What We Are Watching Vol. 20: January 2022

Frank Herbert’s future world epic returns in Denis Villeneuve’s adaptation of Dune.

In the year 10191, House Atreides is commanded by the Emperor to take over spice production on the desert planet of Arrakis. Secretly, rival House Harkonnen plots to attack and destroy Duke Leto Atreides and his family. Lady Jessica and her son Paul manage to escape into the desert only to face a new threat from enormous and deadly sandworms, and the Fremen, people indigenous to Arrakis.

I’ll get my rant out of the way first. Fans of this story will be disappointed to see the words “Dune, Part 1” appear on the screen at the beginning. Yes, though the film is two-and-a-half hours, it is only the first half of the story. It ends just when Paul and Jessica are captured by the Fremen after they escape from the Harkonnen attack. When will Part 2 come out? October 20, 2023! Devoted fans will be waiting another year-and-a-half from now to see the conclusion. I’d insert a few expletives here, but I want this to be a family-friendly review. Onto the good stuff…

This is a superb adaptation of Frank Herbert’s book. I remember going to the original movie back in 1984, not having read the book or even knowing anything about it, and coming away saying, “That was really cool! What happened?” After reading the book, I went to see it again and it instantly became one of my favorite movies, like ever. That version, directed by David Lynch, packs a huge story into just over two hours by moving quickly and leaving some things out. It’s a cult classic today.

Denis Villeneuve’s 2021 version will appeal to a wider audience. You’ll know what’s going on even without knowledge of the book. The best part though is the film’s visual and auditory beauty. It’s a feast for the senses, even if you watch it on a TV. The special effects are simply incredible with some of the most creative ships I’ve ever seen. The ornithopters are especially cool. The sound creates a true world scape. You’ll be emotionally engaged even without factoring in the actor’s performances, which are very good.

The Dolby Vision image represents the pinnacle of today’s video technology. Sumptuous CGI coupled with stunning production design equals something that’s demo-worthy for sure. Color is a bit muted which is appropriate given the ethereal quality of the story. Dynamic range is tremendous with highlights that almost blow out (but not quite) to shadows that will literally take your breath away with anticipation.

There are over an hour of bonus features including eight behind-the-scenes featurettes, five “film-books” talking about the different story elements, and three scene-analysis shorts.

The Great Escape has always been one of the really great movies. Master director John Sturges did this as his follow-up to the sublime The Magnificent Seven. It has a similar theme. A group of men working at a single purpose. In the Great Escape, it’s men trying to get out of a Nazi prison camp in Poland. It’s based on a true story, but only loosely.

The film has long been available on home video, including VHS, Laserdisc, DVD, Blu Ray, and most recently a Blu Ray from the Criterion Collection. This Kino Lorber disc is the first appearance of the film in 4K.

To my eye, it’s easily the best of the crop. While the film does not look up to the standard of motion pictures released over the last couple of decades, it looks like film, with grain, a wide dynamic range, and deep blacks. For reasons unknown, there was not an HDR pass done, and not a Dolby Vision pass either. Still, the film looks better than it ever has. Comparing the Criterion to this latest release the Criterion looks a bit too bright. This new release seems to get the blacks right, without an increase in noise. There are places where the film quality sags a bit. My guess is Kino Lorber had the best elements available, and the resulting film still looks just fine.

The Great Escape also sports a 5.1 audio mix along with a 2.0 uncompressed monaural mix. The 5.1 audio sounds robust, there is some deep bass, but I sensed some of the dialog was wandering around a bit. Still, I preferred the 5.1 mix to the 2.0 mix, mainly for Elmer Bernstein’s great score and some of the directional sound effects. Extras are plentiful, but not all are fresh. The movie comes with a second Blu-Ray disc which includes 2 hours of features, including the story of the man Steve McQueen’s character is based on. There’s also a documentary about the real escape from POW Camp Stalag Luft III that is the story the film is loosely based on. There are also 4 TV shorts voiced by Burt Reynolds about the marketing and creation of the film.

The main disc contains two commentary tracks, the first of which has been featured on previous home video releases. It’s hosted by author Steven Jay Rubin and includes comments from actors James Coburn, James Garner, Donald Pleasance, and other actors, and there are excerpts from a 1974 interview with Director John Sturges. The second commentary track features Rubin and filmmaker and historian Steve Mitchell, with lots of detail about the film and its history.

I would think most of our readers have seen this film several times in many home video incarnations, but I think even if you have an older version in your library this is the one to buy. This new 4K release is the best version by a wide margin. If you’ve never seen the film don’t miss it.