By hayden Sadler
Every decade or so, a movie comes and shakes the foundation of what types of fiction can smash the box office.
Four decades ago, this movie was “The Empire Strikes Back.” Twenty years ago, this movie was the “Lord of the Rings” adaptation. And even more recently, James Cameron’s “Avatar” and “The Avengers” reached such heights. Director Denis Villeneuve attempted the impossible: to do the same with Frank Herbert’s sci-fi saga, “Dune.” It’s safe to say “Dune: Part Two” not only succeeds at building off of an excellent foundation, but exceeds every expectation and provides one of the most engrossing cinematic experiences in a long time, particularly in IMAX.
“Dune” is the story of Paul Atreides, played by Timothée Chalamet, who is stuck on the desert-world of Arrakis after his noble family — the rulers of Arrakis — are killed by a rival family called the Harkonnens. “Dune” is a story about the dangers of blindly following any prophet or political figure. It is also a cautionary tale about revenge. Following the death of his father, Paul goes down a path of revenge, and he begins to change for the worse. Without spoiling the film, the translation of Paul’s journey from lost teenager to war-hero is excellent, even if some key moments for his character are removed in translation from book to screen.
“Dune” released in fall 2021 and received countless positive reviews, although many claimed the movie was too boring for its emphasis on exposition, not unlike Villeneuve’s previous film, “Blade runner 2049.” Part Two, however, has received near-universal acclaim, for good reason. What sets “Dune: Part Two” aside from all-time greats like “The Empire Strikes Back” and “Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” is the fact that it doesn’t feel like a movie, it feels like someone invented a way to travel into the future by nearly three hours. At no point does the storytelling relent, as YouTuber “MoistCr1TiKaL” said in his own review, “You pay for the entire seat but you’ll only use the edge.”
Much like “Lord of the Rings,” the ““Dune”” movies are adapted from books. Oftentimes, text-to-screen adaptations suffer from removing or condensing too much narrative. This movie, however, largely remains true to the original source with the exception of some key characters being removed. Time will tell if this decision will benefit the storytelling in the long run, although it certainly made for an interesting watch.
Villeneuve has announced plans to make a third and final movie based on “Dune: Messiah,” the book’s sequel. “Messiah” has been heavily criticized for certain storytelling choices, so the changes in the movie will likely have a ripple-like effect on the plot of the “Messiah” adaptation if Villeneuve wants to make a more cohesive story.
“Dune” also has an amazing score, with Villeneuve once again partnering with famous composer Hans Zimmer. Compared to the first film, the soundtrack to Part Two seems much more focused on a single motif and moves away from the general ambience of the first film. Much like the first movie, the soundtrack to “Dune: Part Two” is a noteworthy aspect of the movie, and does more than give justice to the story, cinematography and acting.
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