Movie Review: Dune: Part One (2021)

Dune: Part One (2021) co-written and directed by Denis Villenueve from the novel by Frank Herbert

In a far distant future, interstellar travel is powered by Spice, a product only found on the desert planet Arrakis. The Emperor (an unseen character) has transferred authority over the planet from House Harkonnen to House Atreides. The Harkonnens have been brutal harvesters, but Arrakis is a brutal planet with extremely difficult natives (the Fremen), creatures (giant sand worms), and storms (the sand blasting will peel a lot more than the paint off your spaceship). The Harkonnens are also crafty and will not go down without putting up some resistance. Political intrigue is only part of the drama. Paul Atreides (Timothee Chalamet) has been preparing for leadership while he has been having strange, prophetic dreams about events on Arrakis. He trains in physical combat and in psychic abilities, since his mother is part of the Bene Gesserit, a group of mystics with powers to see the future and influence the wills of others. When he gets to Arrakis, he faces opposition from the Harkonnens and the Fremen, though he thinks that he has been drawn to the planet as a savior or messiah figure for the Fremen. 

While the overall plot is a science fiction political space opera with a hero's journey for Paul Atreides, the movie manages to be so much more (even though that's already a lot to begin with). The big actions sequences and amazing visuals set up the world of the characters. But the characters are not dwarfed by their epic surroundings. They have a lot more existential, interior, and personal battles as they face their exterior opponents. The movie manages to provide the intimacy of an art house film while also delivering a large-scale future-society drama. The only flaw in the film is its expectation for viewers to keep up with what's going on. If viewers haven't read the book or seen previous versions of the story (the 1984 movie or the TV miniseries) or consulted the internet on what to know before watching, the movie may be hard to follow. A lot of the details (like the combat suits that only let a slow-moving weapon strike, not fast cuts or shots) and political factions are barely explained. Viewers get a sense of the larger milieu that would take an extra hour to show. Brevity is the good when there is so much. The other problem is the cliffhanger ending, which stops at a nice dramatic moment but leaves the viewer waiting for the next movie to find out if Paul will fulfill his fate (if it really is his fate).

I was a little skeptical going into the film because I've had mixed feelings about Villenueve's previous films. The twist at the end of Arrival I found moving but also a little annoying and Bladerunner 2049 followed a little too closely the ambiguity and the inscrutability of the original film. Dune, however, I enjoyed without any complaints and am looking forward to the second film. My only regret is not having seen it in the theater. Maybe when Part Two comes out the cinemas might have some sort of marathon viewing option.

Highly recommended--a great commingling of art house sensibilities with space opera epicness. 

The Boardwalk & Sky Wheel, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

An extra fun part of our trip to the Carolinas was visiting the boardwalk in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The boardwalk itself was narrower than I was expecting (unlike the wide venues in Ocean City, Maryland, and Virginia Beach, Virginia). It had the usual concentration of tourist dives/traps/destinations. We started from 16th Street and worked our way southward.

The quiet end of the boardwalk

One of the rooftop bars

Beach cornhole

Our main destination was the Sky Wheel, a large ferris wheel that is highly visible from most of downtown Myrtle Beach. I think the write-up from the website has a funny quote: "The SkyWheel® is not a carnival ride, but a modern, safe observation wheel towering almost 200 feet in the air. " Sorry for calling you a "Ferris Wheel!"

Our first good view

View from the base of the wheel--it doesn't fit in the frame!

We got tickets and were shortly on our way up and around. The views were quite delightful.

You can see the wheel's reflection!

The lonely pier

Nearby we saw another attraction that captured the imagination of my eldest. It was a bungee-jump ride that flings two riders up and down, as well as spinning them around and around as they go up and down. It looked horrifying to us parents but he would have gone on it if we let him.

Does not look safe to old people

Look at this instead, it is much more comforting

Some of my children decided to make faces at the camera as we rode.

Even before seeing the bungee ride, he was excited

View of the horizon

View of the chin

Caught not looking at the camera

Not fast enough to get a chin-only shot

They enjoyed looking at their antics.

They laughed at their poses for Mom, too

Enjoying some screen time

I am sorry to present one last view of the horror.

Lights coming on as darkness falls

After the ride we went for a snack. The younger ones wanted some pure sugar. Plenty of shops offer such treats. I was surprised by the newest gummy shapes.

Sharks, snakes, and sodas in the S-section

Monkees soda?

My wife and I and our eldest held out for ice cream which we found across the street at Mad Myrtle's Old Fashioned Ice Creamery. I had a brownie s'mores milkshake, which was delicious.

Mad Myrtle's

Across from the ice cream joint is a Ripley's joint that seemed less horrifying the bungee-jumping.

Horror excitement that I would go to

On our way back to the car, we stopped in the plaza by the Sky Wheel for some pictures.

Still mugging for the camera

Bungee tower and Sky Wheel

The middle of the plaza has a sculpture called Goddess of the Sea by Kristen Visbal, installed fairly recently--2018. 

Goddess of the Sea, front view

The goddess's backside

Night view of the lonely pier

As far as tourist traps go, the boardwalk at Myrtle Beach is a fun one to be caught in.

Book Review: Camera Man by Dana Stevens

Camera Man: Buster Keaton, the Dawn of Cinema, and the Invention of the Twentieth Century by Dana Stevens

Buster Keaton was born in 1895 to a vaudeville family who crisscrossed the country. He was integrated into the act at a very young age, often in skits where he was tossed about the stage or did a lot of tumbling and crashing. The Three Keatons were a top-billed act for a long time until the alcoholism of his father spoiled things. Buster and his mom left dad in California to seek their fortunes elsewhere. He moved to New York where he met Roscoe Arbuckle, a big star in silent film comedy who made Buster a creative partner. Buster was interested in both the technicalities of the new medium (legend has it he took apart a motion picture camera and put it back together) and the creative opportunities it provided.

