the following review encompasses two versions of dune : dune : the theatrical version ( 1984 ) runtime : 137 minutes rating : 2 out of 5 capsule review : cut down to just over two hours by nervous studio executives , the theatrical version of dune is a spectacular mess and may be incomprehensible to those unfamiliar with the book . the film's visual splendour , mystical beauty and impressive action scenes only partly compensate for gaping holes in the narrative . dune : the extended version ( 1988 ) runtime : 189 minutes rating : 3 out of 5 capsule review : a bit of a throw-together assembled by mca tv special projects for cable television . it was disowned by director david lynch but it's considerably closer to his original vision by virtue of its improved characterisation and clearer storyline . quality dubs of this version from the out-of-print japanese laserdisc release are available from various dealers on the world wide web . 
