Makers of "Dune" mini-series keeps their promise

The lengthy list of movies ranging in quality from really bad to mediocre attests to the difficulty of translating a science fiction or fantasy novel to film. Peter Jackson wisely chose not to try and condense The Lord of the Rings into one movie, and most of us hope that means the finished product will be at least reasonably close to the original, despite the bow to Hollywood sensibilities with the addition of a more developed love story between Aragorn and Arwen.

Very few people will argue, either, that Ridley Scott's Bladerunner isn't a fine example of an SF film, nor that Stanley Kubrik's The Shining isn't a horrific journey into one man's madness. Those partial to the original literary works on which those movies were based, though--and for The Shining that includes the author--know that some rather important themes were missing in the film versions.

When David Lynch first undertook to convert Frank Herbert's multi-faceted novel of the far-distant future, Dune, to film, he began with the best intentions of trying to maintain the various complex elements that have made the book a classic. Unfortunately, he had to cram those elements into a length suitable to theatrical exhibition, and therein lay the seeds of doom. The result, while visually exquisite, was philosophically flawed--the basic story was there, but the political conniving and religious undercurrents were given short shrift. Lynch's Dune ended up a poor shadow of Herbert's original work.

John Harrison knew that when he first conceived of re-making Dune.

"I always felt that the movie version had not been [fulfilling]," he told Sci-Fi Entertainment magazine, "and that we had an opportunity to do a more accurate adaptation of the book."

The result of Harrison's efforts, which included writing the screenplay as well as directing, aired for the first time Dec. 3, 4 and 5 on the Sci-Fi Channel after at least a year of trailers and teasers and general tormenting of the fan base.

All is forgiven--Frank Herbert's Dune is a masterpiece, a glowing example of what television can be if those responsible for filling its time slots care enough to do it well and of how it allows translation of book to film in a way that preserves the best of the source without losing any of the magic only the medium can produce.

Visually, the production is stunning. Using the entire battery of special-effects capabilities, Harrison and production designer Miljen "Kreka" Kljakovic have re-created the planet Arrakis in a way that gives the entire mini-series an incredible authenticity while allowing award-winning cinematographer Vittorio Storaro to apply artistic concepts that would be impossible had they filmed on location. Just as in Herbert's books, the planet becomes a character rather than just a background, a vital component of all that occurs.

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