Interpreting the Sands- A Critical Analysis of David Lynchs Dune (1984)
It is crucial to understand that Dune is a film based on the novel ‘Dune’ by Frank Herbert, which was written in 1965. The novel was a success, which led to a widespread demand by filmmakers. Various filmmakers made efforts to get it, to no success, even though some came close to securing a deal, such as Alejandro Jodorowsky. However, the man who carried the day was David Lynch, especially after his success with his Film, The Elephant Man (1980). It is also crucial to understand that he opted to make a film out of this book as he had other viable offers. With this notion in mind, it suffices to maintain that David Lynch’s Dune was a flop because it fails to establish a connection with the audience.
The story focuses on the main character, Paul Atreides, who is the son of a well-known Duke. The Duke had been given the power to rule over the planet Arrakis, fondly referred to as ‘Dune.’ As the Film begins, what one notices is the voiceover that provides the explanation that this planet is the only one with the extraordinary spice mélange. It speaks of its almost immeasurable value, given that it has the be-wildering ability to alter the mind and the capability to fold space, making it possible for one to travel through space. Emperor Shaddam, who rules over the vast universe, fears a revolt, and as a countermeasure, he puts Duke Atreides as the ruler of the planet Arrakis (Todd 71). However, he has a secret plot to attack him and wipe out his household. Paul has the gift of prophecy, and he sees things in his dreams that eventually come to happen in the physical realm. As such, after foreseeing the intentions of the Emperor, he makes alliances with the citizens of Dune, the Fremen, in an effort to fight off the aggressions of the Emperor. The Fremen are more than willing to take part in preventing the efforts of the Emperor from subduing them. As such, they saw Paul as their Messiah who would rescue them from the grips of the Emperor.
It is also vital to understand that Dune has numerous characters and diverse subplots. The problem with this is that they are hardly riveting. The film’s script hardly provides more information on more riveting political machinations portrayed in the text. Essentially, most of the plot is explained using voiceover to the extent that virtually every thought that a majority of the main characters have is made out loud for the audience to hear. There is a large section in the film where voiceovers are prevalent, so there is little room for the audience to interpret the film independently. In essence, it means that it seems like it was done from the need to, instead of some peculiar artistic vision. As such, an individual could imagine that many crucial scenes had to be condensed and that the director had little choice but to explain the significant portions of the plot in the form of voiceovers and downright straightforward exposition. Conversely, one of the crucial issues with Dune is virtually not what is said to us but those that are omitted.
Undoubtedly, the script seems to be a jumbled mess, with the subplots only providing hints and never extensively delving deeply into the themes it needed to explore. By so saying, Lynch, in a way, manages to speak much without actually informing us what we need to know.
However, some credit could be given to the potent usage of the special effects. Perhaps, Dune could never have been realized in the same way without the usage of these visual effects. By making use of both the practical stunts and props and the enhancements from the CGI, several riveting shots are eye-catching in their cinematography and appealing in the storytelling. For instance, the depiction of the sandworms on Dune is one factor that makes the environment too tricky for humanity to exist in peace. They can sense any movement of any mechanical or living thing. The capture of sandworms have been efficaciously captured. It is due mainly to the impressive visual effects, portraying its unbiased nature of murder indiscriminately.
Besides, the CGI model created for these sandworms is impressively realistic, and its many teeth inevitably make the monster resonate with the audience and the characters as a potent threat. The most thrilling action scenes in Dune include primarily those with the sandworm, which is depicted moving fast and with ease beneath the sand of Arrakis. Still, in the scene involving the attack on the House of Atreides in Arrakis, there was a need to demonstrate chaos on a large scale and conflict escalation. Lynch put forth good visual effects.
Also, CGI helps develop the plot in a way that Dune is set into the future. Therefore, it is hardly surprising that the technological advancements made available to the characters are way beyond the cognition of humans today. For instance, CGI creates technologies such as the shields used to do battle on Arrakis. The presence of visual effects plays a vital role in painting an image of the universe, especially the depiction of war and violence through the use of the flickering image and the contrasting red lights and blue to better relay the story of war and violence in Arrakis.
