I couldn't resist the urge to paraphrase the Tenacious D lyric for this review's title, cause I can't imagine anything more fitting.

I watched this documentary in anticipation of Denis Villeneuve's Dune, trying to better understand why adapting Dune in film has been such a challenge. One answer I came away with is that the sheer magnitude, complexity and transcendental nature of the source material triggers the fantasy-turned-burden of creating the greatest film in the history of cinema. It's like the Dune film has been the holy grail of modern sci-fi filmmaking. Jodorowsky was the first to chase it and was - and still very much is - convinced he had it. If only those pesky studio execs could see past the director's unconventional M.O. and cough up the money.

Jodorowsky's passionate and fascinating retelling of this epic adventure in filmmaking alone is enough to fill the screen for the whole 90 minutes, but we also get regaled with a good amount of the original concept art, animated storyboards and music that give us a taste of the project's intended aesthetic. The testimonies of some of the artists involved in the project help ground this implausible-sounding tale to reality.

I don't think the documentary makes any attempt to be objective, so it shouldn't be viewed as a complete chronicle of how this ambitious project went down. It's more a character piece on Jodorowsky himself, as a - slightly unhinged, slightly megalomaniac - uncompromising visionary, who at that one point in history managed to recruit an "army" (his term) of avant-garde talent (a jaw-dropping list of huge names from all over the artistic world from Orson Welles to Mick Jagger, from Salvador Dali to Pink Floyd).

Jodorowski the person is intriguing and flawed in equal measures. He reminded me a lot of Ayn Rand's Howard Roark (The Fountainhead) in the way that he put his art before anything and anyone else, displaying hints of cruelty: he admits to subjecting his 12-year-old son to a 2-year punishing training regime in preparation for his role as Paul Atreides, then he casually uses rape and "not respecting" women as a metaphor for creating great art (a bit you'd think the director would have chosen to cut out so as to protect the old man in this otherwise hagiographical portrayal).

In all, it's well worth a watch, especially in light of 2020's Dune, but it's good going into it knowing what to expect and what not to expect.

In 1974, Alejandro Jodorowsky is tasked with directing Dune. He would recruit big names from the past and new talents of the future to form a creative team to produce a giant artistic book. It's too bad that Dan O'Bannon died before the filming of this film. On the other hand, it's great to hear from H. R. Giger. They produced a fascinating book. I kept thinking if it's available for purchase. I doubt it very much since it would probably be covered by the novel's copyright. Stories about great projects getting shelved are a dime a dozen. The most interesting aspect of this Hollywood story is that it brought a few important people together. Most importantly, it brought Giger to Hollywood. Jodorowsky is definitely an outside-the-box thinker and this is very nice look into his mind. Seven for the film but ten for the book.

This documentary is about the making of the movie "Dune". No, not the 1984 mess of a film and financial disaster helmed by David Lynch, but an earlier version by the surrealist director, Alejandro Jodorowsky...a version that never ended up being made.

The film gathers together the surviving members of the production crew to talk about the Jodorowsky version and how great it might have been. And, through the course of this film, you see many of the story boards, concept art and more.

As I watched this film, I couldn't help but think that if the Jodorowsky movie had been made, it probably would have been much weirder, much more violent* and much more confusing than the Lynch version. The Lynch film was mostly confusing because it was cut to pieces and should have been at least a 3-4 hour movie. The Jodorowsky version, in contrast, would have been so surreal as to make Lynch seem like an ordinary filmmaker! So, while everyone associated with this project thought the movie would have been great, I just have no idea WHO would have actually gone to see it...especially since Jodorowsky wanted to make a 12-20 hour film AND completely re-write the ending, in which Paul would die! I just can't see the fans wanting to see this...especially when in this documentary Jodorowsky talked about wanting to 'rape Frank Herbert" (not in a literal sense)!

It's a fascinating film where you get to follow Jodorowsky's thinking and the steps taken to try to get the film made. However, I cannot see this as a 'masterpiece' as some have said. First, it never got made...so how can it be a masterpiece? Second, while it could have been an amazing film (who knows?),it also might easily have been one of the biggest debacles in movie history, though the chances of the film being made seem insanely remote as you watch the documentary.

Overall, the documentary was fascinating and well worth seeing....the "Dune" project, however, sounded like a nutty gamble to say the least!



*If you don't think the film would have been uber-violent, watch Jodorowsky's "El Topo" and listen to some of the ideas the filmmaker wanted to incorporate into the movie (castration, dismemberment, etc.).