Dune has been chopped and sliced into numerous variations - but if you hunt the T networks,
there is a glorious restored edition that was a fan project known as the Alternate Edition Redux that is an amazing thing to behold.
I highly recommend you find/borrow/steal a copy of this to see the best of 3 worlds ...
Anyway, here are the Release Notes I found about it ...
***DUNE (1984) THE ALTERNATIVE EDITION REDUX - Notes by Spicediver***
FANEDIT RELEASED: July 2012
RUNNING TIME: 178 minutes
AVAILABILITY: AVI, MP4, DVD-9 (double layer)
SUBTITLES: English & Spanish available at Subscene.com
MORE INFO: Fanedit.org + Digital-Fandits.com
DISCLAIMER
Fanedits are not for sale and provided under fair-use provisions for the sole purpose of discussion, exposition and education. Please support the artists and buy the original DVDs.
ABOUT THIS FANEDIT
A film that ís been admired, hated and puzzled-over in fairly equal amounts, writer/director David Lynchís ambitious 1984 adaptation of Frank Herbertís science fiction novel gets an extensive fanediting treatment in Dune The Alternative Edition Redux. This is my third and final cut of an edit I first released in 2008 and again in 2009. As previously, it draws on the heavily cut Theatrical Version, the controversial Extended ìTVî Version and a selection of Deleted Scenes and soundtrack cues.
The Redux cut is, firstly, an opportunity for me to apply the additional skills Iíve learnt since this faneditís original release. Technical improvements include cleaning up dirty footage and completing the blue eyes FX, while creative changes include two new ìfilmbooksî, a new 4-part structure to the film, and a new ending thatís truer to the remarkable world that Frank Herbert created.
Secondly, Redux has allowed me to respond to some of the criticisms made by fans over the years and make further changes that I think improve the storytelling and presentation. The restoration of Princess Irulan as the filmís narrator is one such example.
For me itís been a long, exciting and sometimes exhausting journey. Iíd particularly like to thank two fanediting communities: Fanedit.org and Digital-Fanedits.com. Without these avenues to promote my work and without the generous input and feedback of enthusiastic members, the Dune movie as I have moulded it simply wouldnít exist.
David Lynch himself refuses to revisit the film, despite admitting that ìthereís something wrong with that movieî and complaining that he never had final cut. So itís left to us fans to tinker and reshape this curious piece of sc-fi cinema; trying to minimise its many flaws, amplify its many strengths and - in my case - trying to add something new as well.
I hope you enjoy the trip.
Spicediver, July 2012
***THE CHANGELIST***
Following is a comprehensive list of changes based on the two officially released versions of DUNE ñ the Theatrical Edition and the Extended Edition.
ADDITIONS
* Most scenes and footage unique to the Extended Edition have been used.
* The following Deleted Scenes from the DVD extras have been included:
- The Fremen Reverend Motherís original opening to the film
- An extension of Fremen housekeeper Mapes testing Jessica
- Thufir and Leto discussing the Fremenís prophecy about Paul
- An extension of Paulís talk with Jessica after his waking dream
- The aftermath of Paul defeating Jamis in the knife fight
- The Fremen priest telling Paul he may be the fulfilment of their prophecy
- A shot of Jessica in labour with Alia
- A closeup shot of Fremen warriors shouting ìlong live the fighters!î
- Thufir Howatís redemption and death
- Paul taking Princess Irulan as his wife.
* The film has been divided into four ìBooksî, each with a title frame preceded by a quote from various Dune novels. The original novel by Frank Herbert was divided into 3 books. This fanedit includes these and adds a 4th book to accommodate the structure of the film. The titles are: Book I: The Great Houses; Book II: Dune; Book III: Muad'dib; Book IV: The Prophet.
* Two new filmbooks have been created about the history of the universe, and are seen being read by Paul Atreides during the film. They have been built with material from the Extended Edition's prologue and are designed to match the look and feel of the existing filmbook that appears early in the movie.
ALTERATIONS
* Some scenes from both the Theatrical and Extended Editions have been moved around and relocated to improve the narrative, including changes to accommodate the faneditís new 4-part structure.
