Dune - Parte due

A monumental piece of cinema.

Paced to perfection, uniquely beautiful, thought-provoking, beyond thrilling, with unbelievable cinematography and flawless worldbuilding. Backed up by the best ensemble performance in a blockbuster since Fellowship of the Ring. An entire production on their A-Game.. it's an incredible technical achievement. Everyone on set was clearly aware they were working on something special. Denis Villeneuve's love for 'Dune' shines through every stunning frame. Part 1 of his adaptation was wonderful, but here he improves on it in every way. It just doesn't get better than this.

Dune Part 2 is an epic movie; slickly made, and visually stunning.

But I had to explain quite a bit to the friends around me who had not read the book, especially the water of life scene and the final battle.

The movie had almost a 3 hour run time, but it felt overlong because Villenue focuses too much on spectacle on very little on substance.

It is a beautiful movie, but it feels like it has no soul. The emotional connection between Paul and Chani, so vital to the story, is completely lacking and unbelievable. The two main characters are good looking enough but has absolutely zero chemistry on screen.

I am certain Zendaya is a fine actress in some things, but she has basically 2 facial expressions here, and the one she uses the most is a scowl directed at Paul. I found her to be the worst part of this movie.

The final fight scene is short, choppy, and a mess. It felt anticlimactic and unfulfilling The Harkonens are basically reduced to bumbling villainy almost cartoonish. The ending was super abrupt, and was so different from the book that it left me wondering what the filmmakers would do if they want to do a sequel.

I want to reiterate that this isn't a bad movie. Villenue is great at creating a world that looks living and breathing, but he can't give life to individual characters.

It is like he can't see the trees for the forest.

Saw an early screening of this film at the Tilton Square Theatre in New Jersey, and I was completely blown away. From the opening scene all the way until the credits I never felt bored, which is impressive for a 2 hour and 45 minute film.

I don't want to write too much here, I prefer anyone reading this with the slightest bit of interest in the film to go see it immediately. It doesn't release worldwide until March 1st, so grab tickets and I would highly recommended you see it in IMAX if possible. Almost the entirety of the movie is filmed with IMAX cameras.

This movie is an absolute visual spectacle probably going to win a couple Oscar's for sound editing, picture, etc., and the fight scenes are choreographed so fantastically. Like I stated in the beginning, see this film!

Denis Villeneuve's DUNE: PART TWO is a review-proof film. Either you watched - and loved - the first part, in which case you have already gone out and seen it. Or...you didn't like the first part (or didn't watch it), in which case you are not going to the Cineplex to check out the sequel.

If you ARE going to see this film, the BankofMarquis strongly recommends you see it in theaters with the best sound and largest screen possible...for 2 reasons.

Reason 1: This film is visually and audibly stunning. It is a feast for the eyes and ears. Director Villeneuve (and all involved in the production, costume, sound and Fx design) have topped the very high bar they set for themselves with the first Dune and expect this film to rake in ALL of these types of awards come next Oscars' season. They visually (and audibly) credibly present new worlds in such a way that you are sure that the movie was filmed on location when (in fact) it is all pretty much green sky. An amazing technical achievement

Reason 2: It's a good thing that this film is visually and audibly stunning, because the storyline itself, is rather boring and somewhat complex. This is the fault of the source novel as Dune (and it's sequels) are just as interested in the politics and back room dealings of how you turn a hero into a Messiah (with a ton of backstory and plot development thought by the characters - never a good way to present a movie). So you will want to watch this in a theater so you can keep focused on the plot (as opposed to at home where you will be tempted to pick up your phone, pet the dog, go make a sandwich etc.) and not miss some of the intricacies.

Caught between Reason 1 and Reason 2 are a laundry list of performers and performances that are struggling to match the technical achievements of Dune: Part Two while acting against a green screen with some long, boring speeches and some very clunky dialogue.

Timothee Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson and Charlotte Rampling all return from the first part and they are "just fine", not really elevating things, but not bringing them down either. They gamely bring their best to a rather difficult and thankless job.

Thank goodness Javier Bardem and Josh Brolin are back as their characters bring some life and energy to the proceedings while Florence Pugh, Dave Bautista, Lea Seydoux, Stellan Skarsgard and (especially) Christopher Walken (!) are wasted in their roles, really being more of a piece of furniture to move around rather than anything that represents an interesting character.

Only Austin Butler's Feyd-Rautha brings new excitement to the 2nd half of this 2 hour and 40 minute epic and, by that point in this film, it is much needed.

Come to DUNE: PART TWO for the visual and sound achievements and stay for...the visual and sound achievements - and the setup to the inevitable sequel.

Letter Grade: B

7 stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)

Like the first part, the second part is visually stunning, though having read the book twice, I regret to say that unlike the David Lynch version from the eighties, De Villeneuve almost deliberately destresses the mystical/mythical core of the story. This makes for an impressive viewing that somehow left me unsatisfied. In De Villeneuve's hands the story becomes one of political grandstanding which is but part of what the book is about, both in relation to the hidden ways of the Fremen and the nature and mission of Paul and his mother. For example, in the second part those scenes where Paul Atreides becomes the Kwizatz Haderach are rather weak and not very convincing.

Having left this essence out of the movies, they become a bit of an emptied out visual experience. A kind of secular, profane Dune. Still nice, but also a bit disappointing.