Dune: Part Two
Warning: This review contains spoilers for Dune (2021) and Dune: Part Two.
There are few films I have watched as religiously as 2021’s Dune. I saw it twice in cinemas and three times at home, savouring every last detail and just generally obsessing over it. It immediately jumped into my top three films of all time, and for the last three years I have been dipping out of Frank Herbert’s novels, and as of writing am currently in the midst of book four: God Emperor of Dune. Suffice to say, Denis Villeneuve’s adaptation of the first half of Frank Herbert’s sci-fi classic struck a chord with me that I haven’t quite been able to shake since.
I was elated when Warner Bros. greenlit Dune: Part Two, so that Villeneuve could adapt the second half of the book, and I was devastated when it got pushed back from a late 2023 release to early 2024. But the time has arrived for our return to Arrakis, and I went all out. BFI IMAX, the only cinema in Europe to be showing Dune: Part Two on 70mm IMAX film. Was it incredible? Of course! But crucially, does Dune: Part Two cement Dune as the next great cinematic franchise? I think it does.
Following the Harkonnen invasion of Arrakis and the decimation of House Atreides; the young Duke Paul Atreides (Timothee Chalamet) and his mother Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson) join the ranks of the indigenous Fremen society under the wing of Stilgar (Javier Bardem). As Paul learns the Fremen ways and falls in love with Chani (Zendaya), some Fremen believe him to be a messiah that will liberate the Fremen from the great houses and restore water to the desert planet they call home.
Meanwhile the Baron Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgard) grows impatient of Feyd Rabban’s (Dave Bautista) inability to eliminate the Fremen, entrusting his nephew, Feyd Rautha (Austin Butler) to take over military operations on Arrakis.
But as word begins to spread of a powerful new Fremen threat, known as Maud Dib, Emperor Shaddam IV (Christopher Walken) grows weary of an uprising from the great houses against the empire, something only his daughter, Princess Irulan (Florence Pugh) may be able to stop.
I was elated when Warner Bros. greenlit Dune: Part Two, so that Villeneuve could adapt the second half of the book, and I was devastated when it got pushed back from a late 2023 release to early 2024. But the time has arrived for our return to Arrakis, and I went all out. BFI IMAX, the only cinema in Europe to be showing Dune: Part Two on 70mm IMAX film. Was it incredible? Of course! But crucially, does Dune: Part Two cement Dune as the next great cinematic franchise? I think it does.
Following the Harkonnen invasion of Arrakis and the decimation of House Atreides; the young Duke Paul Atreides (Timothee Chalamet) and his mother Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson) join the ranks of the indigenous Fremen society under the wing of Stilgar (Javier Bardem). As Paul learns the Fremen ways and falls in love with Chani (Zendaya), some Fremen believe him to be a messiah that will liberate the Fremen from the great houses and restore water to the desert planet they call home.
Meanwhile the Baron Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgard) grows impatient of Feyd Rabban’s (Dave Bautista) inability to eliminate the Fremen, entrusting his nephew, Feyd Rautha (Austin Butler) to take over military operations on Arrakis.
But as word begins to spread of a powerful new Fremen threat, known as Maud Dib, Emperor Shaddam IV (Christopher Walken) grows weary of an uprising from the great houses against the empire, something only his daughter, Princess Irulan (Florence Pugh) may be able to stop.
Following my second viewing of 2021’s Dune, not on an IMAX screen, I concluded that it was the kind of film that simply didn’t have the same effect if it wasn’t seen on the biggest screen you could find with the loudest sound you could withstand. I did get to see the original film at the BFI IMAX for my first viewing of it, and so I was going to do the exact same with Part Two. I don’t think that the film gains anything from the 70mm treatment, especially considering it was shot on digital and then printed onto film later. Compared to Oppenheimer which was shot on actual IMAX film and then exhibited on 70mm IMAX film where possible, Dune: Part Two instead felt like it was trying to ride on the coattails of the hype surrounding Oppenheimer’s authentic feel for the limited 70mm showings it got. This may owe to why Dune is only being shown in 70mm in very exclusive locations, and whilst I’m proud to say that I am one of the lucky few who got to see it, I can’t say I’m dying to see it on film again. But it absolutely should be seen in IMAX, and there is no better IMAX in the UK than the BFI simply because it’s the biggest screen in the country, and it has a superb and outrageously loud sound system.
But what of the film itself? Breathtakingly epic in every conceivable way is perhaps the most succinct way of describing it. Its size, scope, cast, special effects, score, just everything is massive in the same vein as previous cinematic epics like The Lord of the Rings, Ben Hur, and Gone with the Wind. This is a tour de force of epic proportions, and it really does make you feel rather small, as well as just in total awe of what Villeneuve has achieved.
