Before the premiere “Dunes” many people wondered whether Denis Villeneuve would make a mistake. Filmmakers have attempted to adapt Frank Herbert’s epic novel many times. The first one to try was the producer Artur P. Jacobs, who announced that he would do it in ten years. The producer died before his plans were realized. Then Alejandro Jodorowsky took up the task and wanted to cast Salvador Dalí in one of the roles. The Chilean director had ambitious plans. Herbert recalled that the script was as thick as a telephone book and the film would take between 10 and 14 hours. It’s no wonder that the producers canceled the project for financial reasons.
Then the adaptation rights went to the Italian producer Din De Laurentiis. Ridley Scott was supposed to be the director, but he completely lost his heart for this production after his brother’s death. De Laurentiis’ daughter suggested that David Lynch take over the film. He wasn’t too convinced about it himself. However, over time he changed his mind. “When I finished the book, I was stunned” – he recalled in an interview for Cinefex in 1985. After many difficulties, the film was released in cinemas at the end of 1984. Although today it is considered a cult work, critics at the time left no stone unturned in Lynch’s film.
Some wrote directly – “Dune” is a book that cannot be adapted to the big screen. Therefore, when reports about Denis Villeneuve’s plans appeared, another flop was predicted. Although he had already achieved artistic successes, this was not for many “Dune” was a downright cursed project. However, the Canadian director has once again proven that he is the master of contemporary sci-fi cinema. The second part of him “Dunes” it’s just hitting theaters and it’s already being called “masterpieces”.
Denis Villeneuve was born in 1967 in the small town of Bécancour, Canada. The parents of the future artist led a quiet life. His father was a notary, and his mother took care of the house and five children. Denis is the oldest of the siblings. He was fascinated by cinema from an early age. He was already attending school when the film that changed the face of cinema premiered. The original trilogy “Star Wars” had a huge impact on young Denis, who created his first short films while still in high school. He received a nickname from his friends “Spielberg”.
Villeneuve is a great fan of science fiction, which is visible in his works. Despite his fascination with cinema, he chose science during his studies. However, the passion for creating won and he switched to film studies. In the early 1990s, he started making his own films “serious” movies. In 1991, he received a Radio-Canada award for reporting. In the following years, he worked on film episodes and music videos. In 1998, he made his feature-length film debut “August 32 on Earth”was presented during the Cannes Film Festival in the section “Un regard certain”. The film was also entered to represent Canada in the Oscar race. Two years later, his film “Maelstrom”also had this chance.
The ambitious director spent the next years… recording commercials and short films. In 2009, he returned with a film “University of Technology”, in which he talked about a real college shooting that took place in Montreal in 1989. For this film he received an award at the Toronto International Film Festival. A year later he received another statuette. “Cinder” was based on the devastating play by Wajdi Mouadawa. “I realized that I was working with very strong material. This art is a masterpiece” Villeneuve said in an interview with CBC News. The film was nominated for an Oscar for a foreign language film, and its director began his adventure with Hollywood.
Each of his subsequent films was a success. In 2013, two of his productions were shown in cinemas – “Maze” and “Enemy”. It got really loud after its premiere “Sicario”. The film starring Emily Blunt, Benicio del Toro and Josh Brolin was nominated for 3 Oscars, 3 BAFTA awards and the Palme d’Or in Cannes. Production “A new beginning” returned to the sci-fi theme. Critics expressed their admiration, and some called the film the best production about aliens in years. And this time it was appreciated by the American Film Academy. “A new beginning” was nominated in eight categories. Ultimately, it won the statuette for best sound editing.
His next film won two Oscars – “Blade Runner 2049”. The first part did even better “Dunes”. A film that seemed impossible to make scored six “golden knights”. However, before the film hit theaters, the makers had to overcome many obstacles, including the pandemic. The film’s release date was postponed several times. “The biggest obstacle to finishing ‘Dune’ on time is editing. I thought it would be easy to do it remotely” – Villeneuve admitted in one of the interviews.
After the first announcement of the film, there was no shortage of criticism. Malcontents complained about special effects and changes compared to the book. “I saw the trailer. It was implemented very efficiently. However, we see that it is an industrial cinema and that it cost a lot of money. But for this to happen, it will have to pay off financially. And that’s where the problem lies. There are no surprises here. The movie looks identical to all other movies. Its form, shape, lighting, acting – it’s all predictable” – said Alejandro Jodorowsky, quoted by a French magazine “LePoint”. David Lynch did not avoid questions about the new film adaptation. “My interest in ‘Dune’ is zero. This is a heartbreaking memory for me” – the legendary director cut off the topic.
However, Denis Villeneuve showed what he is capable of. Critics and viewers left the cinema delighted. “Long awaited, postponed several times, arousing imagination and hope for a solid cinema and even something more, the film ‘Dune’ directed by Denis Villeneuve is finally coming to our screens. Basically, one thing can be said – it was worth waiting so long. The film adaptation of the first book of Frank Herbert’s literary work has all the arguments to delight the viewer, take him over unconditionally, transporting him to another dimension, another reality, another world.” – wrote Artur Cichmiński in a review for Interia.
Second part “Dunes” It’s just hitting theaters and has already been hailed as a masterpiece. From the first reviews we can conclude that the creators have fulfilled the expectations placed in them, perhaps even more than that. Website reviewer “FilmSpark” calls the other one “Dune” magnum opus director and “the most important epic sci-fi production of this generation”. Steven Weintraub also did not hide his admiration “Collider”. According to him, the film could be even longer. Mike Ryan from Uproxx admitted that he wasn’t a fan of the first part, but the second one is “phenomenal” and “one of the best science fiction films he has ever seen”.
Christopher Nolan has also seen the film. “I guess it won’t be an exaggeration to put it this way: if the first ‘Dune’ is ‘A New Hope’, the sequel is like ‘The Empire Strikes Back’, my favorite part of ‘Star Wars'”. I think it’s an incredibly exciting expansion of everything we saw in the first film” – confessed the creator “Inception”.