Dune: Extended Edition Heresy

[mpompey]

I know I'm about to commit Dune heresy but here goes.

I don't like the Extended "Alan Smithee" Edition of Dune.

Ah, that feels better! This Tuesday saw the release of another edition of Dune on DVD. This time with both the Theatrical Release and the "Extended Alan Smithee Edition". The extended edition had previously only shown on TV, like SciFi Channel or USA Network. However, during all this time I'd never seen it. Each time, I was catching it at the beginning and I wanted to see it from the beginning.

Well I finally saw it. I guess I made myself the victim, by building it up so much in my mind. As I was watching it Tuesday night, it was like I was watching a student film editor's class project. Un-synchronized speech, scenes re-used and out of context. I swear I must have seen the Harkonnen Landing scene on Arrakis used five times, in this movie.

I loved the Theatrical Edition, I also loved the books too. To me they can exist in the same universe of my mind. Similar to the LOTR films and books. Or like roast chicken and bbq chicken. They're both different and good.

Anybody else have any thoughts?

 

[jeffsg4mac]

I partially agree, I really liked some of the extra footage but some things needed to be trimmed as well. I liked the prolog but the voice overs with everyone thinking aloud got to be annoying. Also, now that I see again after a few years, the toto soundtrack sucks. This movie suffers from a bad musical score. They should have made a new one with no rock music. I was a little let down too.

The weird thing is I have the sort of the opposite opinion of Legend. I love the extra footage and think it is a better movie because of it, but I hate the classical score. I prefer the tangerine dream one. It is more moody and sets a more foreboding tone.

 

[racquetman]

I watched Dune a long time ago when I was really young. I watched it again yesterday. I just don't get some of these sci fi movies that people rave about. I like sci fi. I thought Dune was horrible. I also thought Serenity was horrible (another movie many thought was great).

Dune has so many plot holes and inconsistencies that I could barely focus on watching the movie. Then there are the horrible special effects (which I can forgive because the movie is dated) and the terrible soundtrack (which there is no excuse for). Each to his own I guess.

 

[j_garcia]

As a MOVIE there are plot holes, because you are only getting about half the story in the movie. I bought, but haven't watched the extended edition, so this may not bode well. I enjoyed the theatrical version quite a bit, but the movie is a bit slow and cumbersome. To me it suits sci-fi to a tee; sci-fi drama, not sci-fi action.

I feel the same way about Legend. I like the European cut, but I vastly prefer the Tangerine Dream score over the Goldsmith score.

"I must not fear. Fear is the mindkiller."

 

[j_garcia]

Anyone see Donnie Darko and then watch the new version? Most people say they prefer the theatrical release also.

 

[furrycute]

The 1984 Lynch movie is far better than the travesty of a TV series made by Scifi.

I enjoyed the 1984 Dune immensely, and I still do, after having watched it for like 10 times already. And the score, it's breathtaking.

I also read some of Herbert Frank's Dune series book. The oiginal Dune book is frankly not that well written. It wasn't so much the plots that weren't fleshed out, it was the delivery, the wrting style, they felt amateurish to me. The later Dune books didn't hold my interest either, again the writing style isn't that good, and the plots got a bit confusing as the books progressed. But I finished reading most of the series because I wanted to find out what happened in the Dune universe.

 

[mpompey]

To me the series on the SciFi channel is just homage to the 84 film and books. Not a decent replacement for either one.

For me, I was first introduce to the universe of Spice through the 84 film. Until then I had never read the books. So naturally when I went to the source material for the books, my mind filled in the images from the actors and scenes from Lynch's movie. I have friends of mine that did it the other way, books first then movie. For most of them, the film is a travesty to Herbert's work.

Frank HErbert's books are a tough nut to crack. His son, Brian Herbert has written two sets of prequel trilgoes that deal the history of the Dune universe before the books. They are written in an easier flow, more akin to Ben Bova rather than Frank Herbert's style. Give those a try you might like them.

The 1984 Lynch movie is far better than the travesty of a TV series made by Scifi.

I enjoyed the 1984 Dune immensely, and I still do, after having watched it for like 10 times already. And the score, it's breathtaking.

I also read some of Herbert Frank's Dune series book. The oiginal Dune book is frankly not that well written. It wasn't so much the plots that weren't fleshed out, it was the delivery, the wrting style, they felt amateurish to me. The later Dune books didn't hold my interest either, again the writing style isn't that good, and the plots got a bit confusing as the books progressed. But I finished reading most of the series because I wanted to find out what happened in the Dune universe.

 

[xboxweasel]

I too bought the Extended Edition of dune. I've never heard of it, it was relatively cheap for an extended edition release. Two nights ago I watched it. I thought it was a joke. The extra footage was bad (lip sync issues, scenes being reused over and over, and cartoon stills).

I guess they were right to label the DVD as:

Extended Edition
DUNE
A place Beyond Your Dreams. (read as nightmare) A Movie Beyond Your Imagination. (I never imagined it could be this bad)

 

[Jedi2016]

There's a reason why Lynch took his name off of that cut.. he wanted nothing to do with it.

I bought it bootleg off of Ebay a couple years ago. The guy mistakenly sent me three copies of it. And I still felt ripped off. Not because it was a bootleg, which I knew, but because it was so asstastic. I much prefer the original theatrical cut, even with it's flaws.

 

[mpompey]

Jedi, I laughed when I read that. "3 copies and still I felt ripped off"... I love it!

Who put the Smithee cut together?