{"id":157012,"date":"2021-12-02T12:00:23","date_gmt":"2021-12-02T01:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/?p=157012"},"modified":"2021-12-17T12:18:21","modified_gmt":"2021-12-17T01:18:21","slug":"the-dune-movie-is-finally-out-heres-what-you-need-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/2021\/12\/02\/the-dune-movie-is-finally-out-heres-what-you-need-to-know\/","title":{"rendered":"The Dune movie is finally out! Here’s what you need to know …"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Dune<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The huge new adaptation of Frank Herbert\u2019s essential sci-fi classic, Dune<\/a><\/strong><\/em>, arrives in Australian cinemas today. This new film will mark the third time the book has been adapted, first in 1984 with David Lynch\u2019s infamous version, and then the Sci-Fi channel did a half decent job with a TV mini series in the early 2000s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, you may be wondering, what’s the deal?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is Dune <\/em>about?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Dune <\/em>is set in the far distant future, when humanity has expanded into the stars, and powerful family houses battle for control of resources in a huge empire. The only way to travel between the stars is with the use of navigators, beings who can predict the near future and can therefore accurately calculate the path for a ship to safely cross the light years between planets. What gives navigators these special powers? A resource called \u201cspice\u201d, which exists on only one planet in the known universe, the sandy desert planet of Arrakis, also known as Dune. Think of it as part Star Wars, part Game of Thrones, but bigger than both combined.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Dune
Timothee Chalamet and Rebecca Ferguson in Dune<\/em> (2021).<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The Dune books<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Now when you look at the Dune books, there are seemingly thousands of them, so let me break it down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Frank Herbert\u2019s initial run of Dune novels was followed years later by his son Brian and collaborator Kevin J Anderson, who have written a long series of prequels, sequels and spin-offs set in the Dune universe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The core Dune saga<\/a><\/strong> comprises:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dune<\/a>
Dune Messiah<\/a>
Children of Dune<\/a>
God Emperor of Dune<\/a>
Heretics of Dune<\/a>
Chapterhouse: Dune<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

These were then followed up by two novels by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson, written and published after Frank Herbert\u2019s death, which tie up the main storylines of the core Dune saga:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hunters of Dune<\/a>
Sandworms of Dune<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Dune
The giant sandworm of Arrakis, from Dune <\/em>(2021).<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

By this time, Brian Herbert and Kevin J Anderson were already deep in the Dune universe, having written two prequel trilogies:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prelude to Dune, set immediately before the core Dune saga comprises:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dune: House Atreides<\/a>
Dune: House Harkonnen<\/a>
Dune: House Corrino<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And Legends of Dune, set 10,000 years before the core Dune saga comprises:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Butlerian Jihad<\/a>
The Machine Crusade<\/a>
The Battle of Corrin<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Obviously, the Dune <\/em>backstory can seem fairly intimidating and complicated. There\u2019s a lot of lore, thousands of years of history, a huge cast of characters. Happily, you don\u2019t need to delve too deeply into it to get a grounding in it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Dune <\/em>is a masterclass in world building, and once you\u2019re a mere 100 pages into the first novel, you have a crystal clear idea of the world, the characters, the stakes, and how everything interrelates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019d recommend reading the first book, and if you find that you enjoyed it, the rest of the Frank Herbert novels are worth it, although they get progressively more insane as they go on. The \u201cexpanded universe\u201d of Dune novels aren\u2019t for the faint of heart, and are really only for uber fans who can\u2019t get enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This new film only covers the first half of Dune<\/em>, with a second film that covers the second half (and hopefully some of Dune Messiah<\/em>) due in a couple more years (provided Dune <\/em>pays off).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

P.S. – if you want to really <\/em>get insane with Dune<\/em>, I cannot recommend enough a documentary called Jodorowsky\u2019s Dune<\/em>, which maps out an insane Italian film director\u2019s truly batshit abandoned adaptation of Dune<\/em>. We are both extremely lucky and extremely unlucky that it never got made!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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