They actually are quite watchable as it does come closer to the book than Lynch's film. Again, they too are with their flaws. Some have complained that William Hurt didn't bring his A-game playing Duke Leto and Susan Sarandon's Wensicia being older than Irulan was a little ridiculous.
But the LOTR books were kind of legendary and much older than the Dune books. I mean things like references in Zeppelin songs. Anyway, the LOTR movies were a big risk that paid off, so it can happen.
Maybe it was different in Europe but I remember Dune fans saying it was the closest they got to the books and was better received by critics than the '84 movie... As far as audience goes, I wouldn't know.
They did two miniseries on the SciFi channel: Dune (covering the first book) and Children of Dune (covering Dune Messiah and Children of Dune). Content-wise it was good (like a lot of SciFi series) but the production values were pretty bad (again like most SciFi series).
There's plenty of time to market the original novel to LoTR, Harry Potter, Ice and Fire, etc fans. Whoever owns the novel rights should be coordinating with those who own the screenplay rights. Would only take a few hundred social media posts to whip up a frenzy. Dune is a great novel and it's not anywhere near the equivalent of expecting people to dig into War and Peace. Perhaps it's a good time for a forum poll asking, quite simply, have you read it?
Personally, I don’t like the movie or the mini series. The mini series completely misunderstands the books’ philosophy and looks like low budget crap and the lynch movie is just a mess. I’m weird tho, my favorite book from the series is God Emperor
The book is a masterpiece and it's doubtful a movie or even several movies can do it justice. But in the right hands, it could be great.
Yes, I began reading it after following knee surgery 12 months ago. 50 pages in and I didn't want to put the book down! Finished God Emperor of Dune recently, so two more to go... That all being said, I want to reread the original very soon! Also, there are two YouTube reviews I recommend checking out, how they tear Lynch's movie out, piece from piece. And they're quite hilarious in their own way. Search The Dom and The Book Was Better, with Dune tagged at the end, of course.
Denis confirms the script has been completed and that both films will be filmed separately. Probably a good idea as it would be believable to have young actors cast for Paul, Feyd and Chani. Maybe the 2nd film could be set from the 2 years that Paul and Jessica have been in hiding among the Fremen, and that the kids who do get cast will get to age a little between films too. That does depend on how long each film will be released though... Denis Villeneuve Provides Brief Update On His Dune Remake
With some free time gained due to an impending layoff I've started the process of re-reading the Dune books. I'm almost done the first book. I still think that this would have been better served as a TV series a la Game of Thrones but I'm looking forward to this nonetheless.
While Brian Herbert confirms that script revision updates are going well, shooting location scouting is also underway. Man, if Roger Deakins gets the gig, just imagine the cinematography for the film(s). Legendary Pictures is Actively Scouting Locations for 'Dune'
One would assume massive CGI used throughout, which has a way of overshadowing if not outright wrecking the natural cinematography. I suspect Deakins or someone of that caliber would be a mismatch for this project.
While the production values of the SciFi miniseries of Dune were quite low, the producers were quite astute in hiring Vittorio Storaro (Apocalypse Now, The Last Emperor) to be the cinematographer. His visuals are very good, although feeling a little stage-bound at times. The lack of location shooting does hurt, however, and the CGI (state of the art for TV in 2000, i.e. crap today) really hurts in a modern viewing. But the series DOES get a lot right, and all in all was a worthy effort for the time.
Denis Villeneuve is not a fan of green screen. He's going for as much practical effects as possible. He did have to take liberties on Blade Runner 2049 though, but only used them where necessary. I'm calling it now. Weta is going to be handling effects, miniatures etc. They will build models like they did with Blade Runner. They've worked with Legendary a number of times now too, so I'm keeping my fingers.
Are the Sci-Fi TV Dune and Children Of Dune available to stream in any US platform (Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, etc)?
With Villeneuve directing -- given the pacing of Blade Runner 2049 -- why do I think this has a chance of being the longest movie ever made?
You're more right than you think; back in the day, one of the first people that Dino DeLaurentiis approached about making Dune was none other than David Lean... who promptly turned it down. Dune is a sci-fi epic, but it's not Star Wars, it isn't an action-adventure; it has a stately manner that takes it's sweet time in telling a complex, layered, and intertwined story of feuding Houses, ancient prophecies, genetic bloodlines, dreams, science, religion, intergalactic politics, and some feckin' great big worms. I guess Lawrence of Arabia in space is a good example, but Dune is quite an esoteric work that is easy to see why it never penetrated the cultural consciousness in the same way that, say, The Lord of the Rings has. In that respect, Denis Villenuenve is the perfect choice for this... and even better that they're telling it over two enormous films. I'm very optimistic about this... but Dune has a way of defeating best intentions, so I'll just say that I hope either Villenueve has final cut on these films, and/or that Legendary are going to give him the freedom to do it the way he wants, according to his vision. We shall see...