Dune (1984) - The Alternative Edition

August 24, 2009

Hi Spice,

Sorry it has taken so long to get here. I have spent the last hour navigating this site. Very cool.

I am not a expert on quality of editing or any of the technical nik naks that interest the more techy minded. I do however know what I like to see. The origianal theatrical offering was in my opinion poor.
It left so many unanswered questions and for those people who had not read the book was probably a major turnoff. I always felt as if it was a project that was started and then rushed to completion. The acting in many cases was half hearted and often just downright bad.

It will be impossible for anyone person, I think , to make a definitive version of Dune. The sheer scope and scale of such a project is simply daunting, somewhere on the scale of the Lord of the Rings Trilogy. That is the kind of money and Passion that would be required. I wonder if Peter Jackson would be interested? Probably not.

In the meantime we have Spicedivers V2. Quite frankly it is the best version I have seen. Especially considering what he has had to work with. The story is tighter and more fulfilling than either the original theatrical or the extended edition. The soundtrack is more in tune with the action. As far as I am concerned this rates a large 5 stars. If there is more than can be done to this story I don’t know what it is.

Kudos to you Spicediver and many thanks for a giving me something I can watch that matches the Herberts vision.

June 13, 2009

Thanks a ton. This is a great one. I prefer the Irulan intro as it ties in better with the book and, poor Virginia Madsen doesn’t have much else to do without it. :) Regardless, this was very well done and what I wanted the Universal disc to be when the last version came out. Here’s hoping someone goes back and fixes the blue-within-blue eyes some day — even the original needed touch ups here and there.

Thanks, especially, for including the “He gives water to the dead” scene and Thufir’s finale. Both are essential (IMHO).

May 6, 2009

I have only read the first Dune novel by Frank Herbert, but what introduced me to the novel was surprisingly Spicediver’s fanedit cut of the film. The film ranks as one of my all time favorite films, alongside Blade Runner, Kingdom of Heaven, and The Lord of the Rings. V1 was my favorite cut, though now seeing V2, it’s been swiftly replaced. Personally, I’m very happy that the missing/deleted/rare scenes were reinserted back into the films narrative. Some say it detracts, but I personally can’t watch any other cut without missing those scenes. =) In my humble opinion, this is the best cut of Dune out there. 10/10 for a fine piece of work.

May 24, 2009
*This rating was given before reviews were required*

May 18, 2009

I saw Dune when it first came out. Awesome work imho, though critics panned it. And now, this work, by spicediver is, to me, the best version I have ever seen. Mind you, I own a copy of the original and still watch it a couple of times a year. But from now on, I will be watching spicediver’s version. Totally awesome!!!