Frank Herbert's Dune had turned into a sort of creative graveyard for filmmakers over the years, causing the beloved sci-fi novel to be labeled unadaptable. The first attempt was made by Alejandro Jodorowsky, who started his adaptation in 1974, working with artists including H. R. Giger, Chris Foss, and Jean "Moebius" Giraud for set and character designs, resulting in over 3,000 storyboard sketches.
<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/dunebd.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>In the year 10,191, the remote world of Arrakis is the only source for "Melange," or spice, which makes interstellar travel possible. When Duke Lito (Jurgen Prochnow) is murdered, his son Paul Atreides (Kyle MacLachlan) sets out to avenge his death by discovering the secret of the planet and uses its resources against his enemies in order to free the people from tyranny.
Less than three weeks after the Germans invaded France in May 1940, the British Expeditionary Force found themselves backed up against the English Channel. The evacuation that followed sought to rescue over 300,000 British and French troops using a combination of British warships and hundreds of “little boats.”
<IMG SRC="/images/archivesart/duplicity.jpg" WIDTH=200 BORDER=0 ALIGN=RIGHT>Former MI-6 spy Ray Koval (Clive Owen) is hired by a CEO (Paul Giamatti) to help steal industry secrets from a rival corporation. To Ray's surprise, the mole inside said corporation is none other than Claire Stenwick (Julia Roberts), who's duplicitous behavior five years earlier cost him his career. How did he get himself into this mess?
<I>Brad Pitt, Eric Bana, Orlando Bloom, Diane Kruger, Brian Cox, Sean Bean, Brendan Gleeson, Peter O'Toole. Directed by Wolfgang Petersen. Aspect ratio: 2.40:1 (anamorphic). 162 minutes. 2004. Dolby Digital 5.1 (English, French). Warner Brothers Home Entertainment 28411. R. $29.95.</I>