Music was the worst part of the movie for me.

A lot of things were so over the top that it felt distasteful. It didn't have that Avengers style light hearted, not-taking yourself too seriously and intentionally over the top vibe - it tried to take itself seriously and yet had a bunch of blockbuster cliche moments.

And the dramatic music braaping every time someone does anything stood out the most in this regard.

I liked how the music didn't succumb to "Mickey Mousing", where everything that happens on screen is accompanied by a change in the soundtrack, but instead was composed of (sometimes pretty) long lines that faded in and out. And no attempt to cover up lacking development with rhythmic distraction, either. It didn't result in memorable tunes, which is a pity.

Over the top, probably, but mainly because it had been mixed too loud. The sound editor could have done that more tastefully. Still not as bad as TENET, although that's a pretty low bar.

How much our tastes can differ!

The sound levels were absolutely bonkers, I had volume at 20/40 for some parts and 40/40 for others. I watched most of the movie with subtitles on because I didn't want to wakeup the neighbors. I wish Android TV had the ability for loudness equalization. Does VLC or Plex have this feature? I think I checked once before and didn't find it.

I've noticed this in a lot of recent movies. Total abuse of dynamic range. The loud parts are ear splitting and then when you get to dialog, it just can't be heard at all. My ears can't hear anything quiet, but don't mind the loud parts. On the other hand, my wife loses her shit when it gets too loud and the dog goes crazy. You can't win. I sit there on the sofa with my finger constantly manipulating the volume control.

And before anyone asks, yes, I have a dedicated center channel, and I keep the receiver outputs pretty well calibrated. This seems to be a deliberate choice during the movies' production.

I think maybe they do this to deter home watching/encourage cinema-going.

> The sound editor could have done that more tastefully.

An interview with Mark Mangini, the sound designer, with someone whose sound was used in Dune (for the desert mouse, muad'dib):

* https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtfzjehDg74

> It didn't have that Avengers style light hearted, not-taking yourself too seriously and intentionally over the top vibe

And I couldn't have asked for more. This movie was like a small island of refuge from the desolation of cultural genocide Marvel has caused over the past decade

Jeebus. I HATE the soundtrack. I can't stand Zimmer anymore. He keeps doing the same old textured two notes synth effects, loud booming brass basses and metallic clanking percussion noises since Inception or whatever, that fit perfectly trailers but but gets the more tiring the longer the movie. Each new film has an even more repetitive and loud soundtrack than the last one, pretending to be dramatic, but hint: drama is born from changes of emotions and atmosphere, not constant loud drones. Plus these insufferable pretentious noises never stop; in opposition to the mystical, meditative nature of the story, clearly calling for moments of contemplative silence, there's a constant background of "braooowww" "oooohh" and "clang clang". Ick. The movie was pretty good, but the "music" really degraded the experience for me.

Wouldn't it rather be that Game of Thrones is in a Dune sauce?

Off-topic but thanks for the tip on Seveneves! Never heard of the book before, but looking it up seems like my cup of tea :)

> the story was cheesy mysticism in a Game of Thrones sauce

I've not seen the new movie yet, but the biggest problem I have with Lynch's movie is that it treats the mysticism as serious/plausible; yet a key part of Dune is that its religions are social engineering tools, managed and spread by the Bene Gesserit over thousands of years. In particular:

- Their "Missionaria Protectiva" programme spread the meme that Bene Gesserit members are supernatural witch/sorceress-like figures, who should be revered and assisted.

- The "Kwisatz Haderach" is the end-goal of their breeding programme: a male who can survive the Bene Gesserit training. As part of this 10,000 year plan, a religious meme was propagated that a messiah would appear in 10,000 years time. Hence when Paul appeared 10,000 years later (one generation early, since Jessica was meant to have a daughter), he could cash-in on the religious capital the Bene Gesserit had built up, and use it for his own ends. Note that others came close, including Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen and Hasimir Fenring (plus others who are mentioned in later books).

Yet Lynch portrayed Paul as a messiah to the audience, showing the audience a world of "cheesy mysticism" rather than letting them in on the scheme. (The miniseries did a better job of showing Paul's helplessness, despite his prescience; and his guilt for the inevitable genocide that will occur in his name)

I liked the underscores but I wish they were more under, you know? I don’t have hearing problems (that I know of) but I struggled to understand what was being said much of the time. It seriously detracted from what could have been a good, slow science fiction film.