I’ve taken the spice; I’m a believer
IF you are a fan of “Dune” the novel and if you sank deep into Denis Villenueve’s “Dune: Part One,” make sure you’ve done what you need so you won’t have to go to the bathroom when you go see “Dune: Part Two.” This one runs for two hours and 46 minutes, and you do not want to miss a single second of it. The acclaimed director’s cinematic vision is masterful, gorgeous, intense and delicious. Every single scene is important.
If I made a list of everything I loved about this movie, I would have needed to ask our editor to give me the whole section of today’s newspaper. But let’s do with the space that I have.
The cast is amazing -- heavy hitters everywhere. Rebecca Ferguson is no longer Lady Jessica of the nearly obliterated House Atreides but now a Reverend Mother of the Bene Gesserit (which operates openly as a religious order and more stealthily as a political organization).
Austin Butler succeeds as the perverted, twisted and villainous Feyd Rautha Harkonnen.
Zendaya finally gets more time to flesh out Chani as a smart and fierce Fremen warrior grounded in reality, yet with so much heart and passion for her people and their cause.
Timothée Chalamet lets us see how Paul continues to evolve from an uprooted teenager to someone starting a career as a new messiah, while Stellan Skarsgard disappears into the vicious and greedy Baron Vladimir Harkonnen.
Christopher Walken still looks and feels like Christopher Walken. I mean, if Padishah Emperor Shaddam 4th can play Christopher Walken instead, I’m buying it one hundred percent.
Javier Bardem turns in my favorite performance, killing it as Stilgar, a leader among Fremen who grows more and more convinced Paul Atreides is the much-awaited ONE. Get yourself a best friend who will cheer you on and support you like Stilgar does young Paul.
The cinematography, special effects, production, set and costume design were excellent. No detail was too small to overlook. And by the way, there are many reasons to re-watch this movie. One would be to look at everything you missed the first time. In a world of really ugly, garish special effects (I am sorry “Quantumania,” “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3,” “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom,” and the like), it almost makes one weep to see this beloved world imagined by Frank Herbert brought to life by such a skilled team who treated everything with reverence.
The story is incredibly rich, and the characters so interesting, “Dune: Part Two” again made me want to re-visit certain bits of Dune trivia and information. Like, who are the Fenrings again? For those odd hours when Dune friends can’t be called up, I highly recommend invested fans check out “Gom Jabbar: A Dune Podcast,” which has been at it since June 2020. The hosts, Abu and Leo, take deep dives into both the books and the movie.
I believe in Villeneuve’s vision like Stilgar believes in the Lisan al Gaib. His is the best epic I’ve seen since Peter Jackson’s “Lord of the Rings.”
“Dune: Part Two” is out in cinemas and on IMAX.