Rating: 
Summary: Another Interpretation of Frank Herbert's Masterpiece
Review: David Lynch's 2-hour feature film (later extended to 3 hours) and John Harrison's 6-hour TV miniseries each have very different interpretations of Frank Herbert's masterful sci-fi novel "Dune". Separately, neither effort adequately captures Herbert's vision of humanity and struggles for power in the far distant future; but each work brings varying degrees of depth to the screen, giving the viewer a glimpse of what Herbert envisioned.Strengths of Harrison's TV miniseries interpretation: * Better character development: especially Duke Leto Atreides (William Hurt), Princess Irulan Corrino (Julie Cox), Padishah-Emperor Shaddam Corrino IV (Giancarlo Giannini) and Stilgar (Uwe Ochsenknecht).
* A more comprehensive telling of the story: including the Corrino family, the ordinary lives of the Fremen, the ties between the Harkonnen and Atreides families, and the influence of the Bene Gesserit. Strangely, Paul is never called Usul.
* Better special effects and panoramic views, except for the often-used surrealistic lighting.
* Little use of stock footage scenes, which was often used by Lynch. Strengths of Lynch's feature film interpretation:
* Better costumes overall, especially the all of the uniforms and Fremen stillsuits, which, unlike the TV miniseries, looked as if they would actually work.
* Better portrayal of the Mentat.
* Hearing the thoughts of the characters added an extra element.
* Better acting overall: especially Lady Jessica (Francesca Annis), Baron Harkonnen's doctor (Leonardo Cimino), Shadout Mapes (Linda Hunt), Paul 'Muad'Dib' Atreides (Kyle MacLachlan), Baron Harkonnen (Kenneth McMillan), Duke Leto (Jürgen Prochnow) and Gurney Halleck (Patrick Stewart). Someone who hasn't read Herbert's novel and only sees Lynch's feature film may not understand the story, but someone who hasn't read the novel but only sees Harrison's TV miniseries will probably understand the story without difficulty. Anyone who has read the novel and sees either live-action interpretation will probably be disappointed to some degree by both, but each one can be appreciated for what each brings to the screen. The acting from Alec Newman as Paul 'Muad'Dib' Atreides was by no means perfect in the TV miniseries, but did shed a different light on the character from Kyle MacLachlan. Overall, I give Harrison's TV miniseries version of "Dune" a rating of 4 out of 5 stars. It is interesting to speculate how David Lynch would have added more to his film if he had been able to create a more comprehensive piece like the TV miniseries, as well as use CGI special effects and the best actors from both. Clearly, each screen interpretation shows what each director was able to accomplish with his available resources and artistic license.
Rating:
Summary: Finally a real attempt at putting "Dune" on film!
Review: This movie just became available on video after a successful run on the Sci-fi network. It was a 3 evening mini-series totaling about 4 1/2 hours of movie time. Fans have been crying out for a real version after the 1984 movie version of Dune by David Lynch that simply flopped. It is pretty much impossible to condense a book as complex as "Dune" into a two hour movie and do a good job. The only easily recognizable member of the cast of this new version is William Hurt who plays Duke Leto Atreides. He does an excellent job actually, one of the few who was easily a better casting than in the first movie. The remainder of the cast is European, lots of British, Scottish and Irish actors that I've never heard of before. This is the gist of Frank Herbert's "Dune": In the far future, a talented and well liked Duke (William Hurt's character) and his family are sent to govern the planet Arrakis, which for generations has been under the control of an evil family called the Harkonnens. Arrakis, or Dune as it is also know is a blasted wasteland of sand that no one would even consider habitable if it weren't for the production of spice. Spice is a special "drug" that is used by various groups to do many strange wonderful things including space travel (they bend space). Without giving away too much, the Emperor, who arranged the Atreides move to Dune is actually plotting with the Harkonnens to destroy the Atreides family. The production value on the movie is so-so. You can tell that the budget is limited, but they do an admirable job anyway. CG and green screen technology has come a long way and this wouldn't have been possible 10 years ago. There are a few places where you can tell that the backdrop is fake, but it was a made for TV movie so I can forgive them. I generally liked the cast and the acting. The story line is a classic in the genre, an amazing feat of originality and creativity. Dune is unlike any sci-fi story before or since. Still, the story is complicated, there are layers and layers of in-fighting, politics, back stabbing, religion and economics that can not be covered even in 4 1/2 hours. In the end, you almost have to have read the book to understand what's going on some times. Having said that, this is a far better effort than the 1984 version. There's just more room to breath and many more of the important scenes are presented. The essence of the book came through much better this time around. I am a huge fan of the original book and I applaud the effort of the filmmakers on this one. As a fan, I give a fan's rating of 4 out of 5 stars, absolutely a must see for Dune fans who were disappointed in the original movie.