However, since some of the special effects are brilliantly done, they are primarily ruined by the ‘muddy’ visual style. In this case, “Much of the film is brown and orange and gray, which helps dull an already boring and convoluted story…but there are times when it is painfully obvious that the actors are just running in front of a green screen, with virtually no attempt to mask it” (Chrysostomou). Therefore, in this case, the acting is basically on what one could expect to see from the fiction of the eighties. For instance, Kyle MacLachlan is seen with only a single facial expression in the whole film. He is confused and frustrated, seeming to imply that he is constantly wondering why he takes the role of Paul Atreides.
Kenneth McMillan, presented as Baron Vladimir Harkonnen, suffers from a disease that has largely eaten into his face through the oozing boils that never seem to heal (Jones). Even though his presence in the film is strange, he floats around in the room in a suit that is inflatable. He brings a spark to an otherwise dull film besieged with mediocrity.
In the documentation, it is recorded that Lynch gave the film a wide berth after it was released, laying blame on the challenges brought to the fore by the studio. However, it is beyond a trace of doubt that the film fell short of the expectation in many ways. One of the major characters in the story is essentially missing. In this case, Emperor Shaddam of the House Corrino is missing. His pettiness and jealousy gnaw at him over the Duke’s popularity, the monstrous army, and the house Atreides, which are the motivating factors for most of the violence in the novel, but it is hardly mentioned in the film.
It is imperative to understand that the Emperor’s power is hardly discussed in the film. Even though a throwaway line in the film references the Emperor between Baron Harkonnen and the Reverend Mother is virtually insufficient to emphasize his importance as mean and dangerous as he is primarily implied to be. Still, the army belonging to the House Atreides is widely famed all through the known universe, especially for being trained by Duncan Idaho and Gurney Halleck, with the troops matching the efficacy and lethality.
On the contrary, they receive only limited mentions and do not seem to resist with vicious efficiency against their adversary, and Arrakeen is, hence, overpowered. In the novel, the main cause for the Emperor was sent to the House of Harkonnen with the Sardaukar reinforcements to ensure they controlled the Arrakis. It is also partly because he feels threatened by the army of the House Atreides and firmly believes that they would allow the Duke to gain control of Landsraad. Therefore, the problem, in this case, is that the film could have placed more emphasis on the elite nature of this army rather than on the swordsmanship that Duncan Idaho possesses.
Nevertheless, for one to make an effort to kill Paul Atreides, there is a spy left behind by the House Harkonnen who uses the hunter-seeker to make assassination attempts on him while he is in his chamber. The small insect-like device flies through the wall and floats through the air, searching for Paul to stab him with the poison-tipped needle. However, Paul is able to outsmart the device with ease by simply staying immobile behind the hologram. The tip of the device has a camera that provides live feeds to the Harkonnen operator, but the loophole, in this case, is that the operator fails to locate Paul. In the novel, the book is keen to mention that the compressed suspensor field of the device has poor visibility. However, this is never mentioned in the movie. On the other hand, House Harkonnen is virtually one of the wealthiest and equipped with the best technology of their time, and yet it makes use of the device, which can be outsmarted easily and does not make sense to the audience.
Furthermore, the costumes that the actors wear seem to have a problem. In this case, regardless of the fact that the suits that the Fremen dress in have special features such as protecting them from the heat in the deserts, cooling them, and essentially recycling the moisture from their bodies in an effort to conserve water in the desert, the color of the suit is an eye-sore. They have no semblance of their surroundings in the desert. In essence, the suits are conspicuous, and their adversaries can see them from way off. Doubtless, the coloration plays a role in helping the characters to stand out against their sandy background and bolster the dramatics in the narrative (Goodrow). However, a color bears a close semblance to their environment from a more practical perspective.
It is worth noting that the description of the costumes makes them worse. The opposite is true. The design of the costumes is endearing. Undoubtedly, they would excite any old-school fan of sci-fi films. The same could be said of the fight scenes in the film. Some combat scenes are cheesy and are filled with retro CGI’s, making them eye-sores. On the other hand, close combat scenes that are not touched by the post-production are often tense and shot impressively.
The music in the film is captivating throughout the movie. The guitar music by the music band Toto plays during the last battle in the film that the Fremen and Paul win is a perfect fit for the battle scene, a scene that is fast-paced music and intense. Therefore, in this case, the essence is that Lynch was able to build anticipation as the film approaches the climax through the help of the guitar music.
