Denis Villeneuve may very well be the current king of sci-fi cinema. His vision for Dune: Part Two is a miraculously grand, meticulously ambitious achievement of cinematic mastery. Picking up where 2021’s Dune: Part One left off, Villeneuve and crew crank up the intensity of the big screen interpretation of Frank Herbert’s classic novel.
The screenplay, co-penned by Villeneuve and Jon Spaihts follows the second half of the 1965 novel. Anyone who has read Dune, knows that the novel (especially the latter portion of it) is damn near impossible to translate into a cohesive visual narrative. Spaihts and Villeneuve’s ability to adapt Herbert’s chaotic tale into something wholly legible is nothing short of a behemoth triumph.
It certainly doesn’t hurt your film’s chances of being a triumph if so much of it is filled by extremely talented, impressively beautiful acting talents. Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Dave Bautista, Javier Bardem, and many, many more bring the wide and varied characters of Dune: Part Two to life.
Chalamet once again holds everything together with a quiet confidence at the center of the proceedings. His performance as Paul “Maud’Dib” Atreides is a bit of a reflection of the character himself; effortless yet powerful, and fully in control even when not apparent.
In Dune: Part Two, Paul becomes a man of many names. He is the Mahdi, the Lisan Al-Gaib, or the Duke of Arrakis depending on who you ask. His existence becomes a complicated convergence of bloodlines, cultures, peoples, and tales smashing into each other, causing an explosion of intergalactic proportions. It’s a lot of pressure for one young man to shoulder. But Chalamet (and Atreides) is more than up for the challenge.
As newcomers to the Dune cinematic universe, Austin Butler and Florence Pugh are shining stand outs. Butler is delightfully devious as Atreides main foe, Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen. His manic unpredictability is as enticing as it is terrifying. Pugh, on the other hand, fills the screen with a grace that grounds the otherwise epic saga. Christopher Walken also makes a refreshing appearance as the Emperor Shaddam. His casting is a sneakily inspired choice for the role.
Butler’s introduction is one of the most visually striking sequences in recent history. Cinematographer Greig Fraser drains all color in the scene, communicating Feyd-Rautha’s presence as somehow bleaker and more lifeless than even the other Harkonnens (Dave Bautista as his brother, Glossu Rabban, and Stellan Skarsgård as his uncle, Baron Vladimir).
Beyond the brilliant introduction of Feyd-Rautha, Fraser’s cinematography is spectacular. Countless shots in this film are singularly great moments in cinema; ones that will exist in the collective consciousness for quite some time. There is an enormity in the images – literally, thematically, philosophically.
The scope and scale of Dune: Part Two are colossally massive. Denis and team have dared to make something unfilmable manifest into something understandable for audiences. The film’s boldest ambition is matched by the skillful execution of cast and crew.
Any questions of Villeneuve’s vision after Part One are put to rest in Part Two. It is abundantly clear that his version of the world is fully realized. Every detail is lived in and true. The technology of Arrakis simultaneously futuristic and functional. The cultures and characters have histories as real as the viewing audiences’. No moment of the film feels beyond the limits of a viewer’s comprehension.
Legendary film composer, Hans Zimmer, returned to deliver the score. Its sweeping droning nature contributes to the narrative and emotional progression’s ability to soar as necessary. However, it rarely (if ever) allows itself to overpower the dramatic urgency of a given scene.
Conventional wisdom may repudiate the thought that a film with a two hour and forty-five minute runtime has any sort of urgency, but Dune: Part Two is as breezy of a nearly three hour watch as you’ll get. It’s both an invigorating slow burn and a kinetic action-packed wonder. It will somehow leave you wholly satisfied and craving more.
The good news for the portion craving more is that all signs lead to Denis Villeneuve directing at least one more Dune film (potentially two if the Dune: Messiah novel requires the same cinematic treatment as the original book). Few directors in Hollywood today have a track record like Villeneuve’s, allowing him virtually total control over whatever his next move might be. Whatever it may, the anticipation will almost certainly be worth the wait and the hype.
It cannot be overstated what a success Dune: Part Two is in every regard imaginable. It manages to be a widely accessible major blockbuster film that is able to tackle difficultly dense subject matter; it entertains and stimulates; it wows, awes, and dazzles.
We should be so lucky to experience something so monumental multiple times a year. For now, we can just be grateful that the prophecy of Dune: Part Two’s greatness proved to play out as promised.
