Dune is one of the most epic sci fi films I’ve ever seen in a cinema. Reminded me of the first film of the original Star Wars or Lord of the Rings trilogy. Having been bereft of truly epic cinema since 2019 and even then drowning in endless mediocre marvel movies, it was goosebump/gasp inducing to see a film on such a monumental scale, so strange and original and so ambitious. The cinematography, production design, locations, cast, costumes, visual effects are unlike anything I’ve ever seen in this genre before. But what really stood out to me was the score and sound effects, which were so booming, unnerving and soaring it took my breath away. I don’t know how they created those sound effects, utterly haunting. Denis Villeneuve after Arrival, Blade Runner 2049 and now Dune has solidified his reputation as arguably one of the greatest sci fi directors of all time. The incorporation of the very ancient architecture and sets with almost insect like futuristic technology ships and armour fills you with a sense of what the very very distant future might look like. Of all the sci fi films in the cannon Dune is set the farthest in the future over a thousands years from our time today. The scope and scale of Dune is unparalleled in recent cinema. And against this unbelievably epic backdrop comes my obsession and favourite actor of my generation Timothee Chalamet. An actor so intelligent and perfectly beautiful that sometimes he scares me when I watch him, one of the last true movie stars of our time. His perfectly chiseled face and piercing gaze on the big screen is as monumental and awe inspiring as the huge spaceships, sandworms and armies on screen. Though I have not read Dune I am familiar with its story and I know it is wildely considered the greatest sci fi series ever written. Where David Lynch failed with his ugly incoherent 80’s adaptation Villeneuve has epically succeeded. It’s a work of art. Perhaps one shortcoming is that as the first film in a trilogy the film hasn’t fully set up what the ultimate goal of the series is to be. Maybe that adds to the mystery, to be continued. In any case I am hooked and eagerly anticipate the next instalments. Dune is the kind of film cinephiles wait years to see and requires it be seen on the largest screen possible. It’s finally here and I’m so thankful. 10/10