World of Blue - Archived Forum 2007-2022

Hi. The recent Dune dvd edition has overwhelmed me with nostalgia. It's obvious, though, that the picture is far from what it should be. I recently got an all-region player (though I'm far away from a hi-def commitment), and I read that the French dvd release has a much better transfer. Can anyone point me where I can get it? Or tell me if it has any technical downside, like the wrong aspect ratio, or burned subtitles, etc.? Thanks!

Hi Recidivism and Welcome!

I just went over to http://amazon/fr/ and looked up what they have on Dune. It's a 3 disc-set, but it's Region 2. And I can't read French. So I have no idea about subtitles, etc.

Very few Lynch fans are into Dune, and I am more because of the books, plus that's the first Lynch movie I ever saw. I have the US Extended Version, and it's decent, but you're right, it doesn't have a lot of really good extras.

You might get more information on the Dune sites, which I don't have right at hand, but I'll look them up and pm you.

Amazon.fr will have to be it for the time being. You're probably right that some admirers of Lynch's career feel that Dune is the red-headed stepchild, and therefore it's hard to find someone that likes Dune enough to seek out the ideal version. I read that France is the only country where Dune made money. It's not just nostalgia that reignited for me, though: I see now that Dune is just as much a signature work as any other. Anathema to suggest, but Dune prefigures Blue Velvet and Twin Peaks. Lynch elicits some great performances. The design and imagery have always captivated me, for all the dramatic/structural shortcomings. One must remind oneself that when Dune seems like Star Wars, it's actually that Star Wars seems like Dune, and that the Dune universe is more relatable to the complexities, trials, and paradoxes of real life than George Lucas' self-admitted homage to serials ever was. Lynch is often taken/mistaken for camp (as are the Coen Bros.), and Dune is almost Janus-faced in its epic weight and absurd pulpiness. Before I bury myself in verbiage, I'll just brazenly state that I'll take any Lynch fanatic to the mat any day, but Dune is just freakin' cool, and shame on the producers who didn't give young David carte blanche and given the world a real mind-blower. Just the shot of the baby being born... the loyal Duncan's horrible headwound under the blurred geometrical forcefield... if the French dvd has a proper transfer, I want it. Got my ticket for Inland Empire last night - Feb 8th. The new D.L. that has taken shape in the past 5 years is an inspiring and singular figure; I hope everyone's feeling it.

The main thing to watch out for when purchasing an edition of the "Dune" dvd is that most of them only have stereo sound, the back cover picture on amazon.fr lists that edition as being 5.1 and it doesn't look very expensive for a 3 dvd set.

I went ahead and ordered it on Amazon - $20 shipping included. Can't beat that. I'll reconnect in a couple of weeks when it comes.

I have returned. Good news and somewhat expensive news.

Dune: Ultimate Edition is indeed available at Amazon.fr for a song, about $20 total. The US version has nothing on it. The print is beautiful, the sound is better... you can't go wrong. (Ah, but you can go wrong - see April 15 post) It is so, much, better.

But! I learned something that the more cosmopolitan types might already know. DVDs from the hills of Europe are almost all Widescreen Enhanced, meaning, they are unlikely to play properly on an old TV set such as my own 1992 Sharp, which is made of wood and seashells. No matter how you adjust the region-free player, the picture comes out squished. So, in purchasing the Dune Ultimate Edition, I inadvertently put myself in the market for a widescreen LCD television. The dvd waits patiently on my shelf. C'est la vie, bon bon, oui oui. Now for delicious irony: the dvd includes the wobegone worthless 'tv' cut of the movie, just for completeness and the extra footage it includes. THAT version plays in the proper aspect ratio! Up is down! Hamburgers eat people! Check out this move... *snap *snap *snap

Charitably-minded Lynch fans in the city of San Francisco are invited to bring me their crappy old 2003 plasma television - who needs it anyway?

Thanks Recidivism,

I love DUNE just as I love all of DL's work. I wish he didn't feel so bad about it. Great info on the French ed too.

