Denis Villeneuve’s carefully crafted sequel ups the ante as Timothée Chalamet’s performance as Paul Atreides wrestles with his destiny and sets the stage for further exploration within the Dune universe.
Dune Part Two
Directed by Denis Villeneuve
Starring Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Javier Bardem, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Stellan Skarsgård, Christopher Walken, Lea Seydoux, Charlotte Rampling, Dave Bautista
Runtime: 2 hours, 46 mins
Synopsis
Paul Atreides (Chalamet) continues his training by Fremen leader Stilgar (Bardem) as he develops a relationship with Chani (Zendaya) and becomes one of their tribe. However, as he attempts to take revenge on the treacherous Harkonnens, Paul will wrestle with the disastrous destiny being thrust upon him by various factions that either want his power or want him dead.
He’s Not The Hero
I won’t rant about social media conversations I’ve had about Dune Part One (2021) or recent sci-fi films and television. However I will push back against one narrative that was repeatedly stated when Part One released. The common concern was that this series was yet another white male protagonist continuing problematic trends and trumpeting white exceptionalism, in the same vein as Avatar (2009) or The Last Samurai (2003), to name a few. What I felt that criticism missed was that Paul’s story was too complicated to be reduced to a simple white foreigner trope. Dune‘s story recognizes that the Atreides family is effectively another colonizer (Zendaya’s Chani states this early on in Part One, when she asks who their next oppressors will be) and while we assume that they are more honorable than the Harkonnens, they have their own dirty history and past to atone for.
Credit: Legendary / Warner Bros
Paul is actively resisting his mother’s (Lady Jessica played by Ferguson) scheming and the other factions vying for power as the film showcases how few honorable or “good” people there are to root for. While Paul can be applauded for his attempts to subvert people’s schemes for him, even his good intentions are eventually swallowed up by the destiny he’s been running from. If this were any other hero’s tale, accepting your destiny, the special gift, or power you’ve been searching for is usually a good thing. However in this universe, accepting that destiny means so many people’s lives are in the balance, regardless of the revenge Paul and even the audience feel they are owed.
If Part One teases Paul’s troubled destiny, then Part Two blows the door wide open by subverting the audience’s heroic expectations, hewing much closer to the sort of political intrigue and problems we would see in Game of Thrones versus a Star Wars or MCU film.
Dissecting Faith
One of the key factions vying for Paul’s power and ascendency are the Fremen, which see their role considerably expanded in the sequel, showcasing the complexity of their religion and how not everyone agrees that Paul is their foretold messiah. While the narrative may make you chuckle when you hear the rationale for some of their ideas (for example: Stilgar tries rationalizing to a few believers after one prediction doesn’t quite pan out), I never felt it was demeaning or calling them stupid. If we were being honest, the film is putting a mirror up to religion and religious structures for how they fail the very people they are supposed to be helping. That’s what Paul is worried about in the narrative: he knows they will win the battle but he will unleash something the galaxy isn’t prepared for and harm billions of people. On a smaller scale, it’s why the religious critique in the novel Dune was incredibly sharp when it released back in 1965 and unsurprisingly, still remains relevant in 2024 as we see various issues with fanaticism in the US and around the globe.
Credit: Legendary / Warner Bros
I expect these moments are going to enrage people of various faiths, but they would be missing the point entirely. Regardless of how you feel about religion, this type of blind faith and adherence is dangerous and can be manipulated easily. Dune is willing to sit in that uncomfortable spot and ask several questions which are sure to shake up audiences long after the credit’s roll.
Breathtaking Scale
One reason Dune has been considered difficult or impossible to film is because of how many moving parts it has. There’s so many subplots and threads that knowing what to cut and focus on can feel daunting. Some film series do an excellent job at that, most notably Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy, which many reviews have already started to compare this film favorably to. However, we can also look at Jackson’s Hobbit adaptation as an example when this goes poorly. With Hobbit, the core narrative was stretched too thin across 3 movies and then had too many supplemental stories and threads crammed in to justify its runtime.
Dune Part Two justifies Villeneuve’s decision to split the book into parts by delivering a bombastic journey across Arrakis, meeting different elements of the Fremen while also hopping across the galaxy for key moments with the Bene Gesserit sisterhood, the rise of Feyd-Rautha (Butler) on the Harkonnen home world, and introducing the Emperor (Walken) and his daughter Princess Irulan (Pugh). We are given just enough information on any one of these threads so that the narrative can move forward confidently while giving us the proper time to dwell when needed. For example, rather than getting into tons of detail about Paul’s first sandworm ride, Villeneuve does a great job showing us how treacherous such a ride is, and how it works, without ever uttering a single instruction or guidance to the audience. It may seem like a small detail, but in a franchise with other adaptations that were hampered by exposition, this is a welcome scene that exemplifies how impactful Villeneuve’s visual is.
