Dune Part 2 is one of my top three films of all time. That’s not an exaggeration. That’s not me being a spastic weirdo about my recurring hyperfixation. Dune Part 2 is an amazing film, so much so that I’m gearing up to see it again.
The Great
Cinematographer Greg Fraiser did an amazing job bringing this world to life. This movie is gorgeous, and there are several amazing shots.
The super black-and-white scenes were crazy to see and the infrared cameras gave everything this weird milky texture. It provided a good contrast between the course oranges and reds of Dune. The costume design is bizarre and amazing to see in motion.
A complaint that can be leveled at the first one is that it's not too weird. This one cranks up the weirdness and keeps it there. Strange liquid fireworks that hang in the air, the Matador costumes, the jewelry, the spaceships—it's all so weird and cool to see.
Watching Paul get off a gigantic sandworm before cutting his way through a crowd of people like a knife while the music built was incredible to see in an IMAX theater. The story, music, and visuals all came together to communicate how incredible and horrifying the movie is.
A minor complaint I had with the first one was that it was really heavy on vocals. This one isn't; it allows the instruments to hype you up and carry the mood.
Chani, The Story and The Themes
I have heard many concerns that Dune 2 “went woke,” with many of these concerns swirling around Zendaya’s character of Chani. It’s rare; not even Ben Shapiro or other popular conservative commentators made it, but I have seen it swirling around.
I bring it up because changes were made to Chani as a character, and it’s for the best. Chani turns into a big fucking sledgehammer, a sledgehammer also known as the point of the book. Frank Herbert is not subtle in his writing, but the point that “This prophecy is manipulating us" and “Paul is not our savior" do need to be hammered home, and the film does an amazing job of doing that.
There is a “youth movement” of young, mostly Fremen women who reject the prophecy of the Lisan-Al-Gaib. But by the end of the film, that skepticism is gone, replaced by a swelling fervor.
Stilgar initially provides some comedy relief before his beliefs turn to fanaticism. During his transition, he is the ultimate hype man, and it was great to see.
The Bad
There are some nitpicks I have. Some lines I wish they included, a character I wish they brought back.
I’ll admit I wasn’t crazy about Christopher Walken’s performance. There just isn’t a lot of him doing anything. Hopefully this is remedied in Dune Messiah, but for right now, it was just sad to see him do very little.
Concluding Thoughts
If you are going to see this movie, I highly, highly recommend an IMAX movie theater. Hearing the bass in my chest from the Ornithopters, worms and music was well worth the price. The night of this newsletter gets sent out, I’m going to see it a second time.
This is Michael Vincent Hawthorne. Long live the fighters; praise Muad’Dib.