For myself I've spent some time researching the new TV's and for die-hard cinema fans such as ourselves I really think a plasma TV is the way to go. While the LED screens are brighter, the colors on plasma are deeper and richer. One of the reasons LED TVs look brighter is that the dark colors are actually lighter. With plasma when you have black on the screen it is because the pixel cells are turned off so they really are black. With LED the black pixels are colored black by the screen and you don't get true black.

It helps to have super powers too. Just thought I'd throw that in.

I will keep that in mind, sloclub. You just know the tv's will get much better and be much cheaper in a few short years. Check out the fcc website: did you know it's HD or nothing in 2009? It was news to me.

So hello again. I'm glad to see people are looking at this. Dune good.

My news this time is not so good. I finally got to see the region 2 Dune Ultimate Edition on a widescreen tv. Yes, it is beautiful; again, the picture puts the u.s. release to shame, and reminds us all how much injudicious use of cg ruins the magic of scifi. The effects and design ravish my nerdly soul.

But here's the problem. The French subtitles are burned onto the picture. You cannot turn them off. Your choices are Dubbed French or forced subtitles. No way around it. I was more sad than livid. Why, why why, you foolish dvd designers?

I'm stoically taking the loss in that a perfect dvd of Dune will be worth more than the money I already spent. It is still possible that a version in a more, ahem, fastidious nation such as Germany or Japan will do me up right. Until next time.

OOh, I'm sure that hurt!! I'm so glad that Dune is being treated with respect in here. Please let us know when and where you find the perfect Dune.

However, I am curious as to where you got the FCC information about the status of our US broadcast signals, etc. I tried navigating the FCC site and can't make sense out of it. Not that I can afford a new TV, but it will be useful information to know what the standards will be by 2009?!

To me, the best Dune DVD edition is the english one (region free) :
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dune-Two-disc-S ... 060&sr=8-1

It looks and sounds great, and there are no subtitles.

I found a dvd aficianado that seconds ZM's opinion that the British version is the best, with a great documentary that is only missing David himself. In the French doc they have some video of him on set, and he looks strangely "Directorial", in a pejorative sense. No wonder he loves his dv work.

The British dvd also has a great price! There are some perks in Dune having a bad rep - the savings! I am also informed that French dvd's are infamous for the evil burned subtitles, stay away. Hooray for John Bull.

And, from the fcc website:

"When Will the DTV Transition Be Complete?

TV stations serving all markets in the United States are airing digital television programming today, although most will continue to provide analog programming through February 17, 2009. At that point, full-power TV stations will cease broadcasting on their current analog channels, and the spectrum they use for analog broadcasting will be reclaimed and put to other uses."

Recidivism wrote: And, from the fcc website:

"When Will the DTV Transition Be Complete?

TV stations serving all markets in the United States are airing digital television programming today, although most will continue to provide analog programming through February 17, 2009. At that point, full-power TV stations will cease broadcasting on their current analog channels, and the spectrum they use for analog broadcasting will be reclaimed and put to other uses."

Wow! So does that mean poor people won't be able to watch TV? Is that the exact phrase you typed into the FCC search engine?

(The British Dune does sound like it is wonderful!)

Well, there's a lot of debate about that right now, Annie, but the IDEA is that digital signal would become as affordable as analog was.

Of course, most of the major cable companies are slowly raising the price on analog to the point where it seems like a better deal to switch to digital cable.

In Philadelphia, for example, Comcast informed analog cable subscribers who had HBO that HBO was now a digital only channel. And they did it just a few weeks before the season premiere of "The Sopranos," meaning anyone who wanted to see it HAD to switch to digital.

It's highway robbery.

That may be true in Philadelphia, but not in Nebraska. Sure, they are pushing digital, but I yanked out my cable box after it was struck by lightning. And although I can only get 3 fuzzy channels, it's still free TV!

I wonder if that will go away, too. I've never had HBO. I don't really like much TV; movies, sure, but I like to read. And I'd die without internet!

Well, when the switch-over happens you will still be able to get free television (the major networks, PBS, local stations, etc). Digital broadcasts can be picked up via a digital antenna, just like your tv now can pick up off-air signals.

By 2009, all new tvs will need to have built-in digital recievers so you won't need a new piece of equiptment (other than perhaps an antenna) to get broadcasts.