Dune

Frank Herbert's highly acclaimed 1974 sci-fi novel is stunningly realised in this four-and-a-half hour miniseries produced by the Sci-Fi Channel. William Hurt stars as Duke Leto Atreides, charged to rule the desolate planet Arrakis, the universe's only source of Melange, a spice that enhances mental performance and makes interstellar travel possible. But soon Leto's bitter enemy, the evil Baron Vladimir Harkonnen (Ian McNeice), a former ruler, wins back Arrakis and hands power to his brutal nephew, Rabban. When the Atreides family escape into the inhospitable desert with the help of the Fremen, a race of displaced desert nomads - the strengthening power of Melange enables Paul (Alec Newman), the Duke's son, to organise the oppressed Fremen and wage war on the Empire. (Umbrella Entertainment)