Rating: 
Summary: Good and bad
Review: Like many of the other reviewers I have to say that the acting was pretty bad. It was especially bad at the beginning, but I might have gotten used to it and it became less noticeable towards the end. But the acting was almost laughably bad at the beginning. This movie's saving grace was some of the really great effects. Visually this movie was fun to watch. The costumes were creative and interesting to see. I also liked the inclusion of a lot more information from the book. My only complaint about the original movie version of Dune was that it raced from plot point to plot point and if you hadn't read the books some of it didn't make much sense. All in all this movie was mostly fun to watch.
Rating:
Summary: An epic with some problems
Review: Synopsis:
In the far future, Duke Leo Atreides, his concubine and his son Paul travel to administer the planet known as Arrakis (or Dune), the source of a substance known as Spice. Spice is the lifeblood of the Human Empire, lengthening life and making interstellar travel possible. But betrayal by a member of the family's court and a powerplay by the corrupt Baron Harkonan results in the death of Duke Leo and force Paul and his mother to take refuge deep in the deserts of Arrakis. From there, they begin a campaign to fight back and gain revenge. But there is more going on than mere politics, for there is a prophecy of the rise of a messiah type figure, and Paul has somehow managed to fit into the center of it. About the Miniseries:
Frank Herbert's Dune is based on a book by Frank Herbert, published in the 1970's. It has become a classic and easily one of the most unique works of Science-fiction in the past 30 years. Based on the book, this miniseries isn't the first time it has been rendered on screen. The last was in a film production in 1984 that many hard core fans of the Dune mythos have a tendency to dislike because it plays a little more fast and loose with the story than most would have like. Produced by the Sci-fi Channel, this 4 hour and 20 minute miniseries was an attempt to more accurately bring the book to life. "Frank Herbert's Dune" has a star studded cast, including, Academy Award winner William Hurt (as Duke Leo Atreidies), Ian Mcniece (as Baron Harkonan), and Uwe Ochsenknect (as Stilgar). It is written and directed by veteran TV director John Harrison and boasts the talents of a cinematographer and a costume designer that were both Academy Award winners. In many ways, "Frank Herbert's Dune is an epic production. The visuals are usually quite spectacular and the set design easily manages to look futuristic and grand. It's clear that a lot of attention to detail was put into them. These sets are often enhanced with computer generated imagery, like Ornithopters, cityscapes and the like. It usually works quite well, usually providing the film with an epic and polished feel. Likewise, the costuming is excellent. With a flair for an epic aristocratic feel, it manages to look practical, but imaginative enough to make it believable for some far future civilization. My only complaint is that the stil-suits (suits designed to save and recycle the body's perspiration for use in the desert) aren't very exciting to look at. As easily one of the neatest inventions of the Dune universe, it would have been nice to see them done with a little more flair. Unfortunately, despite the star-studded production and acting team, and the excellent set and costume design, this miniseries ends up falling a little flat. The acting is one place where this obvious. Consisting of a cast of TV and stage actors, occasionally an actor's performance will make you cringe. P.H Moriarty (as Gurney Halleck) is the worst of these, managing to be so stagy and forced in almost all of his scenes as to hurt the performances of the actors who played with him. It's a shame because he plays a somewhat major role. Another area, camera direction, also suffers. Despite having a Oscar winning cinematographer like Vttorio Storaro on staff, the cinematography is marred by the poor and unimaginative camera direction so common in made for TV productions. The film shots are usually fairly simple in their design and they tend to last a little longer than necessary, especially where scenery is concerned. This helps to lower the quality of the production and slow down the film altogether. In the same respect, editing is almost always the inevitable downfall of most miniseries. With time requirements forcing a production to be a certain length, you often end up with something that could have fit into three hours, being stretched into four. That's how Dune feels. There are plenty of sequences that should have been cut to make the production flow better. This is especially true once you get to the middle of the series. Overall, Dune drags badly in points, suffers from spotty acting and poor film direction, but it manages to maintain the integrity of Frank Herbert's vision overall. It has some great moments, and can be a fun watch, if you have the patience to sit through it all. About the DVD:
Frank Herbert's Dune comes in a double door hard case on two DVDs. The film is presented in 1.77:1 widescreen format and Dolby Surround Sound. It has only one audio track, in English and no subtitles. The Picture and sound for this release are pretty good. The video is quite clear with only a few noticeable digital artifacts on high resolution screens. Likewise, the sound transfer sounds excellent. This DVD release does have special features including, a 25 minute "behind the scenes" featurette, a written treatise on the cinematography in Dune (by Vittorio Storaro), a gallery of sketches and stills, and a selected of cast and crew information page. The best of these features, is of course, the Behind the Scenes Featurette. While it's not the best of these types of things that I've seen, it's a good overview of the production and the story for those who don't know anything about it and it contains quite a few interesting notes about why certain things were done a certain way. The written treatise is something of a let down. I have no idea why they chose to place a series of written screens on a DVD in this fashion instead of something more imaginative like a narrated series of still shots. It's interesting, but most people will not bother to read it. People don't buy DVD's to read books. Bottom Line:
A decent, occasionally spotty miniseries on a low frill DVD release. 3 stars.
