Ben Oliver

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Dune: Part One

Dreams make good stories, but everything important happens when we’re awake.
01 December 2024

OK I’ve finally taken the plunge on the Duneiverse. I love an epic film but I’m always reluctant to go in where there are several parts mainly because I forget all the stuff that’s going on, but also because if you are making a film that needs 12 hours to tell its story perhaps just make a TV show.

Anyway this first part is a lot of fairly tedious exposition and scene setting, carefully dressed up on a really cool set full of really good looking people. Chalamet is an interesting character to lead the film, sort of an awkward teenager who begins to find his footing.

I shouldn’t understate how impressive the scope and scale of the film is. It’s all vast desert-scapes, great costumes and great set design. All the magic space vehicles and gadgets kind of make sense and in some cases then have some impact on the events that follow.

It’s very much half a film though. Luckily there is another half, and luckily I just watched it1.

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