Also, some slack should be cut for the director. In this case, during the 1980s, technology in film was a fairly developed aspect, and pulling off a sci-fi film should not be taken lightly. As such, the practical effects that were put into use in Dune were virtually mind-blowing to the audience, even though this film did not deliver at the Box Office. The scene that involved Paul riding the widely feared sandworm for the first time during this time amazed the cinemagoers, even though most of them did not understand what was happening in the rest of the film. Although the effects could almost be seen as virtually childish, it would be unfair to look at it through the lens of a period of thirty-six years later of technological advancements (Gillespie).
With this notion in mind, a section of scholars believes that there is less doubt that during the 1980s, this film was groundbreaking for a film that fell to the sci-fi category. From the costumes to the creature design and the sets, Dune of 1984 was a success largely because it influenced future sci-fi films.
In sum, it suffices to maintain that inasmuch as this could be a contentious issue, it is clear that Dune failed to deliver to the expected level because of various reasons, such as it fails extensively to explore the political intrigues that are present in the text. It also makes excessive use of voiceovers that leave little room for the audience to do their own independent thinking concerning the film’s plot. With this notion in mind, it is sufficient to conclude that in as much as David Lynch could be forgiven for the poor portrayal of a sci-fi film, given that it was way back when technology in the film was not advanced, his plot and the numerous errs that are present in the text are proof that the film was a flop.
Works Cited
Chrysostomou, George. “Dune: The 10 Most Incredible Visual Effects In The Sci-Fi Epic”. Screenrant, 2021, https://screenrant.com/dune-best-visual-effects-movie/.
Jones, Matthew. “Philosophy In Film”. Philosophy In filmfilmfilm, 2017, https://philosophyinfilm.com/2017/06/16/review-dune-1984/.
Gillespie, Daniel. “Kyle Maclachlan Still Thinks Dune 84’s Practical Effects Were Amazing”. Screenrant, 2020, https://screenrant.com/dune-movie-1984-visual-effects-kyle-maclachlan-response/.
Goodrow, Zack. “Column: Dune (1984) Review”. Grand Valley Lanthorn, 2021, https://lanthorn.com/86188/opinion/dune-1984-review/.
Todd, Tony. “Meanings and authorships in Dune.” Film-Philosophy 13.1 (2009): 68-89.
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Question 
For your course project, the topic will be the 1984 movie Dune. The film essay should be seven to eight typed, double-spaced pages (2,000 to 2,500 words), not counting the works cited page.
You will develop the project in stages throughout the course and receive feedback from me at each stage. Chapter 12 of The Film Experience is devoted to writing an analytical essay. Your reading assignment will often include parts of chapter 12 that will help you incrementally develop your project.
Interpreting the Sands- A Critical Analysis of David Lynchs Dune (1984)
The final draft of the analytical film essay is the sole assignment for Lesson 9 and is due after you have finished the other lessons.
Carefully edit and proofread the final draft. Verify that your sources are cited and conform to the guidelines and style described on pages 504–513 or 6th edition, 433–435 of the textbook. Do not use or quote any sections of materials without a complete citation of the source. All direct quotations must appear in quotation marks and be referenced. As mentioned, rereading chapter 12 in The Film Experience (pages 504–514 or 6th edition, 433–440) may be beneficial in writing your final draft.
be sure that you have sufficient analysis and strong ideas that you substantiate with arguments throughout your paper. Before writing the essay, read the relevant sections of chapter 12 of FE again on the elements of an analytical essay (pages 476–480 or 6th edition, 409–414) and the section Interpretation, Argument, and Evidence (pages 492–495 or 6th edition, 421–425). It may also be helpful to reread the sample essays in chapter 12, which may provide you with some helpful ideas about how to introduce, structure, and conclude your essay.
In preparing the final draft, follow the guidelines on pages 495–496 or 6th edition, 424. When documenting your sources, follow the format on pages 504–513 or 6th edition, 433–435. The final version should be carefully proofread, and your sources should be accurately documented. Remember to treat all direct quotations as such, clearly indicating that these are not your words.