Rating:
Summary: Harrison's Dune gives life to the wonderful book by Herbert.
Review: I have read other reviews that were rather harsh on Harrison's rendition of Herbert's Dune. For those out there that remember the 80's movie with fondness then I can see where you might not appreciate this version. However, fans of the book will be much more pleased with this miniseries than the movie which leaves so much unexplained that it is impossible to understand anything going on without having read the book. The SciFi Channel's version goes into much more character development and gives attention to important details that work to tie together Herbert's intricate story-line. Harrison's stylelized view of the Dune universe, particularly Arrakis is wonderfully inventive and gives this miniseries a look that is unique and unlike anything I've ever seen. The characters are wonderfully portrayed by veteran William Hurt, and such delightful actors as Saska Reeves and Alec Newman. If you desire to see a visual feast that is faithful to Herbert's vision of Dune, this is the show for you. You will not be disappointed. The only reason I give this 4 stars rather than 5 is because the special features are not very extensive on this version. I would suggest looking into the Director's Edition.
Rating: 
Summary: Exceptional!
Review: I have read Frank Herbert's Dune series and waiting impatiently for it to be filmed. I got to see the David Lynch version--which Frank Herbert supposed helped create--and was stunned by its stiffness and gernerally proding story. Years later, when the director's cut was released, the movie played a lot better...but not better than this version. This version is extraordinary. I have watched it 3 times and each time I reveal in the beauty and excellent story telling. This is the book come to life in front of you! The people contributing to the film are first rate. I enjoyed the character transistion of Paul--and this most of all made this movie click for me. Paul matured in this film version. He goes from spoiled only kid to forceful leader and hero. This version of Dune also brings to life the book's original narrator and observer. Princess Irulan is wonderfully cast and this character's contribution to the overall story is fantastic. I wish the makers of this version consider taking up some of the additional stories of Frank Herberts Dune--ChapterHouse was by far the most thrilling and imaginative! I applaud SciFi channel for its original programming and willingness to take a SciFi's grand master's epic and turn it into quality visual entertainment!
Rating:
Summary: Another Interpretation of Frank Herbert's Masterpiece
Review: David Lynch's 2-hour feature film (later extended to 3 hours) and John Harrison's 6-hour TV miniseries each have very different interpretations of Frank Herbert's masterful sci-fi novel "Dune". Separately, neither effort adequately captures Herbert's vision of humanity and struggles for power in the far distant future; but each work brings varying degrees of depth to the screen, giving the viewer a glimpse of what Herbert envisioned. Strengths of Harrison's TV miniseries interpretation: * Better character development: especially Duke Leto Atreides (William Hurt), Princess Irulan Corrino (Julie Cox), Padishah-Emperor Shaddam Corrino IV (Giancarlo Giannini) and Stilgar (Uwe Ochsenknecht).
* A more comprehensive telling of the story: including the Corrino family, the ordinary lives of the Fremen, the ties between the Harkonnen and Atreides families, and the influence of the Bene Gesserit. Strangely, Paul is never called Usul.
* Better special effects and panoramic views, except for the often-used surrealistic lighting.
* Little use of stock footage scenes, which was often used by Lynch. Strengths of Lynch's feature film interpretation:
* Better costumes overall, especially the all of the uniforms and Fremen stillsuits, which, unlike the TV miniseries, looked as if they would actually work.
* Better portrayal of the Mentat.
* Hearing the thoughts of the characters added an extra element.
