DJariya

Rated PG-13

Running Time: 2 hours, 46 Minutes

RT Score: 97% as of 2/24/24

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/dune_part_two


Early IMAX screenings start tomorrow at 7pm local time in your market. I already have my ticket booked. That's why I am putting up the thread now.

This officially opens on Thursday.

Troy Stiffler

This is getting hyped in some unique ways. Reminds me of Oppenheimer. Might reach a bigger audience than expected. I think it’ll be bigger than part one.

DJariya

Loved it. And I wasn’t even a big fan of the first movie. This was way better. It felt bigger and more epic in scale. The battle and action sequences were amazing. I know it’s a tired cliche at this point, but this was made for a big screen experience. I didn’t get up to go use the restroom once for the 2 hours and 46 minutes and I even bought a soda. It looked like the vast majority stayed glued to their seats.

For me this might fall into the top 10 greatest science fiction movies of all time and that’s not hyperbole.

On the downside, no posters from Regal I’m guessing AMC probably had them tonight.

Boba Fett

Really good, not great. 20ish minutes too long. Zendaya delivers a great performance here that is often dialogue free. Walken is badly miscast as the Emperor. Hopeful they adapt Messiah. Also found it odd they completely excised Thufir Hawat from the film.

OldBoy

It’s funny. I’m off Thurs and Friday. Friday would be perfect actually. Could be my 3rd in theaters since Covid. I think 3rd. Can’t remember if I saw M:I in theater. Hmmm…

Dr. DVD

Haven't seen it but have read the book and that's a big surprise to me. I guess we're supposed to presume he just passed away off screen ? I know Villeneuve has stated he's against director's cuts or expanded editions, but it really sounds like these movies need one big deluxe edit. Make it a 4K physical media exclusive and it could probably be one of the best selling packages of the past decade.

What I've read of reviews so far makes it seem like Villeneuve really went all in on making something as close to a Hollywood blockbuster than he has in past efforts. If his ultimate goal is to finish the Paul saga with Messiah and he wants it to appeal to the masses, I guess it's understandable he took such an approach. It also appears that while the movie could get some Oscar consideration, the big focus of this entry is trying to make as much money as possible.

Boba Fett

He was 100% filmed as the actor was confirmed, just cut from the final film as was Tim Blake Nelson who was likely playing Count Fenring. They do shift Hawat's major action to another character and it somewhat makes sense, but is still awkward.

story

Because I've read the book a few times, I don't feel too terrible coming to the spoiler reviews thread before I see this on Friday.

That's really disappointing to hear about Thufir Hawat not being in Dune Part Two. Not only do I really like that character (Mentats are fascinating!), I also thought Stephen McKinley Henderson did an excellent job in Dune Part One.

Did I hear, too, that Alia doesn't assassinate the Baron with a gom jabbar? That's too bad, too, as I always thought that was an excellent payoff for its introduction so early in the film.

DJariya

I agree with Denis. If he wants to take an extended break, then he should rather than having to rush out a sequel to fulfill a release date.

Boba Fett

Regarding Alia

joe_b

As with Part One, this movie sort of left me cold. While Chalamet doesn't do a bad job, I just don't care for him as Paul. Still, it could have been so much worse by modern Hollywood standards. I suppose I should be relieved the studio gave this adaptation the appropriate budget and runtime required to do the book some justice. It's always a plus when a project of this scale is helmed by a skilled filmmaker with a clear appreciation of the source material, though Villeneuve's work (much like Nolan's) often feels too sterile for my taste. I'll highlight some of the issues I had:

- I wanted more important character moments from the book, like Gurney's belief that Jessica was the traitor and his attempt to kill her after their reunion in the desert. Not foreseeing this threat to his mother is one of the main reasons Paul decides to drink the Water of Life in the book.

- Jessica in this movie comes off as less concerned for Paul and more manipulative and aggressive in her efforts to grow the myth of him as the messiah. While I can understand her desire to avenge Leto by using religious fervor to weaponize the Fremen, I dislike her character here. I also wonder if she'll be removing those face tattoos after she blows off her duties as Fremen Reverend Mother and returns to Caladan. We likely won't be seeing Ferguson in the role again unless Children of Dune gets made.

- Completely deleting Thufir Hawat and his forced servitude by the Harkonnens is a bit of a head scratcher. Surely they could have cut a handful of the many lingering desert shots to make room for those scenes.

