In which we discuss the documentary Jodorowsky’s Dune, which details Alejandro Jodorowsky’s efforts to make a movie version of Dune in the 70s.Some of the stories told by Jodorowsky are so bonkers as to strain credulity, but he’s an incredibly entertaining raconteur. Jodorowsky’s concept was way too out there for the money people in Hollywood at the time, so the film was never produced. However, Jodorowsky and his producers gave all the major studios a Tolstoyesque book with extensive concept art which storyboarded the entire film. The documentary argues this chapbook ended up influencing a huge number of science fiction films in the late 70s and 1980s, and it’s not hard to see echoes in film even now.
One quick correction: I refer to Jodorowsky as Mexican, which is partially true. He was born in Chile, but has spent most of his adult life dividing time between France and Mexico.