Buster lived through many cultural transitions, from vaudeville to movies, from movies to television. He achieved his greatest success in the silent film era when many smaller independent studios had control over their creative output. The transition to talkies happened roughly at the same time that studios consolidated into the "big six" and most everyone, including Buster, worked at a studio to make a living. He lost his creative control and became unhappy as a fading studio star and a gag writer for others at MGM. He found renewed vigor working smaller jobs and bit parts in television, though he did have his own television variety show for a few years. The constant need for new material made it difficult. He continued to work other venues like circuses in Europe.

This biography traces out the life of Buster Keaton, looking at his development as a performer along with the developments of movies and, to a lesser extent, television. The book, while loving Keaton, does meander off into many tangents, like the sudden evaporation of female directors in early silent cinema, the romantic creepiness of Charlie Chaplin (he had a thing for teen-aged female actors), the ebbs and flows of sexism and racism in Hollywood. I found the book a little less satisfying for all the sidebar material that took over center stage. On the other hand, the writer clearly loves Buster and happily relives many creative moments and amazing scenes from his works. She seems quite honest about his foibles and hard times, though by the end his life was more happy than sad, which is how I felt finishing this book.

Mildly recommended.

Book Review: Star Wars: War of the Bounty Hunters by C. Soule et al.

Star Wars: War of the Bounty Hunters written by Charles Soule and art by Steve McNiven, Luke Ross, and David Messina

This story is set between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Boba Fett has flown off with Han Solo encased in carbonite. He has to make a pit stop because the carbonite is not holding together. Jabba the Hutt is annoyed by the delay and puts a bounty out on Fett, so every other bounty hunter in the galaxy is after him. If that wasn't bad enough, someone snatches the frozen Solo, so Fett has to regain his prize and fight off other greedy lowlifes.

The story suffers from a lot of problems. The biggest is continuity--how can this tale fit in with the larger stories around it?* There's hardly a break between Episodes V and VI. Any dramatic possibilities for change are not suspenseful. Readers know Fett isn't going to die and he will have Solo back in his clutches by the end. Luke has a non-confrontation with Vader. Leia, Chewbacca, and Lando try to rescue Han at a few points though failure is inevitable within this series. Another problem is that the title promises something the book doesn't deliver. Sure, Fett has run-ins with Dengar, Zuckuss, Bossk, and all those other action figures I had as a kid. But the fights are short and pre-determined (see problem #1). The situation is hardly a war between bounty hunters. The third problem is that much of the story sets up the Crimson Dawn as a new, dangerous force in the galaxy that's ready to challenge groups like the Hutts, the Rebels, and the Empire. Their introduction sets up further comic book series, making those parts read more like marketing filler than genuine storytelling. I was very unsatisfied.

Not recommended.

*Actually, this is not impossible to do. The obvious exception is Rogue One, which tells a Star Wars story where you know how it will end but the filmmakers do such a great job that it is exciting and engaging. This book needs some of that magic (or is it The Force?).

Barefoot Landing, Myrtle Beach

Barefoot Landing in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, has a lot of shops and fun activities for families. Our first visit was early in the morning before the shops were open. We were still able to have lots of fun.

The sign

Walking in from the parking lot, we had our first experience of the water--the threat of water! The sign claims that there's alligators and snakes in the area and not to mess with them. I think my family is smart enough (or cowardly enough) to stay away from such critters. 

Watch out for the wild life

We had to walk through a bunch of shops to get to the most fun stuff. The shops are geared toward tourists, selling ice cream and candy, clothing and trinkets. There's even some restaurants.

We meant to go back for this shop!

Around an artificial lake is some larger restaurants and amusements. They have a lovely carousel.

Their carousel

No rides yet

Another ride not ready to go at 8 a.m.

One place I was very interested in is the Crooked Hammock Brewery. The restaurant's outdoor leisure area naturally includes a hammock.

Outdoor seating very available at 8 a.m.

Photo op spot

Further in is a playground for the under-ten crowd. The playground is themed around the oak tree in the middle of the playground. It's a recent transplant (moving from the outer parking lot to its new location in 2018), so the kids aren't allowed to climb it. 

Playground

Tree info

The tree itself

The artificial lake

The lawn has some games that we enjoyed too.

Mega-Jenga

Lawn Chess

The next day we went to Lulu's, a restaurant, store, and amusement area from Lucy Buffett, Jimmy Buffett's sister. 

Lulu's retail entrance

The kids were not interested in shopping so we made a bee-line for the arcade.

Most interesting part

The arcade is mostly games (electronic and physical) where you can win tickets toward the typical sorts of inexpensive items, unless you collect thousands of tickets and then can afford electronics and other really nice stuff. We just played for fun.

Ball dropper

Racing game, head-to-head optional

Some games, like air hockey, didn't give tickets, but did give great satisfaction.

Mom vs. older son

Brother vs. brother

Another fun attraction is a VR ride that simulates riding a rollercoaster, though we saw an animated landscape, not an actual coaster. The effect was amazingly convincing.

VR Ride

Some more regular-type arcade games were available.

Jurassic shoot-em-up

Pac-man

Ice Man, a zombie shoot-em-up

After we collected items for our tickets (mostly candy), we crossed the way to Sweet Molly's Creamery for an ice cream treat. 

One of many ice cream shops in the area

I finally got a treat from the Crooked Hammock, a South to Somewhere, a blonde ale flavored with coconut. It was refreshing and fit well with the semi-tropical theme of the area.

Enjoying a beer

We would definitely visit here again. The kids were a little interested in the ropes course and we never ate at any of the restaurants.