|access-date=January 18, 2013|archive-date=December 13, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171213170208/http://www.moongadget.com/origins/dune.html|url-status=live}}</ref>}}

In the introduction for his 1985 short story collection ''[[Eye (short story collection)|Eye]]'', author Frank Herbert discussed the film's reception and his participation in the production, complimented Lynch, and listed scenes that were shot but left out of the released version. He wrote, "I enjoyed the film even as a cut and I told it as I saw it: What reached the screen is a visual feast that begins as ''Dune'' begins and you hear my dialogue all through it. [...] I have my quibbles about the film, of course. Paul was a man ''playing'' god, not a god who could make it rain. [...] It's my opinion that David's film of ''Dune'' will also be alive and well long after people have forgotten the potboilers that come out of corporate boardrooms. This is based partly on the reactions of everyone who worked on the film: They were sad to be parting when it was over and glad they had done it. The wrap party was a rare scene of happy nostalgia."<ref>{{cite book |last=Herbert |first=Frank |title=[[Eye (short story collection)|Eye]] |chapter=Introduction |year=1985 |publisher=Berkley Books |isbn=0-425-08398-5}}</ref>

[[Alejandro Jodorowsky]], who had earlier been disappointed by the collapse of his own attempt to film ''Dune'', later said he had been disappointed and jealous when he learned Lynch was making ''Dune'', as he believed Lynch was the only other director capable of doing justice to the novel. At first, Jodorowsky refused to see Lynch's film, but his sons coerced him. As the film unfolded, Jodorowsky says he became very happy, seeing that it was a "failure", but that this was certainly the producers' fault and not Lynch's.<ref>Alejando Jodorowsky's interview in the documentary ''[[Jodorowsky's Dune]]'', 2014.</ref>

===Accolades===
''Dune'' was nominated for the [[Academy Award for Best Sound]] ([[Bill Varney]], [[Steve Maslow]], [[Kevin O'Connell (sound mixer)|Kevin O'Connell]], and [[Nelson Stoll]]).<ref name="Oscars1985">{{cite web |url=http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1985 |title=The 57th Academy Awards (1985) Nominees and Winners |access-date=October 13, 2011 |work=Oscars.org |archive-date=December 28, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111228050833/http://www.oscars.org/awards/academyawards/legacy/ceremony/57th-winners.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

The film won a [[1984 Stinkers Bad Movie Awards]] for Worst Picture.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1984/1984st.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061017165110/http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1984/1984st.htm|archive-date=October 17, 2006|title=1984 7th Hastings Bad Cinema Society Stinkers Awards|access-date=April 2, 2013|website=[[Los Angeles Times]]}}</ref>

==Tie-in media==
===Novelization===
An illustrated junior [[novelization]] by [[Joan D. Vinge]], commonly published for movies during the 1970s and 1980s, titled ''The Dune Storybook'' was released in 1984.<ref name="Vinge 1984">{{cite book |last=Vinge |first=Joan |author-link=Joan D. Vinge |title=The Dune storybook |publisher=G.P. Putnam's Sons |publication-place=New York |year=1984 |isbn=978-0-399-12949-0 |oclc=1033568950 |url=https://archive.org/details/dunestorybook00ving |url-access=registration |via=Internet Archive}}</ref>