* Better acting overall: especially Lady Jessica (Francesca Annis), Baron Harkonnen's doctor (Leonardo Cimino), Shadout Mapes (Linda Hunt), Paul 'Muad'Dib' Atreides (Kyle MacLachlan), Baron Harkonnen (Kenneth McMillan), Duke Leto (Jürgen Prochnow) and Gurney Halleck (Patrick Stewart). Someone who hasn't read Herbert's novel and only sees Lynch's feature film may not understand the story, but someone who hasn't read the novel but only sees Harrison's TV miniseries will probably understand the story without difficulty. Anyone who has read the novel and sees either live-action interpretation will probably be disappointed to some degree by both, but each one can be appreciated for what each brings to the screen. The acting from Alec Newman as Paul 'Muad'Dib' Atreides was by no means perfect in the TV miniseries, but did shed a different light on the character from Kyle MacLachlan. Overall, I give Harrison's TV miniseries version of "Dune" a rating of 4 out of 5 stars. It is interesting to speculate how David Lynch would have added more to his film if he had been able to create a more comprehensive piece like the TV miniseries, as well as use CGI special effects and the best actors from both. Clearly, each screen interpretation shows what each director was able to accomplish with his available resources and artistic license.
Rating:
Summary: Good, not great
Review: This seems like a pretty good adaptation for the mini-series format. The figures are clearly drawn, for people who came in late. The action is well paced, to keep people coming back. The characters are bold, and mythic, the way Herbert drew them originally. The script-writer has taken some liberties with the story. Well, some were needed for a successful screen play. The original books were masses of subtle and interlocked detail, way too much to convey on screen. If a few points were lost in the translation, it was because the TV series is a different dramatic language than the book. A few points were enhanced, too. Irulan, for example, is much stronger on screen than I remember her in the original. Perhaps her additional presence isn't 100% authentic - if so, I consider the difference very tolerable. There are a few points that didn't work for me. I'm not sure why the imperial soldiers wore their coloful dress uniforms into the field, for example, and the sword-vs-gun battles were a little hard to swallow. The color schemes were a bit florid, as well. Intense, ultramarine blue lighting meant "night", even when background lighting was of other color. Tangerine orange encoded the desert scenes, and so on. Some of these problems were fixed later in the series, but jarred in this set. It's watchable entertainment, and doesn't demand too much of the viewer. It's a bit long to watch all at one sitting, but was never intended as a single endurance exercise. I won't be giving this one away, but I won't be rushing back to it, either.
Rating: 
Summary: The Messiah Pit
Review: Let's shoot for a little heresy here. Maybe the reason neither this "Dune" nor Lynch's really works is that Frank Herbert's story just isn't very good. One can sit through two hours, five hours, or maybe someday (if we're really cursed) twenty hours of his elephantine profundity and dime-store Orientalism and be left with nothing more than the excruciatingly hammered-home point that yes, the lead character is unquestionably the Messiah for this utterly unlikable future universe...and so what. "Dune" has its scattered moments but overall it resembles a patchwork of catchy ideas cobbled together by a cynical marketing team trying to sell, say, loofa-oil to half-baked counter-culture types. Herbert himself tried to keep this property rolling for as long as he could with sequels--a phenomenon that concerned me back when the Dune-Wagon started lumbering across the sands of time. His early fans were the angry sorts who hated Western Civilization, loved drugs, and longed for the Good Old Days of tribalism and superstition--well, at least, their juvenile fantasy versions of them. In the earlier adaptation, David Lynch perhaps sensed the overall vacuity of the "Dune" mythos and attempted to flesh it out by making Herbert's future at least visually and culturally rich. He succeeded at that stupendously well. With Lynch's "Dune" there's a sense of a not particularly engaging story being played out in a thoroughly fascinating universe. I love his effort and only wish it had been based on a completely different book. This newer version takes its whisky straight and is as much fun as a day in church. The acting is flat, the sets are grand but lacking in magic (flat), and the Dune planet scenery is kind of cartoony (Flatness again--I've seen better theater backdrops. Painting them is a skill computer graphics people should learn). To be fair, the more experienced cast members give it their best, however the Harkonnen clan-members summon up about as much menace as some pesky suburbanites living outside of Cleveland. One could easily picture the Baron maliciously mowing his lawn too early on a Saturday morning or either nephew taking pot shots at the neighbor's cat with a BB gun. Lynch did the right thing by depicting them as a pack of psychos-he made them interesting. For a bad but at least entertaining "Dune" check out the Lynch version. For a first-class "Dune" try "Lawrence of Arabia."
Rating: 
Summary: This is a very boring mini-series
Review: First let me say this, I have not seen the David Lynch version of Dune. It is hard for me to believe that it could be any worse than this mini-series. The last 40 minutes are more like the kind of film I was expecting, unfortunately I had to set through 244 minutes of some of the most boring science fiction I have seen in a long time. This mini-series would be a good cure for people who have insomnia.
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