Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #14453 in DVD
• Released on: 2005-07-04
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Box set, DVD-Video, PAL, Special Edition
• Original language: English, Italian
• Number of discs: 2
• Running time: 137 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
This two-disc special edition release of David Lynch's 1984 film Dune presents the same cut as originally shown theatrically, but with an improved transfer compared to the previous DVD edition and with the addition of new and archive documentary material. In case of confusion, it should be noted that this is not any of the following versions: the re-edited TV movie adaptation of Lynch's film, the long-sought-after extended version Lynch screened for cast and crew in January 1984, a new Director's Cut, or the Sci-Fi Channel mini series.

The first disc contains a new anamorphically enhanced 2.35:1 transfer taken from a High Definition archive copy of the 1984 film, further restored to remove dirt and scratches, and a Dolby Digital 5.1 remix as well as the original stereo soundtrack. The film looks superb and sounds almost as good, though a DTS soundtrack would have been welcome. This is much superior to the average making-of, featuring significant new contributions from Kyle MacLachlan, producer Raffaella De Laurentiis, cinematographer Freddie Francis and others--though David Lynch is conspicuous by his absence. Destination Dune is a six-minute promotional featurette made by Sammon at the time of the film's release and the 4:3 image is fairly poor quality. An 83-second BBC interview with Frank Herbert is too short to be of more than passing interest, though the original trailer is a fine example of the 1980's way of selling movies. The set is completed with routine cast and crew profiles. Even with no involvement from Lynch and no commentaries, this is still the best Dune on DVD. --Gary S. Dalkin

Special Features

• Remastered picture and new 5.1 soundtrack
  
• Impressions of Dune -- exclusive interviews with Kyle MacLachlan, Raffaella De Laurentiis and more
  
• Destination Dune -- Behind the scenes footage and on-set interviews
  
• Interview with Frank Herbert
  
• Cast and Crew profiles
  
• Original Theatrical Trailer
  
• Collectable 32-page booklet

DVD Technical Information:

• Aspect Ratio: Widescreen 2.35:1 Anamorphic
  
• Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1/Dolby Digital 2.0
  
• Language: English
  
• Running Time: 2 hours 17 minutes approx.
  
• Region Code: 0 (all)

Synopsis
David Lynch's baroque rendering of Frank Herbert's detailed, complex, and deliberately paced epic science-fiction novel is a muddled but visually stunning affair. It's 10991, and the desert planet Dune has been taken over by the Harkonnens, oppressive conquerors who desire the precious spice that lies beneath Dune's arid sands. The story concerns the attempts of a young warrior messiah, Paul Atreides, to lead the native inhabitants in an uprising against the evil empire - and battle the giant man-eating worms that guard the coveted spice. Lynch shot much more footage than ended up in the finished film, but executive producer Dino De Laurentiis didn't want a three-hour-plus sci-fi epic on his hands, so he coerced Lynch into trimming it. The result is one of cinema's most infamous cases of personal vision colliding with studio politics. Nonetheless, Lynch still manages to cram in so many visual ideas and captures the tone of the book so well that these production issues can be easily set aside once the story starts rolling. Refusing to further edit the film for television, Lynch took his name off the director and screenwriter credits. As troubling as 'Dune' might have been for Lynch, the experience greatly inspired 1986's brilliant 'Blue Velvet', for which audiences should be thankful.

Customer Reviews

Nice try but with some rough edges
Having read the books and seen the 1984 David Lynch it is difficult to avoid comparisons. For starts I should say that on the whole the mini-series is good. The costumes are colourful and the story is close to the book. However as mentioned in some of the other reviews actors have been miss-cast. PH Moriarty (playing Gurney Halleck) is one example, same goes for Giancarlo Giannini who plays Emperor Shaddam IV. Another niggle is that Count Fenring does practically nothing in the TV movies.

I know that allot of people will compare TV version to Lynch's film. At times the TV version was at pains to be different from the film, even to the point to changing bits of the story. In the TV version Melange (the space) was green, but in the book and the move it is orange. I think overall Lynch's film presents a definitive vision on the Dune universe but the TV movie tells the story more effectively. For instance there was much more 'high tech' in the TV version than in either the book or 1984 Film. Those of you who have read the books will remember that computers have been effectively outlawed, but the TV series ignored this altogether.

Having said all that I think its worth getting, but get the German release instead. Its all in English and has a making of documentary along with 10 minutes of extra footage which really makes the story better.

One last thing keep an eye out for the sequel comming out in 2003!

A wonder to behold
Frank Herbert's Dune is one of my favourite books, so it wouldn't have surprised me very much if I hadn't enjoyed this series. Bad reviews had me prepared for disappointment. But I enjoyed it very much. It's as true to the book as any film based on a book is true to its book - a lot truer than most in fact. You can't expect a film to get in all the detail and explanation that a book can give. Film's a different medium with its own limitations. The story presented here gives a fair representation of Herbert's masterpiece in my opinion. I think I would have a good understanding of the situation he described from watching this series, even if I hadn't read the book. Critical reviews had prepared me to expect the actors to be miscast and the scenery to be tacky and unconvincing. But I have to say that I thought the actors suited their roles and played them well. It's true that some of the scenery is obviously 2-dimensional and painted on, but I didn't find this too distracting. The colours, costumes, atmosphere and drama gave my imagination all it needed to do its job. I love a good story, whether read to me or shown to me or if I have to read it myself. It's not the job of the storyteller alone to feed an audience's passive or lazy imagination. The imagination has to do some of the work too. We've come to expect technical perfection from modern film makers and I've watched too many films lately, with huge budgets, famous actors, excellent CGI and nothing at all by way of a coherent story. As Doctor Kynes said, referring to a planetary ecosystem, (in the book) "Beyond a critical point within a finite space, freedom diminishes as numbers increase" and perhaps the film moguls could say something similar.

I recommend this series to anyone who's prepared to provide a bit of tolerance and imagination.

David Lynch's Lost Classic
Many consider Dune to be the black sheep among Lynch's films, including the man himself. Nothing could be further from the truth. Dune is a fine science fiction film, with an unique perspective on Frank Herbert's 1965 novel. It take the basic ideas from the novel, and expands by adding Lynch's dream-like imagery to create a dark and sinister spectacle, adding to Herbert's political and geologically based universe. It goes places that few mainstream science fiction films go, drawing comparisons with other classic late 70's and early 80's films such as Ridley Scott's Alien and Blade Runner films. The soundtrack by Toto and Brian Eno furthers the film distinct mood, combining lush orchestral symphonies with early Pink Floyd styled guitar pieces. More than any other David Lynch film, this movie can instantly take you on a otherworldly journey. This new DVD version contains the remastered film, presented in anamorphic widescreen for the first time. Highly recommended. Trip away!