===Toys===
A line of ''Dune'' action figures from toy company [[LJN]] was released to lackluster sales in 1984. Styled after Lynch's film, the collection includes figures of Paul Atreides, Baron Harkonnen, Feyd-Rautha, Glossu Rabban, Stilgar, and a Sardaukar warrior, plus a poseable sandworm, several vehicles, weapons, and a set of [[View-Master]] [[stereoscope]] reels. Figures of Gurney and Lady Jessica previewed in LJN's catalog were never produced.<ref name="Nerd Bastards toys">{{Cite web|url=https://nerdbastards.com/2014/01/12/toys-we-miss-dune/|title=Toys We Miss: ''Dune''|first=James|last=Daniels|website=Nerd Bastards|date=January 12, 2014|access-date=October 30, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140127111043/http://nerdbastards.com/2014/01/12/toys-we-miss-dune/|archive-date=January 27, 2014}}</ref><ref name="Collectors toys">{{Cite web|url=https://www.collectorsofdune.com/toys.asp|title=Toys|website=Collectors of Dune|access-date=October 30, 2019|archive-date=October 30, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191030152955/https://www.collectorsofdune.com/toys.asp|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2006, [[SOTA Toys]] produced a Baron Harkonnen action figure for their "Now Playing Presents" line.<ref name="Collectors toys" /> In October 2019, [[Funko]] started a "''Dune'' Classic" line of POP! vinyl figures, the first of which was Paul in a [[stillsuit]] and Feyd in a blue jumpsuit, styled after the 1984 film.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cbr.com/funko-dune-pops/|title=Funko Adds ''Dune'' to its Pop! Line-up|website=[[Comic Book Resources]]|first=Tyler|last=Murphy|date=October 20, 2019|access-date=October 30, 2019|archive-date=October 30, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191030024933/https://www.cbr.com/funko-dune-pops/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.funko.com/blog/article/coming-soon-pop-movies-dune-classic|title=Coming Soon: Pop! Movies – ''Dune'' Classic!|first=Jesse|last=Little|publisher=[[Funko]]|date=October 18, 2019|access-date=October 30, 2019|archive-date=October 30, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191030024947/https://www.funko.com/blog/article/coming-soon-pop-movies-dune-classic|url-status=live}}</ref> An alternate version of Feyd in his blue loincloth was released for the 2019 [[New York Comic Con]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.funko.com/blog/article/2019-nycc-exclusive-reveals-dune-feyd-rautha|title=2019 NYCC Exclusive Reveals: ''Dune''!|first=Jesse|last=Little|publisher=Funko|date=September 4, 2019|access-date=October 30, 2019|archive-date=October 30, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191030153602/https://www.funko.com/blog/article/2019-nycc-exclusive-reveals-dune-feyd-rautha|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Games===
{{main|List of games based on Dune}}
Several ''Dune'' games have been styled after Lynch's film. [[Parker Brothers]] released the [[board game]] ''[[Dune (1984 board game)|Dune]]'' in 1984,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/680/dune|title=''Dune'' (1984)|website=[[BoardGameGeek]]|access-date=October 30, 2019|archive-date=October 30, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191030190625/https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/680/dune|url-status=live}}</ref> and a 1997 [[collectible card game]] called ''[[Dune (card game)|Dune]]''<ref name="Scrye">{{cite web|url=http://www.geocities.com/sherlockazulu/dune_scrye.htm |title=''Dune'' – Classic CCG|last=Baumrucker|first=Steven|date=May 2003|work=[[Scrye]]|access-date=October 30, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040503002210/http://www.geocities.com/sherlockazulu/dune_scrye.htm|archive-date=May 3, 2004|url-status=dead}}</ref> was followed by the [[role-playing game]] ''[[Dune: Chronicles of the Imperium]]'' in 2000.<ref name="RPG Dune">{{cite web|url=http://www.rpg.net/news+reviews/reviews/rev_4161.html|title=''Dune: Chronicles of the Imperium'' Capsule Review|last=Guder|first=Derek|date=April 19, 2001|website=RPG.net|access-date=March 18, 2010|archive-date=June 12, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100612174037/http://www.rpg.net/news+reviews/reviews/rev_4161.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Valterra|first=Anthony |url=http://www.wizards.com/dune/ |title=D20 Product News: ''Dune''|year=2000|website=Wizards.com|access-date=October 30, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010124104300/http://www.wizards.com/dune/|archive-date=January 24, 2001|url-status=dead}}</ref> The first licensed ''Dune'' video game is ''[[Dune (video game)|Dune]]'' (1992) from [[Cryo Interactive]]/[[Virgin Interactive]].<ref name="Moby Dune">{{cite web|url=http://www.mobygames.com/game/dune|title=Game Overview: ''Dune'' (1992)|website=[[MobyGames]]|access-date=March 17, 2010|archive-date=January 11, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100111065427/http://www.mobygames.com/game/dune|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Abandonia Dune">{{cite web|author=Kosta|url=http://www.abandonia.com/games/46/download/Dune.htm|title=Review: ''Dune'' (1992)|website=Abandonia.com|access-date=March 17, 2010|archive-date=May 14, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100514235245/http://www.abandonia.com/games/46/download/Dune.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> Its successor, [[Westwood Studios]]'s ''[[Dune II]]'' (1992), is generally credited for popularizing and setting the template for the [[real-time strategy]] genre of [[PC game]]s.<ref name="Bates 2003">{{cite book|first=Bob|last=Bates|author-link=Bob Bates |title=Game Developer's Market Guide|page=141|publisher=Thomson Course Technology|date=2003|isbn=1-59200-104-1}}</ref><ref name=historyofRTS>{{cite web|url=http://www.gamespot.com/gamespot/features/all/real_time/p2_02.html|title=A History of Real-Time Strategy Games: ''Dune II''|first=Bruce|last=Geryk|date=May 19, 2008|access-date=January 4, 2011|website=[[GameSpot]]|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628235716/http://www.gamespot.com/gamespot/features/all/real_time/p2_02.html |archive-date=June 28, 2011}}</ref> This game was followed by ''[[Dune 2000]]'' (1998), a [[video game remake|remake]] of ''Dune II'' from [[Intelligent Games]]/Westwood Studios/Virgin Interactive.<ref name="Moby Dune 2000">{{cite web|url=http://www.mobygames.com/game/dune-2000|title=Game Overview: ''Dune 2000'' (1998)|website=MobyGames|access-date=March 17, 2010|archive-date=January 13, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100113071307/http://www.mobygames.com/game/dune-2000|url-status=live}}</ref> Its sequel is the [[3D computer graphics|3D]] video game ''[[Emperor: Battle for Dune]]'' (2001) by Intelligent Games/Westwood Studios/[[Electronic Arts]].<ref name="Moby Emperor">{{cite web|url=http://www.mobygames.com/game/emperor-battle-for-dune|title=Game Overview: ''Emperor: Battle for Dune'' (2001)|website=MobyGames|access-date=March 17, 2010|archive-date=January 10, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100110054717/http://www.mobygames.com/game/emperor-battle-for-dune|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Guru Emperor">{{cite web|last=Alam|first=Mohammad Junaid |url=http://www.guru3d.com/gamereviews/dune/|title=Review: ''Emperor: Battle for Dune'' (2001)|website=Guru3D.com|access-date=March 17, 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100118114920/http://www.guru3d.com/gamereviews/dune/|archive-date=January 18, 2010}}</ref>

