Unlock with Patreon
Dune (1984) (part 3 of 11)
Paul goes to see his father Duke Leto (played by Jurgen Prochnow), who talks more about how awesome Paul is. And Prochnow makes no attempt to hide his German accent, which makes Paul’s American accent sound pretty odd.
Apropos of nothing, Leto goes on about how change is necessary so that a person’s potential doesn’t “sleep” inside them, then he looks at Paul and says with complete seriousness, “The sleeper must awaken.” None of this is in the book, and when we get to the payoff for this bit, it really won’t be worth it. Lynch is having enough trouble cramming in the story that’s already in the book; why did he ever feel the need to give himself more to do?
After we fade out, Paul is mumbling in his sleep, “Arrakis. Dune. Desert planet.” Yes, that’s very helpful. He also sees Sting laughing and saying, “I will kill you,” and a woman saying, “Tell me of your homeworld, Usul.” Both of these vignettes are actually leading up to stuff that happens later, and that would be all well and good, except that Lynch just can’t resist also throwing in a bunch of completely random crap, like in every other dream sequence he’s ever done. And he’s only going to get worse about it later.
Paul’s mother Jessica (Francesca Annis) enters, thinking about a whole lot of stuff that means nothing to the newbies, though at least it’ll be explicated soon enough. She goes to the door and lets Mohiam in. End scene. Well, that had a point.
To read the rest of this article, support the Agony Booth on Patreon.
Ryan Lohner
Ryan lives in Sparta, New Jersey, a quaint little burg without much for kids to do except go to the movies. Thus began a lifelong love affair, as even back then he grew to love examining why a film worked, or didn't. He is a member of the Sigma Tau Delta English Honor Society, and currently studying for a Master's Degree in Library and Information Science. His hobbies include running, piano, and annoying people with that damn lowercase forum user name.
Latest Comments