“Dune” instead opens with a more immediate prologue. Paul (Timothée Chalamet) dreams of Chani (Zendaya), who explains the history of Arrakis; how the brutal Harkonnens occupy the planet for its spice mines (space travel fuel), leaving her people — the native Fremen — marginalized. This was the better choice; the mythology of “Dune” is already complex, so when introducing it to the audience, it is better to narrow the story’s scope.
From a logistical standpoint, the flourishes of the finalized opening (the Fremen and Harkonnen costumes, the CGI models of spaceships, etc.) are ones that would be used throughout the movie. With Roth’s idea, the film would had to have designed countless CGI creature models that would only be used for that opening scene.
If you want an idea of what Eric Roth’s opening might have looked like, watch Darren Aronofsky’s “Noah” (seen above), inspired by the Biblical story of the Great Flood. In a two-minute montage, the film depicts the history of the universe; stars blinking into being, Earth cooling from the primordial fire, and life sprouting from its oceans. A fish who exits the water walks across the landscape, evolving into a different creature with every jump cut before it becomes man. Throughout the sequence, Noah (Russell Crowe) narrates for his children with descriptions from the Book of Genesis, suggesting how God’s invisible guiding hand could have crafted our world.
The success of “Dune: Part Two” means we likely have the next big movie franchise on our hands, especially with Dune Messiah already in the works. If Villeneuve and his eventual successors are so inclined, they should have the opportunity to explore the history of planet Arrakis — or as the Fremen once called it, Dune.
“Dune: Part Two” is currently still playing in theaters.
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