===Comics===
[[Marvel Comics]] published an adaptation of the movie written by [[Ralph Macchio (editor)|Ralph Macchio]] and illustrated by [[Bill Sienkiewicz]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Marvel Comic of Dune |url=http://www.arrakis.co.uk/colpage11.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030302001925/http://www.arrakis.co.uk/colpage11.html |archive-date=March 2, 2003 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}


==External links==
==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
{{Wikiquote}}
{{Portal|Film|United States|Speculative fiction|Science fiction|Space|1980s}}
* [http://www.allmovie.com/cg/avg.dll?p=avg&sql=1:14962~C ''Dune''] at [[All Movie Guide]]
* {{Official website|http://www.uphe.com/movies/dune}}
* {{imdb title|id=0087182|title=Dune}}
* {{IMDb title|0087182|Dune}}
* [http://www.digitalmonkeybox.com/dune.htm ''Dune''] DVD Review at [[Digital Monkey Box]]
* {{Rotten Tomatoes|m/dune_1984|Dune}}
* {{Mojo title|dune|Dune}}
* {{TCMDb title|73761|Dune}}
* {{AFI film|67647|Dune}}
* [http://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/dune ''Dune''] at ''[[The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction]]''
* {{Cite news|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/dune-movie-review-i-1984-953878|title=''Dune'': ''THR''{{'s}} 1984 Review|work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|date=December 14, 2016|access-date=August 18, 2017}}
* {{cite magazine|url=https://archive.org/stream/starlog_magazine-088/088#page/n23/mode/2up |title=Raffaella De Laurentiis: The Mastermind of ''Dune'' |first1=Randy|last1=Lofficier |first2=Jean-Marc|last2=Lofficier |magazine=[[Starlog]] |issue=88 |pages=25–28 |date=November 1984 |access-date=July 7, 2014}}
* [http://creatureofthewheel.wordpress.com/2013/03/18/kyle-maclachlan/ 2012 interview with Kyle MacLachlan about ''Dune'' and ''Blue Velvet'']
* {{cite AV media
|year=1984
|title=Dune
|url=https://archive.org/details/Dune19843640x272435mb
|oclc=1295459964}}


{{Dune franchise}}
{{David Lynch}}
{{Stinkers Bad Movie Award for Worst Picture}}
{{Authority control}}

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Latest revision as of 21:49, 23 December 2024

Dune
Theatrical release poster by Tom Jung
Directed byDavid Lynch
Screenplay byDavid Lynch
Based onDune
by Frank Herbert
Produced byRaffaella De Laurentiis
Starring
CinematographyFreddie Francis
Edited byAntony Gibbs
Music by
Production
company
Distributed byUniversal Pictures
Release dates
  • December 3, 1984 (1984-12-03) (Eisenhower Theater)
  • December 14, 1984 (1984-12-14) (United States)
Running time
137 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$40–42 million[2][3]
Box office$30.9 million (US/Canada)[2]
$37.9 million (worldwide rentals)[3]

Dune is a 1984 American epic space opera film written and directed by David Lynch, and based on the 1965 Frank Herbert novel of the same name. It was filmed at the Churubusco Studios in Mexico City. The soundtrack was composed by the rock band Toto, with a contribution from Brian Eno. Its large ensemble cast includes Kyle MacLachlan (in his film debut), Patrick Stewart, Brad Dourif, Dean Stockwell, Virginia Madsen, José Ferrer, Sean Young, Sting, Linda Hunt, and Max von Sydow.

The setting is the distant future, chronicling the conflict between rival noble families as they battle for control of the extremely harsh desert planet Arrakis, also known as Dune. The planet is the only source of the drug melange (spice), which allows prescience and is vital to space travel, making it the most essential and valuable commodity in the universe. Paul Atreides is the scion and heir of a powerful noble family, whose appointment to the control of Arrakis brings them into conflict with its former overlords, House Harkonnen. Paul is also possibly the Kwisatz Haderach, a messianic figure expected by the Bene Gesserit sisterhood.