* A new opening features Princess Irulanís narration, a Fremen ceremony and customised Dune Titles. The Fremen ceremony audio now has the intended reverb added, and the chanted answers to the Reverend Mother are now the sound of a whole crowd responding instead of a single placemarker voice.
* A new, simpler ending has been created, modelled on an earlier draft script, where Paul does not magically make rain fall on Arrakis. The idea of rain on Arrakis is a narrative and ecological absurdity in the world that Frank Herbert created.
* Princess Irulan is the narrator. The Alternative Edition Redux uses most elements of her narration from the Theatrical Edition, plus selected audio edits from her Deleted Scene.
* The male narrator including the painted prologue from the Extended Edition has been deleted, but parts of it have been reworked into two new filmbooks about the history of the universe, read by Paul Atreides during the film.
* The overuse and/or inappropriate choice of music in some scenes from the Extended Edition has been addressed.
* The attack on House Atreides by the Harkonnen and the Emperor's forces is confusingly shot and edited in places. This has now been re-edited and some shots flipped around, to a give better sense of direction and a better sense of the ebb and flow of battle.
* Because the Fremen Reverend Mother's prophecy now opens the film, it's appearance in the official versions of the Dune - when House Atreides lands on Arrakis - now seems like an exact repeat of an earlier shot. So the Trip To Arrakis sequence has now been remixed so that only desert landscapes are used for the visuals, while the prophecy is still heard on the soundtrack.
* The Deleted Scene where Thufir speaks to Leto about the Fremen prophecy now opens with an atmospheric long shot of Arakeen and the castle keep. This shot has been changed to make it set at dusk and the 2nd moon rising over the shield wall has been added.
* An new closeup of Princess Irulan - and some altered footage - has been included in the scene where Paul surveys the prisoners after his defeat of the Emperor.
DELETIONS
* Approximately 60% of internal dialogue has been removed from the audio track and, where necessary, the video has been recut. I believe it was a colossal mistake by Lynch to adapt this narrative device so literally from Frank Herbertís novel. In the translation from book to film many viewers find a good deal of it irritating and unnecessary. It often spoonfeeds obvious information to the audience and can pull the viewer out of the scene rather than drawing them in. Essential elements like The Litany Against Fear have been left intact.
* Deleted the incongruous St Francis Prayer section from Princess Irulanís final narration, in order to move the story away from a simplistic and forced happy ending: ìWhere there was war, Muadídib would bring peace; where there was hatred Muadídib would bring love.î Dune is not Disney, despite producer Dino De Laurentiis' apparent attempts to make it so.
* Reduced Paulís awkward forced laughter in two shots to a more believable smile.
* Deleted some cheesy closeups of the actors when riding the sandworms.
* Deleted Chaniís cheesy line when Paul wakes from a dream: ìYou were calling my name. It frightened me.î
* Deleted Beast Rabbanís diabolical laughter when the Baron hands him charge of Arrakis. Also deleted the shot of him kicking over the dwarf. These villains are already cartoonish enough.
* Deleted or fixed some bad rear projection FX shots during Paul and Jessicaís pursuit by the sandworm. This action scene as also been tightened to increase the sense of danger.
* The climax of Paul and Feydís knife fight has been tightened to make it more tense and more plausible.
TECHNICAL FIXES
* Completed the blue spice eyes FX on human characters where this effect was missing in the Extended Edition and in some Deleted Scenes.
* Also added blue spice eyes FX to the 3rd stage Guild navigators in two scenes, in line with the description of the navigators in Frank Herbert's books.
* Colour-corrected all footage unique to the Extended Edition to remove a pronounced green tint.
* Fixed the filmbook read by Paul in the opening scene on Caladan because many images are stretched out in the wrong aspect ratio. These shots have now been corrected and the images rebuilt.
* Fixed the infamous editing mistakes, bad audio joins and censorship in scenes that were used from the Extended Edition.
* Digitally cleaned and restored the lower resolution Deleted Scenes to improve the image quality. Also cleaned up audio where possible.
* The Extended Edition DVD print is slightly crisper and generally in better shape than the Theatrical DVD print. So where Theatrical Edition footage was needed or preferred, footage from the French Bluray was used (scaled down to Standard Definition) due to the cleaner print.
* The audio track from the Theatrical Edition is used wherever possible due to its superior quality and mix.
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