'Dune: Part Two' Is A Hypnotic Return to Arrakis
Director Denis Villeneuve delivers another exciting chapter in the Dune saga with Dune: Part Two. The war to control spice between House Atreides, House Sardaukar, and House Harkonnen has died down since the first film after Atreides fell. The surviving future ruler of Atreides is still alive with his mother by his side. What Dune: Part Two gives us is a hint to how things will transpire once Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) takes full leadership of not only the Atreides but the Fremen as well. By being one with the Fremen, Paul Atreides becomes their Messiah. Dune Part Two follows a familiar white savior type of story that takes a unique left turn. If you've read or are conscious of Dune Messiah, then you'll be pleased with the film's third act. Paul has an interesting arc in Part Two. He goes from a caring young man into a leader with a short attitude.
The journey Paul takes in this movie has more nuance than the last film. In Dune, Paul was always the one who would keep a cool head, thinking about what to do for the greater good. In Part Two, we see Paul change in ways that aren’t noble. Paul, like Anakin Skywalker, is the chosen one. But what happens when you give someone that young so much power? Stripped from his kingdom by the Harkanins, Paul must be one with the Fremen, the natives of planet Arrakis, so that he can survive its harsh desert. If you've never read the books or seen the last film, you'll be at a complete loss. Dune Part Two doesn't waste its water trying to catch the audience up to the first film. There are no recaps to catch you along. And deservedly so.
Similar to The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, Dune: Part Two doesn't have an opening or an ending. It's the middle act of a grand opera. Even without a closing act, the film has a finality to it. For Paul Atreides's rise to power, his arc is closed. What happens in this picture is a lot, and it's challenging to keep up with. Anyone having to adapt Frank Herbert's work has a herculean task they must fulfill. Dune is a book known to be unadaptable. Yet Denis Villeneuve pulled it off with the first film. Now, he goes even further into the Dune lore with the second film.
For the most part, I was interested in Paul Atreides but never absorbed by him. With House Atreides fallen, Paul aims to reobtain his kingdom with the help of the Fremen and some enormous sandworms. To take down the Harkanan will be an obstacle only one with desert power can do. I'm sorry, but "desert power" sounds silly, even if it was in the book.
The cast does a mixed job. Dave Bautista as Beast Rabban sounds like he's entering a WWE match in each scene. Rebecca Ferguson annunciates more than just a whisper this time around. But not much more. Ferguson is required to be strict, vulnerable, and strong. She goes through a range of emotions, but not with flying colors. She's often too stilted and quiet.
One performance that stood out that I wasn't expecting was Austin Butler's Feyd-Rautha. He's lightyears away from Sting's sexualized speedo portrayal of the character from the eighties. Feyd is a deplorable monster that oozes black goo from his mouth as if he's tasting his blood to remind him why he must always be vigilant. Not in just the makeup design but the choice of voice to, Butler is unrecognizable. One of the weakest performances in the movie, aside from Christopher Walken who seems like he just stumbled on the set, is from Timothée Chalamet. Chalamet often broods as that's his only range of emotion, making him come off as more of a robot than a Massiah.
Aside from its religious allegories, Dune: Part Two lacks any real heart. It's cold like a desert during nightfall. Paul's rise to power is intriguing but not enthralling. The film shines brightest during an explosive third act that dwarfs the night attack from Dune. With Part Two being the middle chapter, there is a portion of the film that had unnecessary exposition when the first film gave us all the information we needed. Luckily it's not a confusing mess like David Lynch's Dune was.
Denis Villeneuve makes the audience experience what reading Frank Herbert's book feels like. Greig Fraser's cinematography is nothing short of stellar. The film goes through a unique process where the movie is shot digitally, transferred to 35mm film, and then rescanned to digital. The result gives off an image that can't be emulated. It's all to make the film feel more dreamy. Indeed, it does as the film flashes between Paul's dreams and his present-day reality, putting the audience in his head without corny narrations driving the story. Hans Zimmer's Oscar-winning score from the first film returns with new tracks that come in with the right vocals, drums, and crescendos to make the images on screen soar.
Dune: Part Two is more than your average sci-fi epic adventure. Even with its flaws, I can’t deny that it's a film that feels like a dream you don't want to wake up from. It's an experience to be had at the cinema. When those sandworms start moving, your seat will be rattling. You can’t do its sound effects or score justice at home unless you own the movie on 4K, Blue Ray, or DVD if it exists in that format still. You’d need a surround sound theater and a top-of-the-line one. Even then, you won’t capture what it’s like to see in the theater. It’s like trying to experience 2001: A Space Odyssey from your house. There are just too many details a television screen can’t capture.
Denis Villeneuve is one of Hollywood's luckiest directors. He directed a sequel to Blade Runner that bombed like the original. But it garnered fans over time. Villeneuve's career as a commercial filmmaker could have disappeared after Blade Runner 2049's lackluster box office performance. Luckily, his next project, Dune, was greenlit and was a success despite COVID-19 trying to slow it down.
Villeneuve achieved the impossible with Dune by making it understandable and engaging cinema. Many have tried before and failed, whereas Denis Villeneuve succeeds. The sequel racks up the scale and allows itself room to breathe. It may be a long film. Sometimes it does feel its length. But the payoff in the end is huge. It's a trip to Arrakis that's worth revisiting. If you liked the first film, you'll likely enjoy this one too. Is it better than the first? Close to it, if not as good. If Villeneuve can perform that hat trick with Dune Massiah, he'll be making one of modern cinema's greatest blockbuster trilogies.
