Stepping through the doors of the TCL Chinese Theatre, with stars under my feet and metal dragons above my head, my excitement for the newest premiere escalated. The occasion: to be one of the first in the world to see the highly anticipated film, Dune. On a blockbuster scale, Denis Villeneuve, director of Dune, Arrival, Blade Runner 2049, and so on, has found the environment of expressing his obsession for the 1965 novel called Dune. When Villeneuve said, “I made this movie for myself,” he truly did not hesitate to not add many exhilarating parts of the film. Although filled with an astonishing cast, names such as Timothee Chalamet, Rebecca Furguson, Zendaya, and Iowa native Jason Momoa, Dune has fans going hungry in anticipation for action. As soon as the room darkened, many moviegoers fell into a deep sleep due to the slow-paced film. This illustrious setting heightened my hopes for the film but ultimately I was disappointed in Dune. 

This snail-like film allows for it to be summarized into one sentence: a young boy, Paul Atreides, needs to keep his planet afloat and somehow manage to survive a sandworm all in a span of 150 minutes. While the audience was baited with occasional glimpses of the sensational Zendaya, the overall inclusion of the young Hollywood star was little to none. Considering the number of public appearances and advertisements Zendaya took part in, I find it astonishing her $300,000 paycheck came from her appearance in only seven minutes of a two-and-a-half-hour film. Where might I find myself this good of a gig? 

In a CGI desert far far away…a parallel storyline between Dune and Star Wars may bring about a sensation similar to deja vu. Although Dune came first, I think the concept and plot of Star Wars were executed dramatically better. That franchise was more successful in thrilling audiences than it was at making them snore like Dune is. The Star Wars empire put both an average good vs evil plot and cliffhangers to use, enticing millions of fans to keep on coming back for more.

Additionally, the forming argument of the much shorter but equally action-filled 1984 version of Dune may have been too overloaded with too much of the book and not many unifying transitions within the film. Whereas the new rendition is split in two, in hopes to solve this conundrum. If it was not for advertisements previewing a two-part rendition, the movie itself was not keen on showing that there’s more to the story. If you happen to be a Zendaya-driven individual, you might want to consider watching Dune: Part Two, or possibly turn in the opposite direction and find authentic entertainment from her appearance in the 2010 hit sitcom, Shake it Up. 

Negatives aside, the authentic visuals within the cinematography and the diversity of languages allowed for some pleasing aspects of Dune. With a substantial amount of languages throughout the film, including those defined by finger movements or by using the voice, the diverse forms of speech did allow for entertaining and unexpected parts of the film. The voice is a fascinating concept that ultimately manipulates the receiver of an individual who has achieved a certain frequency when communicating. Also, the significant details of scenes regarding the setting of Dune created unique and lively visuals for moviegoers to thoroughly appreciate. The most valuable aspects of the film are the challenges Paul finds himself experiencing on the planet of Arrakis, filled with fear of sandworms and interactions with the Fremen. 

As the ending credits rolled, I recapped the minutes of my life that I will never get back. If you do find a sudden urge to see Dune for yourself, you might want to lower your expectations or bring along some caffeine to prevent any urge of dozing off.