“There’s something awakening in my mind. I can’t control it,” says a brooding Timothée Chalamet in the trailer for director Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune” and it has awakened something in me as well.
Slated to be released in theaters on Dec. 18, no movie had unfurled in me a burning desire for the return of movie theaters until “Dune.” Sure, we already have drive-in theaters in the metro but I feel like I just can’t savor it on the big screen the same way inside a car. Feel free to convince me otherwise.
One of the things that the trailer dropped today revealed to folks who have yet to read Frank Herbert’s sci-fi novel is that we’re definitely getting a Chalamet x Zendaya romance. But don’t get us wrong, that kiss between noble heir Paul Atreides (played by Chalamet) and the mysterious blue-eyed Chani (played by Zendaya) isn’t the only spicy thing about this adaptation of a tale about the possible “messiah” of a planet at war because of a “spice” called melange.
The sneak peek unveils how Villeneuve and his team (which includes two-time Oscar-nominated production designer Patrice Vermette, two-time Oscar-winning visual effects supervisor Paul Lambert and Oscar-nominated director of photography Greig Fraser) have prepared for us a visually mouthwatering treat. Fans will also be excited to see details from the saga such as the shield technology and the flying ships called ornithopters in action.
One of the most striking scenes in the trailer is a bit with Gaius Helen Mohiam (played by Charlotte Rampling) testing Paul’s abilities by putting his hand in a “box of pain” while having a poisoned needle aimed at his throat. If that puzzled you, know that Herbert’s philosophy is how “fear is the mind-killer.” So, expect a little or a lot more of that.
Asked about it in a recent panel interview, Chalamet said, “When conflict is so overwhelming that to try to attack it with action or words or a plan of action is itself so overwhelming that that designation of anxiety or fear is actually a wild primal reaction, it does you no good, and if you can center that fear…there is a middle ground, a sort of Zen-like calmness that helps you through the eye of the storm.”
But in Timmy-like fashion, his retweet of the trailer sounds much less serious.
LET THE SPICE FLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWhttps://t.co/OnqkJHnMKB
— Timothée Chalamet (@RealChalamet) September 9, 2020
Want to learn more about the film? Don’t miss the “trailer debut event conversation” on Twitter hosted by Stephen Colbert who calls it a coming-of-age story, not just for Paul, but for humanity.
Timothée. Rebecca. Oscar. Josh. Zendaya. Sharon. Jason. Javier. Denis. DUNE TRAILER FIRST LOOK. ? https://t.co/ePHY6aGem4
— Twitter Movies is watching the Oscars (@TwitterMovies) September 9, 2020
In the meantime, please excuse me while I rewatch the trailer.
Photo screengrabbed from the “Dune” trailer
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