So I accomplished my main weekend goal (I know I'm an underachiever) in that I already finished watch
Dune part 1 again, which I haven't watched completely through for probably 18 months or more.
First of all, I get sick of critics who dock part 1 of stories simply because it is "part one". Why are you evaluating a film for something it's not? It's not SUPPOSED to be the full story, it should be measured for what it was trying to do. Like, are you a genius for spelling out the obvious and then penalizing a film for not being something else? Would you rather have a full length great novel adapted into a shitty 2.5 hour film, or would you rather have two films that tell the story wonderfully in 5+ hours?
I think Dune p1 does everything it needs to do, and elegantly. I'm kind of amazed it manages to pull off so much and still generating strong emotion throughout while only being part of the story. Villeneuve is always great at this. He manages (unlike Nolan or the Wachowskis or some other directors) at providing background information in ways that are incorporated into what's unfolding, and only what is necessary to set up the film. We learn things along with Paul, but it never feels like anything is being preached at the camera, and the one moment where we get what amounts to a page about the fremen and Arrakis from the encyclopedia, it's because Paul is literally using an AV encyclopedia/wiki.
The film itself has a unique appearance and feel to it.
Everything feels so large and spacious.
We quickly come to feel the right things about the various characters, even with not a lot of screen time. We get a really great snapshot (here and there) of Paul's dad, that really conveys his love for his son and for Jessica, a man who must be honorable because it's his character, but also operating under a cloud of doom because he knows he is being positioned for extinction. Rebecca Ferguson is so fully a member of the
Bene Gesserit and also a mother, you can't really separate them -- she swings between deep love and fear for her son, while also breaking with her order to just have him and then train him to be this mythic figure. Duncan Idaho is a gallant fighter with passion and flair who loves the Duke and his family; Gurney Halleck is just as loyal but he's a dour and fierce realist.
While people like Lucas just can't write political intrigue to save their lives, this story is all boiled down to the essentials without getting caught up in the trivialities, and it's very easy to follow. The planet is being exploited by the Emperor and Harkonnen, with the Fremen considered pests on their own land; Atreides has gotten too strong for their own good but is too honorable (and also not wanting to be accused of treachery) to refuse the Emperor's command, so they've been ordered into a weak position to both fail and be vulnerable, to remove them as a threat... and I'm not even sure the Emperor isn't considering a way to undermine the Harkonnen as well once their usefulness is ended, less their wealth make them an unstoppable force. It doesn't have to explain the intricacies of trade, it captures the broad strokes of the political moves on what feels like a personal and understandable level without a lot of talk.
The story does a lot of set up but also feels interesting in itself, as the plotting unfolds, and there are some epic battles, important plot scenes, scary moments, and all culminating in Paul leaving his child self behind and winning a place among the Fremen. Even with a lot of the story feeling like positioning, it still has its own arcs that it accomplishes and is no less interesting to watch.
edit: I also need to say, this thing is just the worst.
Is it a spider, or is it a human? Now we know.
screenrant.com