How Does Space Travel Work? | DUNE Explained | Movie vs Book

A discussion of the lore of the Spacing Guild and how space travel works in Frank Herbert’s story VERSUS how this was adapted for Denis Villeneuve’s Dune Part One. In an interview with Empire magazine director Denis Villeneuve has now revealed his reasoning behind some of his creative decisions. In this interview I found a few of his comments regarding the Spacing Guild and the design and function of their ships especially enlightening.

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Background Music: Music: LEMMiNO - Moon

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Information sources:
Frank Herbert’s Dune Novels

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[jonrobinson]

I like the new look. I think that the Holtzman engine still folds space, like in the book, but when it activates the ship is essentially in 2 places at once. If you look up at the skies of Caladan, you can see the heighliner the same if you look up at the skies of Kaitain. The ship is in a bubble of foldspace. Travelling without moving

[cobalthorizon]

I think Villeneuve’s interpretation is brilliant: They are freighter ships but from the destination’s perspective they look like portals because they are folding space. It’s genius

[arisakathedappergoose]

When I saw that the highliners were worm-like, I got the impression that they are portal-
like in a unique way. The highliner is folding space at a origin location. During the fold, it's actually at both the origin AND destination at the same time; just different space (this mean the Navigators have to manually calculate for universal drift!! That is an excellent lore add IMHO). Once stable, this allows ships to fly through it to the destination location. Once complete, the highliner drops the worm-hole and it's now at the destination location. This is a ~perfect~ parallel for worms; they bore through the ground, opening a passage for themselves, which collapses behind them. The only thing it leaves behind is what it 'eats'.

[tomitiustritus]

My hypothesis: Its the same ship on both ends. Not like a stargate that links two identical pieces. You fly in it on one end and out of it on the other. Its the same ship on both ends. In two places at the same time. Like the famous dot on the folded paper or the pen sticking trough both sheets, that are always used as the cliché explanation for wormholes.

[jorgeabraham]

I love the design so much, is nothing like the usual ships in other films that feels really mechanical, this one gives a sensation of an organic thing, and I think he pretty nailed the feeling of mistery and mysticism he wanted to achieve. I trust blindly in Denis vision. (Thank you so much for your content, it's outstanding)

[ProfezorSnayp]

I love how Guild representatives look basically like priests or popes in space helmets. That would make the Navigators their gods.

[virgiliopalacio]

This concept of space ship and travel is awesome, for those who read the book, spacing guild use the term 'traveling without moving' I think Denis tríes to show this method in the movie.
Have a Nice Day👋😁

[marxug]

I’m kind of enchanted by D.V.’s “portal or ship?” ambiguity. Some on this thread really smash their heads against this, but others suggest something fascinating: that while space is being folded, the heighliner is in both places at once. So the ship’s hollow center can behave as a tunnel, then when the navigators “de-fold” space, the heighliner resolves to one or the other location. I do hope this is Denis’ thinking!

[jerrysstories]

One of the most awesome visuals in the movie was near the start of the attack, the Guild heighliner so immense it's visible from the ground while in orbit over Arrakis! Wow! And it looked so realistic!

[nikitasamusev]

I would love to see a director’s cut - long 4-5 hour version on DVD :)

[thethunderperfctmind]

I kinda did a double-take looking at that scene where you can see through the Heighliner to its point of origin; considering that it's a kind of technology that is physically impossible as far as we know, I decided it makes about as much sense as any other depiction of FTL travel in any kind of SF universe. It's not as if we can look at it and say "well that's not realistic, " as if we know from experience. Plus it looks pretty cool, which at the end of the day is the really the most important thing anyway.

[marknovak]

I think the idea the ships are just huge and follow some sort of schedule where they pick up ships and drop off ships when they arrive at various destinations on a route occurs. The epic size of a ship design for interstellar travel is one thing Dune got right. Interstellar space travel is not even theoretically possible without giand world size ships.

[michaelcaldwell]

Sometimes less is more. It allows the viewer to fill in the spaces with their own imagination. When done well it draws a person further into the story. Alfred Hitchcock was famous for using this technique.

[raymalik]

I love the mystery of the ships and the space guild, almost otherworldly and ominous

[leocmen]

Suppose the heighliner is big enough till the point that when folding the long distances in space, instanteously, part of the vessel is already in the destination.
It is not like travel across distance, but instanteously stretching towards the destination (from external observer point of view) while keeping same size (from the point of view of internal observer inside the ship).

In other words, in this concept it does not fold the space to travel through it, but folds the space in which it is already partially immersed...

[ElewIV]

I actually think the movie Event Horizon best describes what is going on with "Folding Space". While folding space the ship is technically in 2 places at once and technically has the characteristics of a portal. A portal or stargate suggests 2 fixed points. The Highliners is only in one location when not activity folding space. Since it can change where it's going it's a ship not a Stargate.

[c.ladimore]

remember it is not impossible to fold space without spice, it is just incredibly dangerous. the navigators don't actually do it, they just have the prescience to see the safe route from the FTL engine, otherwise the ship could end up inside a star or just totally off course.

[voyagersalt]

Based on what you see in the movie, my bet is that the heighliner is in two places at once in foldspace, with the smaller vessels passing through them to their destination. It’s genius.

[virtualcircle]

Showing them the way he did allows it to be presented without any explanation. You see it and instantly know how it works. I would argue it's one of many opportunities to show and not tell that cut down on the exposition of the film and made it a success.

[lordhamster]

I personally like the intrigue and mystery of the original book.
So i am quite glad that they wished to maintain it.

Personally, I didn’t expect that to do such a good job.
But I welcome it.