Dune Messiah
RobRoy > March 21st, 2024, 12:09 PM
I greatly disliked the original "Dune" by Frank Herbert. The story concept and plot itself were interesting even fascinating, but the execution was so dry and boring, I've often joked that's how Herbert came up with the title of the book. To be fair, much was made of the book when it was presented to me: Since you loved "The Lord of the Rings" so much, you're REALLY going to love this! Sadly, that wasn't the case, but knowing that my expectations may have been misplaced, I did re-read the book some years later to make sure of my position on it. After all, there have been so many adaptations and attempted adaptations and my father loved the series. He took me to see the David Lynch film when it released, although he was fairy disappointed. After my second reading, I was also disappointed. While I could see the genius of Herbert - and he certainly is an incredibly intelligent author - I didn't enjoy the experience of how he presented his ideas, developed his characters, or advanced his plots to his readers.
What's that got to do with "Dune Messiah"?
Welp, since the David Lycnh adaptation in 1984, I've enjoyed just about every live-action of Herbert's work, and that was certainly the case with the latest "Dune Part 1" and more recently "Dune Part 2". The ending of that second installment, without giving away any spoilers, set up for the next story in Herbert's series to be filmed. Denis Villeneuve has said exactly that, although there's no script (yet) and there's been no greenlight announcement (also yet). I suspect that to be rectified shortly, as the film to date has made over $500 million. I was left wondering at the next step in the story, and since there's a sneak-peak at what Villeneuve might have in store for us, I went back to the source and have been reading "Dune Messiah".
While Herbert is definitely a better author in his second outing (and most authors, including myself, are), he is still Herbert, so his presentation is essentially the same. Instead of Paul surviving and thriving on Arrakis after the wholesale slaughter of House Atreides, we now have meeting after meeting after meeting where Paul laments the path that he's taken, that he's still on, and attempts to find some kind of salvation for himself and those he cares about. It's a kind of political intrigue that I felt paralleled, in many ways, the presentation we received from George Lucas' "The Phantom Menace" and it's sat with me in exactly the same way: I don't care and I don't know why I should.
Again, there is absolutely genuis in Herbert's work. The ideas are interesting and pull me along. I just wish they were presented in a way that I found equally interesting.
This will be the last installment of the Dune epic that I indulge. Frank Herbert is just not the author for me, and that's ok. If he's the author for you, that's also ok. I love, love, love that so many fans over the years have found something in this series, enough that we have not just one, but now three adaptations of the first book, which I have greatly enjoyed. I expect that I will enjoy the next version and the next after that!