I saw Dune at the cinema today. I made several mistakes but choosing
to see Dune was not one of them. The first mistake was deciding to use
the Redditch Vue. Now Vue have the cheapest tickets I am aware of.
They are �5 in the day compared to Cineworld charging �12 for the same
pleasure. Now I last went to a Vue in Plymouth. That was great.
Reclining seats with little snack tables and an air of comfort.
Redditch was different. The Vue was part of a shopping centre. It
felt like a time warp to the 90s. The shopping centre had an 80s built
but last decorated in the 90s vibe. There were modern shops but they
seemed out of place. So mistake 1 was going to Redditch, the town
which time forgot. I am always amazed as I pass through at how strange
a place it is. Yet another motor city but in town form and with added
greenery. Perhaps to ensure you realise you are in Worcestershire or
something along those lines. It was very easy to drive in and the ring
road is wonderfully simple and green compared to Coventry or
Birmingham. The other side of the mistake in going to Redditch is that
it was full of Christmas shoppers with their demon sprogs and bored
teenagers. Yes your read that correct. Christmas shoppers! I only knew
it was Christmas shopping as I got twatted by enough rolls of wrapping
paper while trying to walk around. It was rather fun seeing bored
teenagers though. The cinema was at the top floor with nothing else up
there and so quiet. There were a few groups of gothy kids which made
me smirk and remember doing the same sort of thing.
My second mistake was thinking no one would take their kids along to
see a heavily political grand sci-fi film. I decided to go for an
early afternoon showing as it meant keeping normal food times and no
risk of falling asleep. When I booked tickets, there was a wonderful
emptiness to the seating plan which gave some hope. I arrived, settled
down and found it filled with teenagers and the odd parent with their
teenagers. That made sense and all was well. Then during the advert
malarky all of the children appeared. Parents kept coming in with
under 10s in tow. I ended up having a 7 year old sitting next to me.
Normally I would not care. However, Dune involves a lot of talking and
takes a fair bit of time to get to the exciting parts. This is not
good for 7 year olds. There was a lot of squirming going on. Poor guy.
All judgement is on myself for thinking parents would not take
children to Dune. Lesson learnt for next time. Do not assume people
will have read the books prior to the film and realise that maybe this
is a bad choice for young Jimmy.
However, I still enjoyed the film. It is slow moving in many respects
but that enables you to enjoy the lingering shots on various details.
It does not make any allowances for those who have no idea about Dune
lore. My only knowledge of Dune lore comes from getting somewhere in a
'complete works' until I was sick of grand sci fi. It seems I got fed
up somewhere near the end of the film which was convinient. It is
certainly worth seeing! Just avoid going to Redditch and during the
day. In fairness, we should all avoid Redditch. It truely is a strange
place.