After the novel's initial success, attempts to adapt Dune as a film began in 1971. A lengthy process of development followed throughout the 1970s, during which Arthur P. Jacobs, Alejandro Jodorowsky, and Ridley Scott unsuccessfully tried to bring their visions to the screen. In 1981, executive producer Dino De Laurentiis hired Lynch as director.

The film underperformed at the box office, grossing $30.9 million against a $40–42 million budget. At least four versions have been released worldwide. Lynch largely disowned the finished film and had his name removed or changed to pseudonyms in the credits on certain versions. The film has developed a cult following,[4][5] but opinion varies between fans of the novel and fans of Lynch's films.[6]

Plot

[edit]

In the year 10,191, the known universe is ruled by the Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV. The most valuable substance in the empire is the spice melange, which extends life and expands consciousness. The spice also allows the Spacing Guild to fold space, allowing safe, instantaneous interstellar travel. The Guild’s leader demands Shaddam clarify a conspiracy that could jeopardize spice production. Shaddam reveals that he has transferred power and control of the planet Arrakis, the only source of the spice, to House Atreides. However, once the Atreides arrive, they will be attacked by their archenemies, the Harkonnen, alongside Shaddam's own Sardaukar troops. Shaddam fears the Atreides due to reports of a secret army that they are amassing.

Lady Jessica, the concubine of Duke Leto Atreides, is an acolyte of the Bene Gesserit, an exclusive sisterhood with advanced physical and mental abilities. As part of a centuries-long breeding program to produce the Kwisatz Haderach, a mental "superbeing" whom the Bene Gesserit would use to their advantage, Jessica was ordered to bear a daughter but disobeyed and bore a son, Paul Atreides. Paul is tested by Reverend Mother Mohiam to assess his impulse control and, to her surprise, passes the test.

The Atreides leave their homeworld Caladan for Arrakis, a barren desert planet populated by gigantic sandworms. The native people of Arrakis, the Fremen, prophesy that a messiah will lead them to freedom and paradise. Duncan Idaho, one of Leto's loyalists, tells him that he suspects Arrakis holds vast numbers of Fremen who could prove to be powerful allies. Before Leto can form an alliance with the Fremen, the Harkonnen launch their attack. Leto's personal physician who is also secretly a Harkonnen double-agent, Dr. Wellington Yueh, disables the shields, leaving the Atreides defenseless. Idaho is killed, Leto is captured, and nearly the entire House of Atreides is wiped out by the Harkonnen. Baron Harkonnen orders Mentat Piter De Vries to kill Yueh with a poisoned blade. Leto dies in a failed attempt to assassinate the Baron using a poison-gas tooth implanted by Yueh in exchange for sparing the lives of Jessica and Paul, killing Piter instead.

Paul and Jessica survive the attack and escape into the deep desert, where they are given sanctuary by a sietch of Fremen. Paul assumes the Fremen name Muad'Dib and emerges as the messiah for whom the Fremen have been waiting. He teaches them to use Weirding Modules—sonic weapons developed by House Atreides—and targets spice mining. Over the next two years, spice production is nearly halted due to Paul's raids. The Spacing Guild informs the Emperor of the deteriorating situation on Arrakis.

Paul falls in love with young Fremen warrior Chani. Jessica becomes the Fremen's Reverend Mother by ingesting the Water of Life, a deadly poison, which she renders harmless by using her Bene Gesserit abilities. As an after-effect of this ritual, Jessica's unborn child, Alia, later emerges from the womb with the full powers of an adult Bene Gesserit Reverend Mother. In a prophetic dream, Paul learns of the plot by the Emperor and the Guild to kill him. When Paul's dreams suddenly stop, he drinks the Water of Life and has a profound psychedelic trip in the desert. He gains powerful psychic powers and the ability to control the sandworms, which he realizes are the spice's source.

The Emperor amasses a huge invasion fleet above Arrakis to wipe out the Fremen and regain control of the planet. He has the Baron's older nephew Glossu "The Beast" Rabban beheaded and summons the Baron to explain why spice mining has stopped. Paul launches a final attack against the Harkonnen and the Emperor's Sardaukar at Arrakeen, the capital city. Riding atop sandworms and brandishing sonic weapons, Paul's Fremen warriors easily defeat the Emperor's legions. Alia assassinates the Baron while Paul confronts the Emperor and fights the Baron's younger nephew Feyd-Rautha in a duel to the death. After killing Feyd, Paul demonstrates his newfound powers and fulfills the Fremen prophecy by causing rain to fall on Arrakis. Alia declares him to be the Kwisatz Haderach.

