31 August 2021

Review: Dune Ltd Ed UHD

Blu-ray: Dune (1984)

Where do you begin with an iconic marmitian (as in marmite – as in you hate it or love it) film such as Dune?

Those who love it know the story, the haters don’t care (much like Mr 60MW thinking Lord of the Rings is a bunch of men walking across fields for 9 hours). Then there’s the book, favourite of hippies back in the day (along with Gormenghast), dense, long, but utterly entertaining.

Then there were the many directors.

In 1974 Alejandro Jodorowsky was hired to direct and he planned to cast Surrealist artist Salvador Dalí, in the role of Emperor Shaddam IV, and Orson Welles as Baron Vladimir Harkonnen. In the ultimate nepotism Paul Atreides was to be played by Jodorowsky’s son, Brontis Jodorowsky. Just to finish off the music would be composed by Pink Floyd.

Jodorowsky set up pre-production, including the drawings of Chris Foss, and H. R. Giger. Author of Dune Frank Herbert travelled to Europe in 1976 to find that $2 million of the $9.5 million budget had already been spent in pre-production, and that Jodorowsky’s script would result in a 14-hour movie. This production collapsed when no film studio could be found willing to fund the movie to Jodorowsky’s terms.

The rights were then sold to Dino de Laurentis, who hired Ridley Scott, who left leaving the way open finally for David Lynch.

That in itself is worthy of a film.

Now I don’t think Lynch’s Dune is terrible, as it does follow the book, and all the actors for me, are perfect for their parts. Kyle Maclaclin IS Paul Atriedes for me.

So rather than talking about the film, let’s talk about the Arrow Films release.

This is a 4k restoration from the original negative and it’s never looked so beautiful. Yes there are some dodgy effects in this film, but who cares, it just adds to the overall charm of the piece…especially now that you can see them even more clearly!

The extras are incredible and plentiful (as usual from Arrow), from the commentaries to vintage pieces.

So my 2 complaints about this package are –No NEW interviews from any of the stars, and again nothing from Lynch (he apparently refuses to discuss Dune), but the biggest (for me) let down was the decision by Arrow not to include The Sleeper Must Awaken: Making Dune, a brand new feature-length documentary by Ballyhoo Motion Pictures which was to include the making of the film, and featured dozens of new and archive interviews with cast and crew including some of Sean Youngs archive ‘’on set’ footage. This was the big draw for me, and I along with several people I know, were really looking forward to seeing it (perhaps more than the film itself!).

4K ULTRA HD LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS:

Brand new 4K restoration from the original camera negative
60-page perfect-bound book featuring new writing on the film by Andrew Nette, Christian McCrea and Charlie Brigden, an American Cinematographer interview with sound designer Alan Splet from 1984, excerpts from an interview with the director from Chris Rodley’s book Lynch on Lynch and a Dune Terminology glossary from the original release
Large fold-out double-sided poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Dániel Taylor
Six double-sided, postcard-sized lobby card reproductions
Limited edition packaging with reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Dániel Taylor

DISC ONE – FEATURE & EXTRAS (4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY)

4K (2160p) UHD Blu-ray™ presentation in Dolby Vision (HDR10 compatible)
Original uncompressed stereo audio and DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround audio
Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
Brand new audio commentary by film historian Paul M. Sammon
Brand new audio commentary by Mike White of The Projection Booth podcast
Impressions of Dune, a 2003 documentary on the making of the film, featuring interviews with star Kyle MacLachlan, producer Raffaella de Laurentiis, cinematographer Freddie Francis, editor Antony Gibbs and many others
Designing Dune, a 2005 featurette looking back at the work of production designer Anthony Masters
Dune FX, a 2005 featurette exploring the special effects in the film
Dune Models & Miniatures, a 2005 featurette focusing on the model effects in the film
Dune Costumes, a 2005 featurette looking at the elaborate costume designs seen in the film
Eleven deleted scenes from the film, with a 2005 introduction by Raffaella de Laurentiis
Destination Dune, a 1983 featurette originally produced to promote the film at conventions and publicity events
Theatrical trailers and TV spots
Extensive image galleries, including hundreds of still photos

DISC TWO – BONUS DISC (BLU-RAY)

Beyond Imagination: Merchandising Dune, a brand new featurette exploring the merchandise created to promote the film, featuring toy collector/producer Brian Sillman (The Toys That Made Us)
Prophecy Fulfilled: Scoring Dune, a brand new featurette on the film’s music score, featuring interviews with Toto guitarist Steve Lukather, Toto keyboardist Steve Porcaro, and film music historian Tim Greiving
Brand new interview with make-up effects artist Giannetto de Rossi, filmed in 2020
Archive interview with production coordinator Golda Offenheim, filmed in 2003
Archive interview with star Paul Smith, filmed in 2008
Archive interview with make-up effects artist Christopher Tucker

Review by Tina from a disc kindly supplied by Arrow Films via Fetch Publicity.