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“The visions are clear now. I see possible futures, all at once. Our enemies are all around us, and in so many futures they prevail. But I do see a way, there is a narrow way through.”

Our first movie back from Oscarland, and it’s one of the biggest movies in the world. That’s right it is Dune: Part 2

Forrest Miller, Conan Neutron, J. Andrew World are joined by Becky Rice of SIFF for this space epic sequel. The spice must flow and so will the conversation!

So… Part 2. Breathtakingly badass. An epochal defining science fiction and adventure movie. Pays off all of the laborious setup of the first one and then some. A forceful, powerful film that insists on showing and not telling. The film has a sense of its grand scale and ambition, and definitely leans into it heavily.  A stunning work by a filmmaker working at the top of his form. This will be a best picture nominee and it deserves it.

One of our chief complaints in the first was with the casting of Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya. Some of us felt neither really “had it” in the first. Good news here. Chalamet especially steps as Paul Atreides becomes Muad’Dib. The hero of legend. His performance changes considerably and in a way that reflects BETTER on the first one. He becomes the role as the character becomes the role and it is stunning.

Additionally the changes to Zendaya’s Chani character, a skeptic and attempted handbrake to the danger’s of Paul’s ascension. We actually think are quite good and give depth to the story and the character.

Dune Part 2 leans into the fact that there are echoes of Life of Brian, when Timothee Chalamet’s Paul Atreides declares “I’m not your Mahdi” and the Fremen Believers basically say “the Mahdi is too humble to say he is the Mahdi, it is written.”

You can tell when someone truly loves the source material and Denis Villenueve really really does.

So many scenes to call out, the potrayals of the Harkonnen planet alone are breathtaking in their cinematography and are likely to be in the conversation for the Oscars next year. The gladiator fight has been utilized quite a bit recently, to the point where it feels like a bit of a cliche, but it works here. The point of fact is that this film creates an immersive and engrossing world that delivers in a way that we rarely have seen.

It all builds up to a legitimately wild climax that is both a chapter closer, and somehow a cliffhanger. Taking a sharp look at the dangers of messianic religious fundamentalism, a point which distressed Dune Author Frank Herbert enough that he wrote the next Dune book, Dune Messiah, to spell out that Paul Atreides is not meant to be the hero.

We are a relentless advocates for making movies short again. This one not only justifies the run time, it makes it feel like a half hour long. If you love movies, it’d be honestly shocking if you don’t get something out of this absolutely massive sweeping epic. See it on the biggest screen you can.

Addendum: Both our Dune Part 1 and DeLaurentis/Lynch Dune episode suffered from… ah, a cast of thousands and a show still finding a voice. Venture forth if you dare, but you are probably better off with just this one.

Forrest, J. Andrew World, Conan Neutron and SIFF’s Becky Rice talk about Denis Villenueve’s Dune Part 2! #dune #dune2 #paulatreides #timotheechalamet #denisvilleneuve #florencepugh #zendaya #austinbutler #dunereview #joshbrolin #javierbardem

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