Cast

[edit]

Additionally, Honorato Magalone appears as Otheym, Judd Omen appears as Jamis, and Molly Wryn as Harah. Director David Lynch appears in an uncredited cameo as a spice worker, while Danny Corkill is shown in the onscreen credits as Orlop despite his scenes being deleted from the theatrical release.

Production

[edit]

Early attempts and Jodorowsky's Dune

[edit]

After the book's initial success, producers began attempting to adapt it. In mid-1971, film producer Arthur P. Jacobs optioned the film rights to Frank Herbert's 1965 novel Dune, on agreement to produce a film within nine years, but died in mid-1973, while plans for the film (including David Lean already attached to direct) were still in development.[8][9]

The film rights reverted in 1974, when the option was acquired by a French consortium led by Jean-Paul Gibon, with Alejandro Jodorowsky attached to direct.[8] Jodorowsky approached contributors including the progressive rock groups Pink Floyd and Magma for some of the music, Dan O'Bannon for the visual effects, and artists H. R. Giger, Jean Giraud, and Chris Foss for set and character design. Potential cast included Salvador Dalí as the Emperor, Orson Welles as Baron Harkonnen, Mick Jagger as Feyd-Rautha, Udo Kier as Piter De Vries, David Carradine as Leto Atreides, Jodorowsky's son Brontis Jodorowsky as Paul Atreides, and Gloria Swanson.[10] The project was ultimately canceled for several reasons, largely because funding disappeared when the project ballooned to a 10–14 hour epic.[11]

Although their film project never reached production, the work that Jodorowsky and his team put into Dune significantly impacted subsequent science-fiction films. In particular, Alien (1979), written by O'Bannon, shared much of the same creative team for the visual design as had been assembled for Jodorowsky's film. A documentary, Jodorowsky's Dune (2013), was made about Jodorowsky's failed attempt at an adaptation.[12][13]

De Laurentiis's first attempt

[edit]

In late 1976, Italian producer Dino De Laurentiis purchased the rights for Dune from Gibon's consortium.[8] De Laurentiis commissioned Herbert to write a new screenplay in 1978; the script Herbert turned in was 175 pages long, the equivalent of nearly three hours of screen time.[8] De Laurentiis then hired director Ridley Scott in 1979, with Rudy Wurlitzer writing the screenplay and H. R. Giger retained from the Jodorowsky production.[8] Scott intended to split the book into two movies. He worked on three drafts of the script, using The Battle of Algiers (1966) as a point of reference, before moving on to direct another science-fiction film, Blade Runner (1982). He recalled the pre-production process was slow, and finishing the project would have been even more time-intensive:

But after seven months I dropped out of Dune, by then Rudy Wurlitzer had come up with a first-draft script, which I felt was a decent distillation of Frank Herbert's [book]. But I also realized Dune was going to take a lot more work—at least two and a half years' worth. And I didn't have the heart to attack that because my [older] brother Frank unexpectedly died of cancer while I was prepping the De Laurentiis picture. Frankly, that freaked me out. So, I went to Dino and told him the Dune script was his.

—From Ridley Scott: The Making of His Movies by Paul M. Sammon[9]

Lynch's screenplay and direction

[edit]

In 1981, the nine-year film rights were set to expire. De Laurentiis renegotiated the rights from the author, adding to them the rights to the Dune sequels, written and unwritten.[8] He then showed the book to Sid Sheinberg, president of MCA, the parent company of Universal City Studios, which approved the book. After seeing The Elephant Man (1980), producer Raffaella De Laurentiis decided that David Lynch should direct the movie. Around that time, Lynch received several other directing offers, including Return of the Jedi. De Laurentiis contacted Lynch, who said he had not heard of the book. After reading it and "loving it", he met with De Laurentiis and agreed to direct the film.[14][15][16] Lynch worked on the script for six months with Eric Bergren and Christopher De Vore. The team yielded two drafts of the script and split over creative differences. Lynch then worked on five more drafts. Initially, Lynch had scripted Dune across two films, but eventually it was condensed into a single film.[8]

Tom Cruise, Kevin Costner, Lewis Smith, Zach Galligan, Michael Biehn, Kenneth Branagh and Val Kilmer either auditioned or were screen-tested for the role of Paul. Kilmer was the top choice for the role until MacLachlan screen-tested.[17][18][19] Aldo Ray was cast as Gurney Halleck, but due to his alcoholism was replaced with Stewart.[20] Glenn Close tested for the role of Lady Jessica, but lost to Annis.[17] Helena Bonham Carter was originally cast as Princess Irulan, but she left due to scheduling conflicts with A Room with a View.[21] Madsen said in 2016 that she was signed for three films, as the producers "thought they were going to make Star Wars for grown-ups."[22]

