Dune 2021 and 2024
Dune 2021 and 2024
“Dreams are messages from the deep.”
“Power over spice is power over all.”
-Dune, Part 1 and Part 2
“Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse.”
-C.S Lewis, Mere Christianity
“Religion is a sign of an oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people."
-Karl Marx, from a critique on Hegel's Philosophy of Right
Very rarely do we get films that evoke such a sense of wonder and mystery as Dune. Director Denis Villeneuve etches his passion for this Frank Herbert sci-fi rosetta stone Into our ocular nerves with depth and richness. Dune enthralls, bringing to mind the large-scale biblical epics of the 1950s and '60s. Its vistas are vast. and its people emblematic of long forgotten races. These films are a snapshot of the popular conception of antiquity housed in a marvelously unique take on the cosmos, and the planets that are spread throughout its stars.
Biblical allusions intermingle with the sweeping sands of Arrakis with ease and fluidity. Though, as always these mirages are not as they appear. They are counterpoints to emphasize Dune’s richly layered political structure. A politic born out of the religious extremism found at its core. Dune takes the idea of a religious messiah and turns it on its head, using it as a weapon of supplication rather than a means of salvation or freedom. This move however, is not a parlor trick, a pulling over of the eyes solely to subvert your expectations. Instead, it's a narrative conclusion. A natural outgrowth of the film's line of questioning.
Though Dune never stays in a mode of polemics. It is far less an argument against religion and faith, than it is a deeply engaged narrative exploration of C.S Lewis's classic messiah trilemma, liar, lunatic, or Lord. Dune is a religious thought experiment that is more interested in asking questions than in tearing down belief systems. Perhaps paradoxically it's depth is what keeps it from devolving into anti-religious sentiment. The world of Dune is as broken and fractured as our own. Yet, it breathes with lungs all its own. Its cultures are dense and rich, its peoples lively, and at the same time deeply flawed. So, its use of faith as a vehicle for conflict, sadly comes across as natural, if not inevitable. Add to this the Marxian view of religion as an opioid of the masses and you have a potent mixture of religious extremism and political manipulation.
Dune is a striking testament to the power of faith and its horrific ability to be misused and misunderstood. Director Denis Villeneuve and his team open our eyes to the mesmerizing intoxication of Dune. Asking us the question: liar, lunatic or Lord? Whatever the answer, these films are a journey well worth taking.
Dune Part 1: Rated PG-13 for sequences of strong violence, some disturbing images and suggestive material
Dune Part 2: Rated PG-13 for sequences of strong violence, some suggestive material and brief strong language.
I found Denis Villeneuve's two-part adaptation of Dune to be thought-provoking, visually enthralling and thematically rich. I hope in some way you do too.
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