- It was a unique idea to depict all the exterior shots on Giedi Prime using black and white infrared, but I still don't dig the design choice to make the Harkonnens pasty white and completely hairless. Bautista's outbursts as Rabban are totally cringe. It becomes almost comical the number of times the Baron and his nephews murder their own underlings. Austin Butler as Feyd did a decent job copying Stellan Skarsgård's speech pattern, though I wonder if he had an easier time shaking this fake accent compared to the Elvis twang that poseur was still using two years after the movie wrapped.

- Not sure the scenes with Lady Fenring were really needed. She isn't sent to administer the gom jabbar test to Feyd in the book. She's a Bene Gesserrit broodmare tasked with securing his seed for the sisterhood's breeding program, but that's hardly crucial to the overall plot. Perhaps Denis just wanted to work with Léa Seydoux.

- I found the part where we're shown Paul's vision of the Baron looking at an infant Jessica to be out of place. In the book, it's fairly explicit that the Baron has a preference for teen boys - even fancying Paul, not knowing it's his biological grandson. Still, the Bene Gesserit managed to get him to impregnate one of their sisterhood (with Jessica being the result). I think one of Brian Herbert's prequel books elaborated on this, even revealing Gaius Helen Mohiam (Charlotte Rampling's character) to be Jessica's birth mother. I still haven't bothered to read those. Anyway, it's implied the Baron was never aware he'd fathered a child - so it's doubtful he would have ever seen the baby.

- The way Alia is handled (or not handled) in the movie feels like a cop out. To me, having this tiny girl who was awakened in the womb with the consciousness of past Reverend Mothers (and who can even command a Fremen attack group) is one of the most memorable aspects of the book. I know I'm not alone in that opinion. You sort of feel for the character because her very existence is so unsettling to nearly everyone around her. For this movie to not jump ahead in time to avoid having to deal with that (not to mention giving the big moment where she kills her grandfather to Paul instead) is something that does not sit well with me. To be fair, it wouldn't bother me in the slightest from a dramatic standpoint if I wasn't already familiar with the novel. While I assume we'll at least get to see Taylor-Joy flesh out a teenage version of Alia in the next film, it is a bit odd knowing she, Chalamet, Zendaya and Pugh are all roughly the same age.

- By the end of the book, Chani is confident in her place as Paul's ride or die partner and that his marriage to Irulan is merely a political power move. This gives her a direct parallel to Jessica, a woman who also could not marry the man she loved because the possibility of a political marriage had to remain on the table for Duke Leto. Showing Chani clearly taken off guard and hurt when Paul demands Irulan's hand in marriage in this movie just displays how her relationship with him doesn't feel secure - and makes Paul seem like an insensitive jerk for not telling her his intent beforehand. Her loyalty at this stage is diminished by the screenplay, but a lack of chemistry between the two actors doesn't help. The film also removes the years (not to mention the deceased son) the couple had shared in the novel.

Dr. DVD

Having read the book a couple of times, I'm not really digging all of these changes. It seems to be confirming my suspicion that Villeneuve was allowed to make part 2 on the condition that he make it more comprehendible to non-readers. I understand this decision, as even with all of the watering down he did with part 1 many still didn't fully understand what was happening. However, there was a lot I was looking forward to seeing fully fleshed out in a big budget adaptation. Do they even give Thufir Hawat the dignity of a Poochie send off? Oh well, at least I know what to be prepared for whenever I do watch the movie. Villeneuve is still a great filmmaker, but it sounds like he made the most Hollywood/blockbuster type movie of his career with this one.

In terms of Alia

joe_b

No. He's never shown or even mentioned.

We do. It's revealed to Paul after he takes the Water of Life. Jessica tells him she only found out after drinking it herself earlier.

Dr. DVD

So I guess we're to presume he died during the Harkonnen invasion in part one.

TGM

latest review is in:

DJariya

I know most here probably weren’t able to watch this last night.

But, looks like this made about $12M last night. Up big from part 1’s preview night. But, 1 was compromised because of you know what.

DJariya

Late in the movie, when Paul made that "turn" and then the camera panned over to Chani's face and we saw the steam coming out of her ears and how devastated she looked, my auditorium just gasped. The theater was in an "Oh shit" silence.

EEz28

Mine too! I thought that whole part was so well done.

Shannon Nutt

The movie is pretty good, but I feel the need to state that it's NOWHERE near as good as some of the hyperbole being spouted by critics and fans on social media. It's nowhere near a "masterpiece." Could it wind up being one of the best movies we see in 2024? Sure (unlikely, but sure). Is it the best sci-fi film ever made? Not even close. That said, I still give it 4 out of 5 stars.

RichC2

Hype does more harm than good 9 times out of 9.1.