One caveat is that hardcore fans may be disappointed when some scenes are cut short or less emphasized as we may have imagined. For example, the battle to retake the city of Arrakeen doesn’t feel rushed, but it also seems like the movie was more focused on Paul’s eventual battle with Feyd-Rautha. As far as actual runtime, it seemed like this battle took all of 5-10 minutes if that
Zendaya Shines Among The Ensemble
I have to give Zendaya her own compliments because she nails the conflict that Chani’s character has with her fellow Fremen and with Paul. The seeds of that discontent, even as she’s attracted to Paul’s sincerity and earnestness, are sowed early as her fellow warriors become swayed by his exploits.
Credit: Legendary / Warner Bros
As much as Feyd-Rautha is setup as Paul’s potential rival, I would argue that Chani’s disagreement with Paul’s quest for power is more impactful. Zendaya straddles an impossibly difficult line while embodying so much nuance: showing love and compassion for Paul, fighting for her fellow Fremen while also pushing back against their prophecies, Paul’s decision to pursue his full powers, and the fallout once they fight the emperor. This conflict gives Zendaya plenty of opportunities to engage her softer side and then kick it into high gear when the situation calls for Chani to stand up against elders who want to see this prophecy fulfilled, however fake and manufactured it may be.
Chalamet and Zendaya are flanked by new additions – first in Florence Pugh, as Princess Irulan, who shows up in a limited role but drops some narration and insights that move the outer world scenes along at a steady pace. Austin Butler as Feyd-Rautha has probably one of the better character introductions during his arena battle sequence on the planet of Giedi Prime, but his impact afterwards is minimal until he faces Paul. Butler brings a wonderful physicality to his role that pays dividends once the two square off, making their final fight easily the best in Villeneuve’s adaptation. The only qualms I had were about Christopher Walken, who came off pretty rigid (but the man is 80 years old, I can cut him some clack) and Stellan Skårsgard, who I felt was more impressive in Part One. To be clear, neither performance is bad, but they do stand out when everyone else is coming in strong.
Conclusion / Recommendation
Dune Part Two delivers the type of roaring, breathtaking science fiction fantasy that will satisfy the most avid Dune fans and give something special to the casual moviegoer. With an ensemble cast firing on all cylinders and a director tapping into all his skills and tricks, this is entry earns it’s spot among the elite club of cinema epics.
You don’t even have to guess, this is an easy recommendation for me. Go see this in theaters on the biggest screens possible or available in your region. If you’re fortunate enough to catch this film in 70mm, I have a suspicion that it’s fantastic (I’ll explain more below), but it’s extremely limited compared to Oppenheimer’s 70mm release so the option may not be available to you at all.
Score: 9.6 out of 10
- Impressive Shots and Scale- 10
- Every scene, every moment is something to marvel at. You will be just as impressed with the larger sweeping actions as you will be small intimate shots of Paul and Chani talking together. This is truly the mark of great visuals, when they work in every scene not simply the large set-pieces.
- Ensemble Execution- 9.5
- I’m only knocking this down a tad because of how some characters were used, like the Emperor or Baron Harkonnen. Walken as the emperor was fine and brought sufficient gravitas, but not memorable. Skarsgård’s Baron felt like it coasted off of his performance in the first film (and I still have my issues with portraying gluttonous bad guys as fat). Otherwise, the entire cast from Part One and new additions Pugh and Butler gel nicely while Zendaya takes over so many scenes
- Pacing- 9.5
- While it hasn’t happened a ton, there were lulls in previous Villeneuve projects Dune Part One and Blade Runner 2049 (2017) that can understandably mar an otherwise superb presentation. Dune Part Two has no noticeable moments where the narrative slows down and while you may still feel the nearly 3 hour runtime, you certainly won’t lose interest at any point.
70MM Impressions
So I was fortunate to catch an early fan screening of Dune Part Two back in my hometown of Nashville this past weekend at the Regal Opry Mills IMAX. While it was still IMAX, unfortunately we only saw the regular digital version (They will be showing the 70MM version later this week). However, Dune wasn’t the only film I watched as I also watched the Tenet 70MM re-release earlier that day. The re-release featured a 70MM preview for Dune Part Two, showing the moment that Paul reunites with Gurney. That one scene was amazing, as Josh Brolin’s Gurney floats from the top of the massive screen all the way to the bottom and eventually fends off an attack. So technically, I haven’t watched the whole film that way, but just off that one scene, I highly recommend checking out this version if you can (and you know I’m definitely going back to catch it the way Villeneuve intended).
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