I’ve read Dune many times over the years, as well as the sequels. Now I didn’t care for the later books as much as I enjoyed the premier novel, which is, in my opinion, one of the best of the Science Fiction / Fantasy genre. It’s a must read. And a huge challenge to bring to the screen.

When the first David Lynch version of Dune (1984) came out, I had just graduated college and had read the book. I was really excited about it. Now many people hated it, I found it enjoyable and have watched it many times since. Many of the critiques are valid but I can still lose myself in watching it. But Dune is simply too big a book to squeeze into 2 hours and 17 minutes.

The new production is wise to stick to the first half despite the chance we’ll never get to see part two. And there is a part two, with the same set of cast and crew, it could be even more amazing than part one.

The original David Lynch version had many flaws, but I liked its art direction (architecture, furnishings, costumes, etc). They visually matched what I had come to expect from reading the novel.

The SyFy channel miniseries was colorful and spectacular and in my opinion a better product all around, but it was a bit of a departure from what I had come to expect from the novel. It was gorgeous, and dramatically superior, but somehow it didn’t look quite right. Also, William Hurt, normally one of my favorite actors, seemed to just be phoning in his performance as Duke Leto. OTOH, Ian MacNeice’s Baron Harkonnen was a tour de force. He was magnificent.

From what I can see from the previews, this new version appears to set out to correct the problems with its predecessors. I can’t wait.