DJariya

Villeneuve was on Colbert last night promoting the movie. He’s not the most exciting person to have go out on the talk show circuit. Very mellow and English is not his first language. He did say he would like to adapt Dune Messiah to complete the Paul Antreides arc when Colbert asked if there is a 3rd movie coming.

Dr. DVD

Caught this today and overall I think Villeneuve did a great job adapting the material given the circumstances of what he could realistically do and maintain audience interest. Having read the first two books twice , I was amazed at how well he took such dense story and dialogue and made it more palatable for the non readers. Of course the irony of that statement is that only a book reader would understand just how much adapting was done and be able to appreciate it. There was still quite a bit of stuff that would leave some audiences scratching their heads, but I will say if anyone has seen the Lynch version they'll be able to comprehend.

What I liked:

-The visuals-superb - I especially liked the sequence with Lady Fenring and Feyd where flashes of lightening illuminate them as they speak.

-Nods to book readers like Irulan doing dictation and recording the history. Kind of wish they had done this with the first one instead of giving it to Chani.

-The theme of how mixing politics and religion is very dangerous. The Lynch movie really missed the mark with this and so did the mini series IMO.

-The Giedi Prime sequences were obviously influenced by some of the early production design for Jodorowsky's ill begotten attempt to make the movie. Cool to see it realized.

-I really liked how this movie never shied away from the fact that Paul isn't some kind of Luke Skywalker kind of hero. If I were going to make a more accurate comparison for this movie I would say Michael Corleone. The ending bit was especially reminiscent of the first Godfather to me, with the kissing of Paul's ring and the woman who loves him feeling shut out of his life. I know some didn't really like the way they did Chani, but I feel it drove the point home.

Didn't care for :

-A lot of the Harkonnen stuff was a bit gross and disturbing. Not as bad as the Lynch version, but could have done without naked Vladimir and hints of molestation and murder.

- They could have actually cut a few minutes of lingering shots , and I felt the retrieval of nukes sequence took a bit longer than needed.

-The casting was good for the most part, even though I felt that Zendaya was just playing a typical Zendaya character for the most part. Chani came off a whole lot like MJ at times. Same with Christopher Walken, he was just doing his typical schtick. Granted, it's always welcome, but felt out of place in this movie.

-Wish they had at least addressed Thufir in some way, poor guy is persona non grata. I would have kind of liked to see Alia as well, but understand why they did what they did and was actually impressed at how they still found a way for her to play the role she did in the book.


Do I think this would be big competition for Oppenheimer if it were released in 2023 as originally planned? I honestly don't. The only areas where I could see it edging it out were probably in costume design and other technical categories. If one were to take both Dune movies and pit them against Oppenheimer, then I could have seen Villeneuve possibly taking the director award, but that's not how it works. But I still enjoyed it and it's easily the best movie of this year so far, even that's a pretty low bar right now.

Dr. DVD

That was probably a factor in deciding to delay the release until after the SAG strike. They have a huge cast and it's best to let them sell the movie.

cultshock

The family and I watched it today and we all thoroughly enjoyed it, great stuff!

story

We saw this on Friday night and we all enjoyed it. We dropped off our youngest with her cousin's family and we took our oldest. I took her to the first one in the theater and she loved it and was really excited for this one. We rewatched the first Dune earlier this week.

We liked it a lot. The production value was amazing, of course. It looked and sounded spectacular, and we saw it in our local AMC Dolby, just incredible.

I can live with the three main changes: the timeline and development of the relationship between Paul and Chani, the role of Alia in the story, and the fate of Thufir Hawat. Taking them one at a time, I really like Thufir Hawat as a character (the Mentats are fascinating) and I thought the actor was great, so I was sorry to see him go. I can see him coming from out of nowhere in this movie, and we already have at least one survivor seem to come out of nowhere with Gurney, so I guess it's okay. I would love to see a deleted scene someday. For Alia, I think the way the story worked it worked well. The condensed timeline is the main reason, but it worked, and I thought they made her sentient and influential presence still integral to the Atreides family. And for Paul and Chani's relationship, I think it mostly where it needed to go for how the story was told in the movie. It would be tough to show the passage of time like the book, and all that they went though.

Back to back, these two movies are excellent together. I do think the ending felt more like a middle chapter of a trilogy than a definitive ending. That surprised me. The ending has a lot of ambiguity to it, but so does the book, and that may or may not leave general audiences satisfied. Still, it worked for me. I'll see this again in the theater at least once.

Can't wait for DUN3 in 2027!