We were waiting for the first trailer of the
Dune
adapted by Denis Villeneuve (Sicario,
Premier contact, Blade Runner 2049
) on a firm footing, knowing that the first adaptation of Frank Herbert's masterpiece, by David Lynch released in 1984 was was silted up in the desert of pitfalls and jeers from a mad Alexandro Jodorowsky that his sci-fi blockbuster project was stillborn in the late 1970s.
Read also: The new adaptation of
Dune
unveils its first image with Timothée Chalamet
We thus discover the first images of an adaptation that has come a long way.
Adapted from the cult saga of Frank Herbert published in 1965 (which has since become the best-selling science fiction novel in the world), this project takes up the story of Paul Atréides, son of Duke Leto Atréides who will be brought to reign over the planet Arrakis.
Betrayed by Emperor Shaddam IV, the Atreides will rely on the young man to reconquer the planet Arrakis (otherwise called Dune), and from which comes a commodity as rare as it is precious called "Spice".
As Denis Villeneuve is a magician who was able to pull off the sequel to a cult film such as
Blade Runner
, it is hoped that he will once again perform some magic tricks with
Dune
, whose cinematographic transposition has long seemed impossible. .
From the first images of this first trailer, we can't help but breathe.
Relief seems to be in order.
We discover Timothée Chalamet in the role of the young Paul Atréides.
His first words take up the phrases from Herbert's novel:
“Something is happening in me.
Something is awakening and I have no control over it ”
.
Chaste kiss
In an atmosphere saturated with light, a golden, almost sandy photo shows us a chaste kiss between Zendaya and Chalamet.
But where Denis Villeneuve scores points, it is in the following sequence where he reveals the ordeal of the box of suffering, to which the young man is forced to submit to the priestess Bene Gesserit.
This crucial streak was already present in
Lynch's
Dune
, as Kyle MacLachlan played Paul.
The images show above all that Villeneuve has seized the universe of Frank Herbert and that he gives it a new dimension.
The setting is superb.
The desert is vast.
The worm is currently only suggested ...
But the final touch, which shows how deeply the Canadian director has immersed himself in his subject matter, comes where we least expect it: the soundtrack features an iconic Pink Floyd track from an iconic psychedelic album. The Dark side of the moon released in 1974.
Read also: The asteroid Jodorowsky shakes up French cinema
At this exact same time, Alexandro Jodorowsky was working hard on his own version of Dune.
He had had the avant-garde idea of inviting rock groups (Magma, Mike Oldfield, Tangerine Dream) to compose the music for his film-opera, and had thus turned to Pink Floyd.
Moreover, in his diary, the director of
La Montagne sacrée
tells that at the time "the group was so successful that almost everyone considered it an impractical idea."
However, Jodo leaves for London and meets the group in the legendary studios of Abbey Road.
Artistic syncretism
"
They were recording
Dark Side of the Moon
,
" Jodo recounts.
When I arrived, I did not see a group of great musicians performing their masterpiece, I saw four young guys devouring steak and chips.
In the name of Dune I was seized with a holy anger and I left slamming the door.
Surprised, David Gilmour ran behind me, apologizing and showing me the last mix of their record.
What ecstasy!
"
Denis Villeneuve therefore knows his classics: he was able to catch up with Pink Floyd 46 years later!
In this first trailer, he ends up associating the images of
Dune with
the soaring music of this legendary group.
The director thus comes full circle, from the unfinished project of Jodorowsky and Moebius to him ... through the unloved film by David Lynch ... What artistic syncretism!
We are impatiently awaiting the rest.