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Dune: Movie, book and scifi channel versions

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stardancer1	Dune: Movie, book and scifi channel versions	Lead	[-]
Posts: 5710 (04/03/02 02:26:41) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	Tags : None I haven't even seen the original series yet and now there's going to be a sequel for the next 2 books out. From scifi.com Susan Sarandon will headline the cast of the SCI FI Channel's upcoming miniseries sequel Frank Herbert's Children of Dune, based on Dune Messiah and Children of Dune, the second and third novels in Herbert's six-volume saga. Sarandon will play Wensicia, a ruthless princess eager to restore her deposed family to the throne, in the six-hour miniseries, which is the sequel to last year's Frank Herbert's Dune. Other cast includes returning players Julie Cox as Princess Irulan, Barbara Kodetova as Chani, Ian McNeice as Baron Harkonnen, P.H. Moriarty as Gurney Halleck and Alec Newman as Paul Atreides. New additions include Alice Krige (Star Trek: First Contact) as Lady Jessica, Edward Atterton as Duncan Idaho, Steven Berkoff as Stilgar, Jessica Brooks as Ghanima, Daniela Lunkewitz as Alia and James McAvoy as Leto II. John Harrison (Frank Herbert's Dune) adapted Herbert's books. Greg Yaitanes (The Invisible Man) will direct. Frank Herbert's Children of Dune is scheduled to begin production on April 3 in Prague, with a four-month shooting schedule, and is slated to air in 2003. ********************* It's been a long time since I've read Dune. In which book did Paul start turning into a worm and which book did Duncan get made into clones? Weren't those the later books? I didn't much care for the later ones, only the first 3.
vincehardy	Re: Dune	#1	[-]
Posts: 1299 (04/03/02 04:00:40) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	That stuff was just wrong, I can't believe they're adapting the other books. Maybe we should try to put Peter Jackson on the case...
Aquious	Re: Dune	#2	[-]
Posts: 2557 (04/03/02 05:54:27) Oscar winner Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	I read the Dune books once. At the beginning of college, so I don't remember the books much. I liked the movie made by David Lynch and thought I could follow it bacuse the books were still relatively fresh in my mind. I enjoyed the mini series more. It started filling in the gaps. At least overall it is much more comprehesible than Lynch's version... Jedi from the Land Between Two Rivers Moderator: Jedi Towers & Ben's Hut Colours fade, temples crumble, empires fall, but wise words endure.
stardancer1	Re: Dune	#3	[-]
Posts: 5710 (04/03/02 11:02:13) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	It's time to read Dune again for the fourth or fifth time. Let's put Peter Jackson on it, a great idea. ~ YOU MIGHT BE A REDNECK JEDI IF - You hear, "Luke, I am your father... and your uncle." ~
stardancer1	Re: Dune	#4	[-]
Posts: 5710 (03/16/03 12:21:49) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	This is on scifi in half an hour, then the premiere of Children of Dune follows. I'll be taping for 12 hours.
stardancer1	Dune series, part 1	#5	[-]
Posts: 5710 (03/28/03 05:50:06) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	I taped this and have seen enough to comment (am watching part 2 now). While it's an ok adaptation and probably much true to the book, I have one minor problem... the actors. I thought about it for a bit and decided how to phrase this and what was really bothering me. Most of them are British. It isn't that the British are bad actors, of course. Brits are excellent at drama, theater, comedy. But action? Look at the Saudakar and Fremen. They are positive wimpy. I remember my impressions of them from reading the books. Both were tough people. The Saudukar, the Emperor's army were ruthless and practically indestructable. Fremen, the desert people, were hardened from their lives on a desert planet and highly religious-like (read non-swerving from strict beliefs and beyond stubborn into that). Yet here we have a house Fremen who is startled and cries like a wimpy woman when a hunter seeker, aimed at Paul, comes after her. And I swear I saw a few overweight Saudakar. Whoever decided to call in any old extra to play a Saudakar doesn't get a doggie bone in my book. Willima Hurt's monotone delivery of his lines is AWFUL. It sounds worse than the 1984 version that Jürgen Prochnow did of Duke Leto. Why did they choose to copy that bad bit of acting and do worse? Actually, there are a few things in the original movie that were better that this version, like the worms. And the actor playing Paul this time around, Alec Newman is not too bad, if a little underplayed. He's Scottish, and apparently hides his accent well. The woman playing Lady Jessica is... a dog. Now, the only reason I point it out is that Jessica was suppose to be beautiful. Baron Harrkonnen even mentions her beauty. Not! And that make me think of the Bene Gesserits. Jessica here is also very servile and wimpy, not strong like the book. The Reverand Mother, the Emperor's seer, has balls, but she's weird although there may be something to that. Reverend Mother+Seer+Doesn't Mind Killing Male Children=Weird. I can go with that. There is also that awful costume that The Emperor's daughter appears in on the party on Arakis. It's a gown with plastic butterflies all over it. LOL! VERY bad taste, but I'll bet someone is proud of it. The rest, like the sets, machinery and such is good and since I know the story, it's easy to watch, not like the 1984 Dune which was a nighmare. This book deserved the mini series rather than 2 hours of a mass mess. A decidely British flair, and I don't mind this so much, it's entertaining enough, but I do think it's a bit on the boring side... Here is a link to Children of Dune if you're ready. **3/4 stars out of 5 so far
