Dune Part 1: Revisited

Momnah Shahnaz comically revisits 2022’s Dune: Part 1, amid February’s release of Dune: Part 2, the second installation in Denis Villeneuve and Frank Herbert’s saga.

The first time I saw Timothée Chalamet on my screen was when I watched Little Women (2019) a few years ago, and was sucked in way too deep into Timothée Chalamet lore, including watching all the ‘Lil Timmy’ videos. Can you blame me after his ‘We’ve got to have it out’ speech? So watching him on screen again was something I was looking forward to. I was also looking forward to, and expecting to see the truly otherworldly sensation that is Zendaya because, in all honesty, I did not watch Dune (2021) when it came out, so you can imagine my disappointment when we only got to see her for approximately 7 minutes. Everyone could do with more Zendaya in their lives, and in my opinion, this movie could have used more of her too. However don’t shy away from watching yet! Other aspects of the movie make up for it. 

Initially, Dune was a novel by Frank Herbert, transformed into a movie by its director, Dennis Villeneuve. It received a 3.9 rating on Letterboxd. As a new lover of Letterboxd, that is where I ran to first before committing to the two-and-a-half-hour movie, and I read lots of the reviews that seemed to be very hung up on Chalamet’s character being named ‘Paul’. I suppose the fate of the universe depending on a ‘Paul’, does seem a bit anticlimactic, and not very mystical.

Dune is a sci-fi, action-packed adventure movie focusing primarily on politics, greed, and betrayal, and it takes place on the planet Caladan, taking viewers out of this world. It regards Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet), a young man who is gifted with powers he cannot begin to comprehend. However, his destiny plays a significant part in saving the future of his people. He is the heir to the noble family of Atreides, however, conflict breaks out between the House of Atreides and the House of Harkonnen over the control of ‘spice’ (no, not the ‘zombie drug’) which appears to be a valuable money-making asset and a generally powerful component. The movie experiences frequent loss, tension, and suspense.

I found the cinematography of the movie to be brilliant and, whilst I was watching; I was totally invested in the world that was created. The sets were well done (and really orange) as well as the costume designs matching the vibe of the world perfectly. 

In the movie, Paul frequently has dreams/visions about Chani (Zendaya), and finally, toward the end of the movie, they meet for the first time whereby Chani states ‘This is only the beginning,’ perfectly setting us up to go watch Dune 2, which aired in cinemas this Winter. I’d recommend running to buy your tickets because, in Dune’s future, I’m predicting a bit more Zendaya, at least more than 7 minutes’ worth. 

P.S. Paul’s recurring dreams about Chani are linked to his mystical forces, so can someone please psychoanalyse my recurring nightmares starring Megan Fox.

Catch Dune: Part 2 on digital streaming sites this month.

Words by Momnah Shahnaz