★★★★★
Denis Villeneuve’s great gamble paid off. This is now certainly irrefutable. Frank Herbert’s once seemingly insurmountable literary tome finally has a worthy cinematic counterpart. Dune. If there seemed to be little appetite for a single sci-fi epic in 2021, Villeneuve’s belief that Herbert’s vision warranted two was risky. Certainly, nothing guaranteed, in a box office weakened by the pandemic, that Second part would one day see the light of day. Villeneuve’s long-awaited – in some circles – sequel to Blade Runner had, after all, failed to match the critics in terms of commercial success. And yet, here we are. Where Villeneuve arrived first Dune was bold, noble and a little heavy-handed in its world-building, its second is simply mesmerizing. Villeneuve has made peace with the Shai-Hulud and this is only the beginning.
There’s definitely something to be said for walking into a movie like Dune: part two blind. Despite this, it seems difficult to imagine that even the highest expectations would not be met in this case. The second part has it all. A painful romance perfectly balances scene after scene of thrilling action. The heart races, breaks, soars and sings in accordance with a narrative blessed with the kind of respite that most blockbusters and big-budget directors would kill for. What’s more, as Villeneuve himself writes, alongside Passengers” – yeah – Jon Spaihts, the film enjoys a density of both intrigue and provocation of thought. It is an epic of such scale and power that cinema has never had before. not seen since the noble days of David Lean and Charles Heston.
Once again, razor-sharp casting only accentuates the reality of the world on screen. Don’t make a mistake about this, Dune has a who’s who of tomorrow’s biggest and brightest stars. This proved to be a smart move in the online age when it came to capturing a four-quadrant audience last time around. Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya are as much icons as they are wildly talented young actors. Chalamet plays Paul Atréides, exiled son of the late Duke Leto (Oscar Isaac). Zendaya is Chani, the Fremen warrior he fell in love with in visions during the first part. They are now increasingly united on the desert planes of Arrakis. House Harkonnen has taken the ducal seat, led by Stellan Skarsgård’s horrible Baron Vladimir, but it’s a world of prophecies and messiahs. All are subject to the fate and will of the mystical brotherhood Bene Gesserit.
Christopher Walken joins Second part as Shaddam IV, Padishah Emperor of the known universe, with Florence Pugh also stepping into the role of his daughter, Princess Irulan, a key figure in the books. Although neither has much of a presence, the casting is perfect. Certainly, it is difficult to imagine a more imperious Irulan than the one played by Pugh. The best of the newcomers, however, is Austin Butler – he’s Elvis for us little mortals. Sting played Feyd-Rautha in David Lynch’s disavowed ’80s version of Dune, but wasn’t half the vampiric deuteragonist that Butler offers. Psychotic, sadistic and sociopathic, Harkonnen’s young nephew is nothing short of terrifying in Butler’s hands. His entrance as a gladiator, filmed in striking infrared, is among the most visually impressive sequences in the film.
This is not an easy task. Second part is an almost entirely visual spectacle and offers a veritable feast of memorable set pieces. Paul’s first ride on a sandworm, every minute a thrill, may be the best of the bunch, but I also have a fondness for the all-too-brief scene in which Chani teaches him to walk on sand like a real Fremen. As the action migrates south and into even more hostile environments, themes of fanaticism stretch into the recesses of an incredibly effective final act. Religion has always been a central driving force in Herbert’s original text, but here it takes on a curious relevance in the face of a contemporary world that is tearing itself apart. Based on a scenario now several years old, this is almost prophetic.
A thunderous score by Hans Zimmer equates the very beating of Arrakis’ heart with the transcendence of a higher calling. Extraordinary cinematography is, at this point, a given. All told, the sum total is a feature demanding overall big screen experience. Future generations, equipped only with the Netflix experience, simply won’t benefit from the full power of Villeneuve’s success.
T.S.