Modeled after the acclaimed best selling novel by Frank Herbert, the movie Dune was released on Oct. 22 and sparked tremendous excitement from the public.

According to Space.com, “Dune is set over 8,000 years in the future amidst a feudal interstellar society.” 

The movie tells the story of Paul Atreides, played by Timothée Chalamet, and his father’s newly inherited throne on the inhospitable planet of Arrakis. By taking control of the planet, they replaced their enemies, House Harkonnen. The motive behind taking control of the planet was to harvest a substance called spice which offers health benefits and strengthens cognitive abilities. 

Since the movie came out, critics as well as audience members began praising the film.

Dune “honors the source material in the most satisfying way possible. Dune 2021 is a modern-day work of art,” Jimmy O said on JoBlo’s Movie Emporium.

Furthermore, Eric Eisenberg on Cinema Blend stated, “Denis Villenvue’s movie is the film interpretation that fans have been waiting to see for decades.” 

Overall, the movie has been loved by many, getting 90% for the audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.

“The movie overall was good,” Alaina Longo, a junior at Arcadia High School stated. 

“A little confusing at first but I understood it more towards the end. The acting was amazing, and I loved the plot, though.”

The one thing fans complained about was the lack of the beloved star Zendaya in the film as she was only allotted seven minutes of screen time. In the sequel, however, it is promised that she will have a much more prominent role than the one she was given in this first movie.

“In the trailer, it basically only featured Zendaya and Timothée so I thought that Zendaya would be in it more but in reality was barely in it, and I just thought it was weird,” Longo also said.

Junior Nathan Liu stated that he “was just excited to see Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya, and I’m kind of sad she didn’t get more screen time.”

USA Today said that “Timothée trained for months to master the film’s complex fight choreography.” 

Each fight scene was meticulously choreographed and required lots of practice. Chalamet proved to be a great actor for this role in the end, despite these scenes being out of his comfort zone.

Chalamet explained how he believed the plot of the movie was “a relatable story of a young person having to fight for what’s right and what’s good. That’s especially relevant today, with my generation and the ones coming up fighting for what they believe in so strongly.”

Furthermore, Zendaya stated that “this whole thing has just been a magical experience. I mean, I’ve always kind of been a huge fan of sci-fi movies. I’ve always wanted to be a part of something that felt—I mean, this was massive, but also just like literally another world. And just being there was incredible.”

Both Timothée and Zendaya had wonderful experiences with the movie and expressed their love for not only their parts, but also the relationships they created with one another. Although some fans were let down by Zendaya’s minimal appearances, they still agree that the movie delivered a beautifully complex plot.