stardancer1	Re: Dune series, part 2	#6	[-]
Posts: 5710 (03/28/03 09:12:12) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	Much better. The Fremen life and Imperial political intrigues come into play and make this a much better played out 2 hours. The Fremen are seen more as they are in the book. The wimpy Fremen could have something to do with the difference between desert Fremen and the city ones, but still... The Fremen based action is quite good, but what happened to the sonics training? It's been almost 20 years since I've read the books, so anyone want to remind me how much sonics played in the book? Paul's visions are making more sense. In the frist part, I found his visions confusing, more because I thought they were handled in a way that didn't explain them enough. (Do people yet realize Paul is turning into a worm that is also part human and prophetic? When was that realized in the books?) *note That's Paul's SON that changes into a worm. The Fremen Reverand Mother said to Jessica, "I heard you were beautiful." Chani is wearing a pretty green outfit. What's with that and her crimped hair? Didn't see any other Fremen females wearing pretty colors. And since when do they have access to a hair crimper? I like the actress playing her, though, (Bára Kodetová). I love her lilting Czech accent. We get to see part of her breasts when she and Paul are out in the desert. They show Lady Jessica watching out a 'window' as they walk out together. I'm sure she knows her son is about to get it on with Chani. I find it interesting about women playing a back role to their men in this movie, but that's an old story when you are writing about houses and aristocracy. And speaking of privates, the Emperor's daughter, someone with guts from the beginning, plays slut to Feyd as he's in the bath. The Baron's precious nephew gets to show off his bum and the Princess finds out what she already suspected: that her father is involved in the fall of the House of Atreides even though he denies it. She also is trying to find out whether Paul (the one she is really interested in) and his mother are still alive. Smart girl worthy of being a ruler! Her outfits have dramatically improved, too. As a matter of fact, they are great! I have one comment about the blue eyes. They did the same luminous eyes in the 1984 version, but I think it looks more like they went through radiation treatments. It's not a big deal, but when I read the books, I imagined dull blue, more natural in the iris and a blue hue to the whites, notnot the shiny, radiating ones. Funny about the parallel to the modern middle east. Mmmmmm, worm vomit! * 1/2 stars out of 5
stardancer1	Re: Dune series, part 3	#7	[-]
Posts: 5710 (03/29/03 06:37:06) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	The actor playing the Padishah-Emperor Shaddam Corrino IV, Giancarlo Giannini sounds French even though he was born in Italy. His Saudakar wear black berets. I now know why they look wimpy. You know how the French are, make love not war? The Sadaukar are probably all trading recipes when they aren't killing children. Interpretation of queer floating boy Baron Harkonnen's conversation to his nephew Feyd, when Feyd tried to kill him: "Bad Dog! You tried to kill me! I taught you well!" Best LOL line of the whole thing comes from the Lady Jessica talking to her daughter Alia: "My children are NOT freaks!" Real life Middle East moment: "The women throw their babies at us!" Speaking of Alia, this one is a vast improvement over the 1984 Alia who talked in an annoying, overdubbed voice. Does Paul know if Arakis is turned into a green Oasis, like the Fremen hope, that the whole worlds stop. Water kills worms, if the worms are dead, there's no spice. No spice means no travel, no commerce. Arakis will truly be left alone. I'm not sure Paul realizes that one of his visions is telling him this. Why didn't the Lady Jessica have a daughter after she had a son? It would have been easy enough. Paul's ego revolves around his omniescent visions which makes him an obsessive megalomaniac. When he realizes he doesn't see everything, he chances drinking the water of life (dying worm vomit) to become the Kwisach Haderach. Paul is obviously destined to wander as a crazy man and then die because in reality he has no common sense (or perhaps he DOES realize). It's true of great leaders. They know how to rally the troops, but fail miserably in their personal lives. Paul's ability to avoid killing Stilgar in a ritual calling out of who's the leader is brilliant. He is now simply, "Your Duke." Which is really what he was to begin with. Lady Jessica finds out though that she can't mold her son into a replica of the father. She's tried throwing those, "Your father wouldn't have said that," lines at him and he rallies well by saying he is not his father. Well, nobody is ever anyone else. Jessica's learned a lesson in reality, which is another complaint I have about her. She's not enough Bene Gesserit and too much ordinary woman talking all the standard talk to her children. I expect more from a powerful woman who should be more perceptive and wise. She IS a Reverand Mother after all. You don't see the other RMs acting like she does. As an actress, her reaction to who her biological father is was very disappointing and bland. Why didn't she know? I realize she is a pawn, but she should be able to overcome more than what she does and be more than what she is. She really doesn't do much of anything important. Still... excellent series because you know this book would be harder than hell to duplicate on film. *** 1/2 stars out of 5

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