You Are Not Prepared For What is to Come.
5 / 5
Directed by Denis Villeneuve.
Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the universe, Paul Atreides endeavours to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee.
Dune: Part Two returns audiences to Arrakis with unrestrained confidence that expands on the scale that made the first so impactful.
Denis Villeneuve effortlessly delivers an epic treat for the eyes and ears that is a joy to lose yourself in. The direction and worldbuilding are monumental achievements delivering on the rich variety of environments and characters that make Dune so unique. The combination of industry-best practical and visual effects makes this a technical masterpiece, pushing the boundaries of filmmaking on almost every level.
Possibly one of the finest ensemble casts in recent times, there is so much talent on screen it's often hard to keep up. Timothée Chalamet leads the film with an astonishing presence with Zendaya by his side attempting to keep him grounded while Rebecca Ferguson and Javier Bardem push the possibility of Paul being the 'chosen one.' Austin Butler also leaves his mark on the film as the deadly Feyd-Rautha, subverting expectations after Sting played the character wearing winged underwear in the 1984 film. I could go on for pages about the extent of this cast but each character, big or small, gets their chance to shine in their own right.
Political, religious and cultural themes are dialled up much stronger in this second instalment as we not only learn more about the world but the characters begin to evolve after the emotional events in the previous film. The corrupting nature of these themes haunts Paul at the centre of this film as he battles to discover the leader he wants to be and how that compares with the leader he is supposedly destined to become. All this while wanting to avenge his family name. Classic space hierarchy politics!
It's hard to find fault with what Dune: Part Two manages to achieve. From a filmmaking perspective, it's a masterpiece. Every frame is captivating, the score and sound design are spellbinding and it is a full-on physical experience seeing it in IMAX. I was left quite exhausted by the end of it all. Though the pace of the film isn't an issue, the amount of story it gets through feels somewhat underwhelming considering the runtime. Similar in a way to The Empire Strikes Back it commits much of its runtime to "second act" character development and preparing for what is to come.
The future for Dune looks bright with spin-offs and future instalments feeling more inevitable with every passing moment. It's so exciting to go to the cinema and still be blown away by bold and exciting filmmaking. Directors and studios taking risks on huge space epics about possible messiahs riding space worms in the desert, all shot in IMAX. It doesn't get much better than this.
Read our latest reviews at: letterboxd.com/TheJackAling