On March 30, 1983, with the 135-page sixth draft of the script, Dune finally began shooting. It was shot entirely in Mexico, mostly at Churubusco Studios; De Laurentiis said this was due in part to the favorable exchange rate to get more value for their production budget, and that no studio in Europe had the expansive capabilities they needed for the production. With a budget over $40–42 million, Dune required 80 sets built on 16 sound stages, and had a total crew of 1,700, with over 20,000 extras. Many of the exterior shots were filmed in the Samalayuca Dune Fields in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua.[8][23][24] Filming ran for at least six months into September 1983, plagued by various production problems such as failing electricity or communication lines due to the country's infrastructure, or health-related problems with their cast and crew.[8]

Editing

[edit]

The rough cut of Dune without post-production effects ran over four hours long, but Lynch's intended cut of the film (as reflected in the seventh and final draft of the script) was almost three hours long. Universal and the film's financiers expected a standard, two-hour cut of the film. Dino De Laurentiis, his daughter Raffaella, and Lynch excised numerous scenes, filmed new scenes that simplified or concentrated plot elements, and added voice-over narrations, plus a new introduction by Virginia Madsen. Contrary to rumor, Lynch made no other version than the theatrical cut.[25]

Versions

[edit]

A television version was aired in 1988 in two parts totaling 186 minutes; it replaced Madsen's opening monolog with a much longer description of the setting that used concept art stills. Lynch disavowed this version and had his name removed from the credits. Alan Smithee was credited, a pseudonym used by directors who wish to disavow a film. The extended and television versions additionally credit writer Lynch as Judas Booth. This version (without recap and second credit roll) has previously been released on DVD as Dune: Extended Edition.

Several longer versions have been spliced together, particularly for two other versions, one for San Francisco station KTVU, and the other a 178-minute fan edit from scratch by SpiceDiver. The latter cut was officially released by Koch Films (on behalf of current international rights holder Lionsgate) on a deluxe 4K/Blu-ray box set released in Germany in 2021. The KTVU and SpiceDiver versions combine footage from the theatrical and television versions, and downplay the repeated footage in the TV cut.[26] While working on A Masterpiece In Disarray, Max Evry discovered a never before-seen deleted scene which was released in restored form in March 2024.[27] The author also reconstructed the film's originally planned ending which is more in line with the source text.[28]

Although Universal has approached Lynch for a possible director's cut, Lynch has declined every offer and prefers not to discuss Dune in interviews.[29] In 2022, though, during an interview about the remaster of his film Inland Empire (2006), he admitted to the surprised interviewer that he was interested in the idea. He offered the caveat that he did not believe it would ever happen, nor that anything in the unused footage would satisfy him enough for a director's cut, as he said he was "selling out" during production. Nevertheless, he said enough time had passed that he was at least curious to take another look at the footage.[30]

Canceled sequels

[edit]

When production started, it was anticipated for the film to launch a Dune franchise, and plans had been made to film two sequels back-to-back. Many of the props were put into storage after the completion of production in anticipation of future use, MacLachlan had signed for a two-film deal, and Lynch had begun writing a screenplay for the second film. Once Dune was released and failed at the box office, the sequel plans were canceled.

In July 2023, writer Max Evry, doing research for his book, A Masterpiece in Disarray: David Lynch's Dune, on the first film's influence, discovered Lynch's half-completed draft treatment for the second film at the Frank Herbert Archives at California State University, Fullerton. Lynch was reached for comment in January 2024 and responded through a representative that he recalled beginning work on a script, but much like the first film, did not want to comment further. Based partly on Dune Messiah, Evry described the tentatively-titled Dune II as having surpassed the novel's narrative approach in the screenplay adaption.[7]

Release

[edit]

Marketing

[edit]

Dune premiered in Washington, DC, on December 3, 1984, at the Kennedy Center and was released worldwide on December 14. Prerelease publicity was extensive, because it was based on a bestselling novel, and because it was directed by Lynch, who had had success with Eraserhead and The Elephant Man. Several magazines followed the production and published articles praising the film before its release,[31] all part of the advertising and merchandising of Dune, which also included a documentary for television, and items placed in toy stores.[32]

Home media

[edit]

The film was released on Ultra HD Blu-ray by Arrow Films in North America and the United Kingdom on August 31, 2021, a few weeks ahead of the release of Dune, the 2021 film adaptation of the book.[33] This release only contains the theatrical cut of the film, as Universal removed the extended cut from circulation in North America following the DVD release going out of print and denied Arrow's request to license the cut for this release.[citation needed]

Koch Films has also released what fans[who?] consider to be a more definitive multi-disc edition (available only in Germany) containing three of the four versions—theatrical, TV, and SpiceDiver fan edit—plus supplemental materials (some not available on the Arrow release) and the CD soundtrack.[citation needed]

Reception

[edit]

Box office

[edit]

The film opened on December 14, 1984, in 915 theaters, and grossed US$6,025,091 in its opening weekend, ranking number two in the US box office behind Beverly Hills Cop.[34] By the end of its run, Dune had grossed $30,925,690 (equivalent to $91,000,000 in 2023).[2] It earned theatrical rentals of $37.9 million worldwide.[3] On an estimated production budget of $40–42 million, the film was considered a box-office disappointment.[35] The film later had more success, and has been called the "Heaven's Gate of science fiction".[36]

