David Lynch's Dune was released in 1984 with a running time of circa 2 hours and 17 minutes (including credits) leaving some obvious gaps in the story. Numerous scenes were shot but not included in the theatrical version and there were persistent rumors of a much longer "cut", though producer Raffaella De Laurentiis has stated that much of that was in rough footage not intended for the screen.
Universal Studios later released an expanded version of Dune first shown on television then later on DVD (from which Lynch had his name removed from the credits). This has another 43 or so minutes of footage. Some of it is poorly edited and unfinished. We see Fremen without their blue within blue eyes and there are several inserts where spaceships land on the wrong planet!
Some of the extra film is time wasting exposition. Stilgar gives a last minute lecture to Paul (now also known as “Muad’Dib for reasons) on how to ride a worm, something we see the latter actually do in the following scene. And for some bizarre reason, in the extended version the mellow narration of Princess Irulan has been replaced by a gravelly voiced male, reported to be that of Frank Herbert himself. Curiously, we hear the princess' voice echoing from a filmbook which Paul is reading in the study on Caladan.
Nonetheless, there are several scenes which ought have been in the theatrical release because they make vital plot points. There's one where the Atreides high command meets with Dr. Kynes and they form an alliance. This explains a little more the relationships between the Fremen and Kynes, as well as giving a reason for the Harkonnens to later dispose of the doctor in his desert. The scene also includes Gurney Halleck playing his balliset, a slice of life showing that there are moments of culture on Dune.
Another scene has the Fremen Shadout Mapes present a crysknife to Jessica, the ritual Fremen melee weapon. The weapon is to be either a gift or a means of assassination in the event the Atreides consort does not prove to be the object of prophecy. Jessica passes the test, though it's a bit mangled—the DVD includes a couple more lines here where Jessica figures out the origins of the crysknife as a sandworm tooth. In any event, this act does provide a setup for Paul's later acceptance by the Fremen.
The Atreides conference on their Arrakis headquarters following the hunter-seeker assassination attempt on Paul is a bit longer, with Gurney Halleck quoting the Orange Catholic Bible, adding to the religious theme and rounding out the character. Gurney waxes profound then comical before heading off to the meeting with Kynes. I can see why those last couple of lines were cut from the theatrical release, as it makes it clear that the scene is happening before the spice mining tour, which in the theatrical release occurs right after the Atreides landed on Arrakis.
Later, when Paul and Jessica first meet the Fremen, Paul gets into a knife fight with Jamis, a warrior with a spice chip on his shoulder. This is a critical moment because it establishes Paul as a fighter and gives the Fremen a reason to accept him—he has passed an initiation ceremony into their warrior society. We then see a quasi-religious Fremen ritual in which Paul's dead opponent is rendered for his water. It gives background on the Fremen culture, especially their water rites, though it does slow things down a bit. There's also some significant glances exchanged between Chani, Paul's instant Fremen girlfriend, and Harah, the wife of the now slain Jamis. Much is implied here about the pecking order within the Fremen sietches.
Perhaps the most critical scene which did not make it into the theater is where Stilgar shows Paul the "mystery of mysteries”. The Fremen chief asks, "Do you know of the Water of Life," then shows how the crystal blue fluid is rendered by drowning a small sandworm. This scene ties together several different plot elements and does add some depth to the second half of the movie.
Every now and then some footage surfaces which got dropped from all versions, such as one in which Harah has a discussion with Jessica over the surreal powers of the former's daughter, Alia. And various drafts of the Dune screenplay, production artwork and still photographs of filmed but discarded scenes can be found in the various planes of the Internet.
There was one other scene which was in an earlier draft to the script but was, apparently, never shot. It's in the second half with the Baron Harkonnen ordering a knife fight between his nephew Feyd-Rautha and an Imperial Sardaukar officer over the latter's insubordination. Feyd disables the officer via treachery and finishes him with his blade. The scene establishes the incipient falling out between the Baron and the Emperor as well as Feyd's martial prowess.
This is a critical point since in both the theatrical and extended releases we never see Feyd actually in a fight until the end of the movie, unlike Paul, so the final duel between the two scions seems to favor the Atreides heir from the get-go. It also fleshes out the second half of the movie to set up the falling out between Harkonnen and Emperor.
Fans of Dune wanted to see Lynch do a definitive final cut, but apparently his experience with the film was such that he is not to return to that world. It's really unfortunate since while the released version of Dune had its moments of grandeur, there is an even greater movie somewhere out there, beyond the Bene Tleilax...
I did want to offer one final observation. Dune, with its vistas and scope, works much better on the big screen. Alas, it's been seen mostly on television or DVD players since its release in 1984. The epic nature of the movie might make a re-release something to behold, perhaps with another "cut" of the film. The fate of Dune remains to be seen.
DUNE (1984) CREDITS
Director: David Lynch (theatrical version)
Writer (movie): David Lynch
Writer (book) Frank Herbert
Cinematography: Freddie Francis
Editor: Anthony Gibbs
Music: Toto, Brian Eno
Producer/Studio: De Laurentiis/Universal
Handout for theater audiences when Dune was first released:
