The premiere of ‘Dune: part 2’ closes an important stage in the Paul Atreides saga, but as its ending indicates, there is much left to tell in Frank Herbert’s universe, and although the box office data suggests that we will get to see more adaptations, Denis Villeneuve has said that there is still time before we get to see them. Bad news for fans of the Warner Bros adaptation, but with hidden good news. There’s a three-part sci-fi miniseries based on the upcoming novels that you can watch on HBO Max and Filmin
It is the sequel to the 2000 adaptation of ‘Dune’ that collects everything that happens in the following novelsthe more concise ‘The Messiah of Dune’ (1969) and ‘Children of Dune‘ (1976). Directed by Greg Yaitanes and written by John Harrison, this new miniseries continues the epic saga of House Atreides on the desert planet Arrakis under the title of ‘Children of Dune‘ (2003). After the resounding success of the first, the creators of the series decided to continue the story and adapt the next two installments of the saga.
The first part is set twelve years after ‘Dune’ and would be the first thing we would see if the new adaptation is made, everything corresponding to ‘Messiah’ narrates the reign of Paul Atreides as emperor of the universe and his downfall orchestrated by the “conspiracies within conspiracies” of his numerous enemies. Having seized control of Arrakis, the desert world known for its valuable spice mix, Paul’s Fremen armies have waged bloody jihads to solidify their position, but challenges remain.
We find that the deposed Emperor Shaddam IV and his family are exiled to Salusa Secundus. His daughter, Princess Wensicia, plots the restoration of House Corrino to power with conspiracies and power struggles between the Bene Gesserit, the Space Guild, and the Tleilaxu, who plot together to overthrow Atreides’ reign. There are even Fremen rebels They don’t like how Paul’s terraforming project in search of “paradise” is disrupting Arrakis and their traditional way of life as they join the coven.
Fidelity and modesty
Condensing Herbert’s second novel, which is only half as long as ‘Dune’, into an hour and a half on screen, It seems more like a chamber piece than an epic war epic itself, and is limited above all to palace drama and stealthy political intrigue. Although much of the complex plots of the original text are lost, this brief adaptation preserves the essence of the story in an accessible episode that is not confusing and works like a shot in terms of pacing.
The second and third episodes properly cover ‘Children of Dune’ and take place several years later, following the rise of Paul’s children, Leto and Ghanima, focusing on the internal conflicts of Paul’s sister, Alia, and the continued turmoil. political and spiritual that continues to afflict Arrakis. They are not as satisfying from a narrative point of view nor as thematically powerful as Herbert’s original masterpiecebut they offer an unusual continuation of the story by destroying the myth of Muad’Dib and questioning the infallibility of a heroic figure.
With more room to breathe, the goings-on progress with dramatic and strange turns of events. Fans of the novel might be a little concerned about the way the miniseries portrays a pivotal moment in the story.The story, with the transformation of a character into a worm, an absurd moment that is resolved abstractly but that leaves many doubts about how Villeneuve could do it on the screen and not make it nonsense.
‘The House of the Worm’
Lady Jessica, here is an imperial Alice Krige, who brings a wise maturity to the role that suits the character very well, and among the cast members, we have a deliciously Machiavellian Susan Sarandon as Wensicia, James McAvoy and Jessica Brooks as the children of Paul, Leto and Ghanima, who forge a deep bond on the screen that gives off an incestuous aroma in keeping with the esotericism of these sequels, scored with class by Brian Tyler, following a different vocal and instrumental “ethnic” soundscape from that of Hans Zimmer, but with other solemn cuts that give a certain feeling of nobility.
There is a more mature visual approach than what television series once offered that had not yet consolidated the golden age of television, with an inspired aesthetic but with problems similar to that of its predecessor in its aged visual effects, CGI sandworms and general shots of the Atreides palace on Arrakis that now would not pass as previous sketch of digital matte painting. It’s not all that cinematic in conventional terms, but screenwriter John Harrison and director Greg Yaitanes make smart use of their choices.
The scripts for ‘Children of Dune’ successfully adapt the two novels to the screen and preserve the essential components of their respective stories, making them addictive and explaining well the world in which they take place. In any case, heThe ins and outs of the palace and the betrayals bring these installments closer to what we are used to seeing in ‘Game of Thrones’ or ‘The House of the Dragon’, where here instead of fire-throwers we have sand caterpillars and powers, resurrected characters and rebellions of the same caliber, so let’s not rule out that we end up watching the rest of the style adaptations on HBO from George RR Martin’s bloody palace soap operas.