Critical response

[edit]

Dune received mostly negative reviews upon release. Roger Ebert gave one star out of four, and wrote:

This movie is a real mess, an incomprehensible, ugly, unstructured, pointless excursion into the murkier realms of one of the most confusing screenplays of all time. The movie's plot will no doubt mean more to people who've read Herbert than to those who are walking in cold...[37] and the worst movie of the year.[38]

On At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Ebert, Siskel began his review:

It's physically ugly, it contains at least a dozen gory gross-out scenes, some of its special effects are cheap—surprisingly cheap because this film cost a reported $40–45 million—and its story is confusing beyond belief. In case I haven't made myself clear, I hated watching this film.[39]

The film was later listed as the worst film of 1984 and the "biggest disappointment of the year" in their "Stinkers of 1984" episode.[40] Other negative reviews focused on the same issues and on the length of the film.[41]

Janet Maslin of The New York Times gave Dune a negative review of one star out of five. She said, "Several of the characters in Dune are psychic, which puts them in the unique position of being able to understand what goes on in the movie" and explained that the plot was "perilously overloaded, as is virtually everything else about it".[42]

Variety gave Dune a less negative review, stating "Dune is a huge, hollow, imaginative, and cold sci-fi epic. Visually unique and teeming with incident, David Lynch's film holds the interest due to its abundant surface attractions, but won't, of its own accord, create the sort of fanaticism which has made Frank Herbert's 1965 novel one of the all-time favorites in its genre." They also commented on how "Lynch's adaptation covers the entire span of the novel, but simply setting up the various worlds, characters, intrigues, and forces at work requires more than a half-hour of expository screen time." They did enjoy the cast and said, "Francesca Annis and Jürgen Prochnow make an outstandingly attractive royal couple, Siân Phillips has some mesmerizing moments as a powerful witch, Brad Dourif is effectively loony, and best of all is Kenneth McMillan, whose face is covered with grotesque growths and who floats around like the Blue Meanie come to life."[43]

Richard Corliss of Time gave Dune a negative review, stating, "Most sci-fi movies offer escape, a holiday from homework, but Dune is as difficult as a final exam. You have to cram for it. [...] MacLachlan, 25, grows impressively in the role; his features, soft and spoiled at the beginning, take on a he-manly glamour once he assumes his mission. [...] The actors seem hypnotized by the spell Lynch has woven around them—especially the lustrous Francesca Annis, as Paul's mother, who whispers her lines with the urgency of erotic revelation. In those moments when Annis is onscreen, Dune finds the emotional center that has eluded it in its parade of rococo decor and austere special effects. She reminds us of what movies can achieve when they have a heart, as well as a mind."[44]

Film scholar Robin Wood called Dune "the most obscenely homophobic film I have ever seen"[45]—referring to a scene in which Baron Harkonnen sexually assaults and kills a young man by bleeding him to death—charging it with "managing to associate with homosexuality in a single scene physical grossness, moral depravity, violence, and disease".[45] Dennis Altman suggested that the film showed how "AIDS references began penetrating popular culture" in the 1980s, asking, "Was it just an accident that in the film Dune the homosexual villain had suppurating sores on his face?"[46]

Critic and science-fiction writer Harlan Ellison reviewed the film positively. In his 1989 book of film criticism, Harlan Ellison's Watching, he says that because critics were denied screenings at the last minute after several reschedules, it made the film community feel nervous and negative towards Dune before its release.[47] Ellison later said, "It was a book that shouldn't have been shot. It was a script that couldn't have been written. It was a directorial job that was beyond anyone's doing ... and yet the film was made."[48] Daniel Snyder also praised elements of the film in a 2014 article which called the movie "a deeply flawed work that failed as a commercial enterprise, but still managed to capture and distill essential portions of one of science fiction's densest works." Snyder stated that Lynch's "surreal style" created "a world that felt utterly alien [full of] bizarre dream sequences, rife with images of unborn fetuses and shimmering energies, and unsettling scenery like the industrial hell of the Harkonnen homeworld, [making] the fil[m] actually closer to Kubrick (2001: A Space Odyssey) than [George] Lucas. It seeks to put the viewer somewhere unfamiliar while hinting at a greater, hidden story." Snyder praised the production and stated that Herbert had said he was pleased with Lynch's film.[5]

Colin Greenland reviewed Dune for Imagine magazine, and stated, "Anthony Masters's magnificent design features none of the gleaming chrome and sterile plastic we expect of space opera: instead, sinister paraphernalia of cast iron and coiled brass, corridors of dark wood and marble, and the sand, the endless sand..."[49]

Science-fiction historian John Clute argued that though Lynch's Dune "spared nothing to achieve its striking visual effects", the film adaptation "unfortunately—perhaps inevitably—reduced Herbert's dense text to a melodrama".[50]

The few more favorable reviews praised Lynch's noir-baroque approach to the film. Others compare it to other Lynch films that are equally inaccessible, such as Eraserhead, and assert that to watch it, the viewer must first be aware of the Dune universe.