I was concerned that Part Two would get bogged down with some of the more complex material from Herbert’s novel. Villeneuve skilfully skirted around a lot of the high concept sci-fi nonsense in the first film that would have only served to confuse audiences and over-complicate the plot of that film, which is why I was worried that Part Two would need to double down on it. Elements such as the navigation guild, the Bene Gesserit, and the Kwisatz Haderach just to name a few. But seemingly taking a leaf out of Peter Jackson’s book when he adapted The Lord of the Rings, Villeneuve has just elected to cut a lot of that stuff out in favour of strengthening and expanding upon the core components of the story for the battle of Arrakis. This is a blessing and a curse, because whilst it means the story never loses sight of what’s important to deliver complicated exposition about something that won’t really be relevant until future films, it does also mean that a lot of the story’s most interesting high concept elements are totally absent. The long and short of it is that similar to Jackson’s Lord of the Rings films, Villeneuve manages to deliver a version of Dune that will be more entertaining to general audiences by expanding on the bits that everyone wants, and working around the bits that wouldn’t work so well in a visual medium.
But what of the film itself? Breathtakingly epic in every conceivable way is perhaps the most succinct way of describing it. Its size, scope, cast, special effects, score, just everything is massive in the same vein as previous cinematic epics like The Lord of the Rings, Ben Hur, and Gone with the Wind. This is a tour de force of epic proportions, and it really does make you feel rather small, as well as just in total awe of what Villeneuve has achieved.
I was concerned that Part Two would get bogged down with some of the more complex material from Herbert’s novel. Villeneuve skilfully skirted around a lot of the high concept sci-fi nonsense in the first film that would have only served to confuse audiences and over-complicate the plot of that film, which is why I was worried that Part Two would need to double down on it. Elements such as the navigation guild, the Bene Gesserit, and the Kwisatz Haderach just to name a few. But seemingly taking a leaf out of Peter Jackson’s book when he adapted The Lord of the Rings, Villeneuve has just elected to cut a lot of that stuff out in favour of strengthening and expanding upon the core components of the story for the battle of Arrakis. This is a blessing and a curse, because whilst it means the story never loses sight of what’s important to deliver complicated exposition about something that won’t really be relevant until future films, it does also mean that a lot of the story’s most interesting high concept elements are totally absent. The long and short of it is that similar to Jackson’s Lord of the Rings films, Villeneuve manages to deliver a version of Dune that will be more entertaining to general audiences by expanding on the bits that everyone wants, and working around the bits that wouldn’t work so well in a visual medium.
The ending remains a point of contention for me though, and I’m going to try and do this with as few spoilers as possible. Much like the first film, Part Two ends on a cliff-hanger which will inevitably lead into an adaptation of Herbert’s second book, Dune: Messiah. However, it’s a relatively faithful adaptation of the way the first book ends, with that too just sort of ending out of nowhere. I would have preferred that Villeneuve spent a little less time showcasing Paul’s training in the first half of the film (I mean did we really need to see him take down spice harvesters three times?), and instead allowed the ending a little more space to breathe. Much like the book and the 1984 David Lynch film, Part Two ends with most of the major characters in a room negotiating for about five minutes following a big battle, then the credits start rolling before any proper agreements seem to have been hashed out. It’s a rubbish ending, and because very little is resolved from the negotiations you could feel a little cheated out of a resolution. It does make me wonder why Villeneuve chose to remain faithful to this frankly bad ending when he could have exercised his creative freedom like he did elsewhere to provide a more fulfilling ending.
I think for fans of Dune who have read the book or watched any of the previous film and TV adaptations, Part Two’s ending will be expected and understood for what it is. But for everyone else it might be a bitter pill to swallow.
Much of the films focus is on grand action and showcasing its massive scale. But I think one of the real standout moments of this is the sequence on the Harkonnen home world of Geidi Prime. This is where we’re introduced to Feyd Rautha as he fights three Atreides prisoners in an arena. The scene is so visually striking because of the lack of colour. Much of both the Dune films is bathed in an orange glow, but for the Geidi sequences colour is almost entirely absent. There’s one shot in particular where the Baron goes from an indoor environment to outdoor, and the colour gradually drains as he crosses the threshold to be in the light of the planet’s black sun. It was such an impressive moment in an already visually stunning film, but I think because it stands out, I remembered it so much more vividly.
Arrakis has never seemed bigger, whether it be the sandworms, spice harvesters, or sweeping shots of battles. Greig Fraser’s cinematography stuns once again as he doubles down on the impressive scale shots, whilst never losing sight of the intimacy of the characters. The digital effects blur the lines of reality at times, and whilst I am fully aware of there not being actual spaceships flying around, the detail in the digital models and the way the light interacts with them make them look arrestingly lifelike.
