Filled with extravagant visuals, instrumental soundtracks and actors who are the current heartthrob of almost every teenager, the long awaited movie “Dune” released on online streaming service HBO Max on Oct. 21 and came to theatres the following day. With a 165 million dollar budget, the movie is part of a series written by Frank Herbert in 1965. Starring Timothee Chalamet (Paul Atreides), Zendaya (Chani), Jason Mamoa (Duncan Idaho) and Rebecca Fergurseon (Lady Catherine), the movie gained a lot of popularity before and after its release, with a 90% audience rating on Rotten Tomato because of its all-star cast. 

The main attractions from the cast are Zendaya and Chalamet who capture the attention of Gen-Z. Zendaya, one of the young Disney stars that the generation grew up with, has been taking up roles in hit films, such as “Spiderman Homecoming” and “Euphoria,” creating a craze of fans that surround her. A similar fixation is seen for Chalamet on different social media platforms since his roles in “Call Me By Your Name” and “Lady Bird.” The enthusiasm for “Dune” mainly revolves around the popularity of the actors that are part of the movie. 

The movie is set in a world aged by a million years. Different planets in this reality are controlled by houses which imitate kingdoms. The desert planet, Arrakis, is a prize fought over by the different houses because of its availability of the most powerful tool: spice. 

Arrakis is taken from the rule of the house Harkonnen and is given to the house Atreides, which is home to the heir of the throne Paul Atreides. Paul is the son of the ‘king’ of the house of Atreides, Duke Leto Atreides (played by Oscar Isaac) and his mistress Lady Catherine (played by Rebecca Fergurson). Paul is not only the heir to the house of Atreides, but also a sort of god/supernatural being who develops powers from Lady Catherine’s lineage. 

The music in the movie, composed by Hans Zimmer, creates the perfect environment for each situation. Songs such as “Visions of Chani” and “Sandstorm” add to the appeal of the visuals. The song “Visions of Chani” sets the scene for whenever Chani appears in  Paul’s dreams or visions, and the song adds to the mystery of the Chani’s appearance in the movie, which is an important part of the cinematography. It creates a dramatic environment that makes the viewer understand the importance of the character and the visions.

Although I am part of this craze for Zendaya and Chalamet, the movie was not the best use of two hours and 35 minutes. The storyline was hard to follow, not only because of the characters talking in small voices or the loud music in the background that made it hard to hear even in a theater, but also due to  the constant confusion caused by the plot holes. 

One major plot hole in the movie was the relationship between Duke Leto Atreides and his mistress, Lady Catherine. It was unclear the relationship they shared until the last half hour of the movie, which made many of the comments Lady Catherine made throughout the movie confusing. Many attribute these plot holes as ‘cliffhangers,’ which are necessary for the ‘mystery’ of the movie. However these plot holes are different from the cliffhangers. Unlike cliffhangers, the information left out in these plot holes are necessary to understand the flow of the movie.

Director Denis Villeneuve was able to understand that the books were too complicated to be compiled in a singular movie . The movie also contains marvelous visuals, pleasing music that aligns with every scenario, and graphics of giant sand worms and greek palace-like structures. However, the movie did not live up to its full potential. 

The second movie of the series is scheduled to release in 2023. I hope the second act breaks the stereotype of unsatisfactory sequels and fills the plot holes left by this movie. I expect it to help the viewer understand the context throughout the movie and capture their attention by doing so.