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, Dune has an approval rating of 36% based on 117 reviews, with an average score of 5.6/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "This truncated adaptation of Frank Herbert's sci-fi masterwork is too dry to work as grand entertainment, but David Lynch's flair for the surreal gives it some spice."[51] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 41 out of 100 based on 20 critic reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[52]

As a result of its poor commercial and critical reception, all initial plans for Dune sequels were canceled. David Lynch reportedly was working on the screenplay for Dune Messiah[53] and was hired to direct both proposed second and third Dune films. Lynch later said:

I started selling out on Dune. Looking back, it's no one's fault but my own. I probably shouldn't have done that picture, but I saw tons and tons of possibilities for things I loved, and this was the structure to do them in. There was so much room to create a world. But I got strong indications from Raffaella and Dino De Laurentiis of what kind of film they expected, and I knew I didn't have final cut.[54]

In the introduction for his 1985 short story collection Eye, author Frank Herbert discussed the film's reception and his participation in the production, complimented Lynch, and listed scenes that were shot but left out of the released version. He wrote, "I enjoyed the film even as a cut and I told it as I saw it: What reached the screen is a visual feast that begins as Dune begins and you hear my dialogue all through it. [...] I have my quibbles about the film, of course. Paul was a man playing god, not a god who could make it rain. [...] It's my opinion that David's film of Dune will also be alive and well long after people have forgotten the potboilers that come out of corporate boardrooms. This is based partly on the reactions of everyone who worked on the film: They were sad to be parting when it was over and glad they had done it. The wrap party was a rare scene of happy nostalgia."[55]

Alejandro Jodorowsky, who had earlier been disappointed by the collapse of his own attempt to film Dune, later said he had been disappointed and jealous when he learned Lynch was making Dune, as he believed Lynch was the only other director capable of doing justice to the novel. At first, Jodorowsky refused to see Lynch's film, but his sons coerced him. As the film unfolded, Jodorowsky says he became very happy, seeing that it was a "failure", but that this was certainly the producers' fault and not Lynch's.[56]

Accolades

[edit]

Dune was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Sound (Bill Varney, Steve Maslow, Kevin O'Connell, and Nelson Stoll).[57]

The film won a 1984 Stinkers Bad Movie Awards for Worst Picture.[58]

Tie-in media

[edit]

Novelization

[edit]

An illustrated junior novelization by Joan D. Vinge, commonly published for movies during the 1970s and 1980s, titled The Dune Storybook was released in 1984.[59]

Toys

[edit]

A line of Dune action figures from toy company LJN was released to lackluster sales in 1984. Styled after Lynch's film, the collection includes figures of Paul Atreides, Baron Harkonnen, Feyd-Rautha, Glossu Rabban, Stilgar, and a Sardaukar warrior, plus a poseable sandworm, several vehicles, weapons, and a set of View-Master stereoscope reels. Figures of Gurney and Lady Jessica previewed in LJN's catalog were never produced.[60][61] In 2006, SOTA Toys produced a Baron Harkonnen action figure for their "Now Playing Presents" line.[61] In October 2019, Funko started a "Dune Classic" line of POP! vinyl figures, the first of which was Paul in a stillsuit and Feyd in a blue jumpsuit, styled after the 1984 film.[62][63] An alternate version of Feyd in his blue loincloth was released for the 2019 New York Comic Con.[64]

Games

[edit]

Several Dune games have been styled after Lynch's film. Parker Brothers released the board game Dune in 1984,[65] and a 1997 collectible card game called Dune[66] was followed by the role-playing game Dune: Chronicles of the Imperium in 2000.[67][68] The first licensed Dune video game is Dune (1992) from Cryo Interactive/Virgin Interactive.[69][70] Its successor, Westwood Studios's Dune II (1992), is generally credited for popularizing and setting the template for the real-time strategy genre of PC games.[71][72] This game was followed by Dune 2000 (1998), a remake of Dune II from Intelligent Games/Westwood Studios/Virgin Interactive.[73] Its sequel is the 3D video game Emperor: Battle for Dune (2001) by Intelligent Games/Westwood Studios/Electronic Arts.[74][75]

Comics

[edit]

Marvel Comics published an adaptation of the movie written by Ralph Macchio and illustrated by Bill Sienkiewicz.[76]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ The end credits states "Prophecy Theme" was composed by Brian Eno, Daniel Lanois, and Roger Eno.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Dune (PG) (Cut)". British Board of Film Classification. November 20, 1984. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved August 8, 2013.
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