Then of course there is Hans Zimmer mind blowing score that gives every single scene such gravitas. Whether it be newly invented instruments to illustrate the alien worlds we visit, or the power behind the choir that blasts you away harder than an explosion, Part Two might well have one of my all-time favourite film scores.
I think for fans of Dune who have read the book or watched any of the previous film and TV adaptations, Part Two’s ending will be expected and understood for what it is. But for everyone else it might be a bitter pill to swallow.
Much of the films focus is on grand action and showcasing its massive scale. But I think one of the real standout moments of this is the sequence on the Harkonnen home world of Geidi Prime. This is where we’re introduced to Feyd Rautha as he fights three Atreides prisoners in an arena. The scene is so visually striking because of the lack of colour. Much of both the Dune films is bathed in an orange glow, but for the Geidi sequences colour is almost entirely absent. There’s one shot in particular where the Baron goes from an indoor environment to outdoor, and the colour gradually drains as he crosses the threshold to be in the light of the planet’s black sun. It was such an impressive moment in an already visually stunning film, but I think because it stands out, I remembered it so much more vividly.
Arrakis has never seemed bigger, whether it be the sandworms, spice harvesters, or sweeping shots of battles. Greig Fraser’s cinematography stuns once again as he doubles down on the impressive scale shots, whilst never losing sight of the intimacy of the characters. The digital effects blur the lines of reality at times, and whilst I am fully aware of there not being actual spaceships flying around, the detail in the digital models and the way the light interacts with them make them look arrestingly lifelike.
Then of course there is Hans Zimmer mind blowing score that gives every single scene such gravitas. Whether it be newly invented instruments to illustrate the alien worlds we visit, or the power behind the choir that blasts you away harder than an explosion, Part Two might well have one of my all-time favourite film scores.
Despite all the grand action the film is at its most engaging when it takes a moment for its characters. Scenes from the trailer such as where Paul and Chani share their first kiss are not only gorgeous to behold but have some incredible performances behind them. Zendaya was infamously marketed heavily for the previous film despite only appearing in scattered visions and for one scene at the end of the film. Here though she gets to explore the dilemma of falling in love with an outsider. I feel like she’s able to do much more with the character in this film than Herbert ever gave her the opportunity to do in the book. Her feelings for Paul are not clear cut, and the responsibilities she has to her people seem far greater here.
Bautista is also excellent here, conveying so much with relatively little dialogue. In the first film he is mostly just an angry military commander, but here he seems vulnerable, knowing that he’s on uneven ground with the Baron. Bautista communicates so much with his body language here. It’s rare to see him in such a serious dramatic role but just like in Blade Runner 2049 he shows just what he’s capable of even without an awful lot of dialogue.
But for me it was Butler that stole the show. Rautha’s inclusion in the story has always felt a little rushed to me, because he’s brought in so late into the story and doesn’t have an awful lot to do as a result. But Butler makes him an incredibly intimidating presence, completely unhinged and genuinely frightening at times.
As someone who is familiar with the source material, I do take issue with some of the changes made. But just like with Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings adaptations, change can also be good if done correctly, and Villeneuve has certainly taken great care when adapting the second half of Herbert’s classic novel. If we’re splitting hairs, I think I prefer the first film, at least after just one viewing of Part Two, but it’s very close.
Dune: Part Two is a cinematic tour de force of blockbuster filmmaking. There are few films out there that are able to combine mind blowing visuals and awe-inspiring orchestral numbers with a story that feels both deeply intimate and huge in scale in such a consistently high-quality way.
If there is only one action film you see this year, it should be Dune: Part Two.
Bautista is also excellent here, conveying so much with relatively little dialogue. In the first film he is mostly just an angry military commander, but here he seems vulnerable, knowing that he’s on uneven ground with the Baron. Bautista communicates so much with his body language here. It’s rare to see him in such a serious dramatic role but just like in Blade Runner 2049 he shows just what he’s capable of even without an awful lot of dialogue.
But for me it was Butler that stole the show. Rautha’s inclusion in the story has always felt a little rushed to me, because he’s brought in so late into the story and doesn’t have an awful lot to do as a result. But Butler makes him an incredibly intimidating presence, completely unhinged and genuinely frightening at times.
As someone who is familiar with the source material, I do take issue with some of the changes made. But just like with Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings adaptations, change can also be good if done correctly, and Villeneuve has certainly taken great care when adapting the second half of Herbert’s classic novel. If we’re splitting hairs, I think I prefer the first film, at least after just one viewing of Part Two, but it’s very close.
Dune: Part Two is a cinematic tour de force of blockbuster filmmaking. There are few films out there that are able to combine mind blowing visuals and awe-inspiring orchestral numbers with a story that feels both deeply intimate and huge in scale in such a consistently high-quality way.
If there is only one action film you see this year, it should be Dune: Part Two.