I went to see Dune: Part 2 today. As I was leaving the theatre the song playing in the lobby was 'Every Breath You Take' by The Police, which made me think of Sting's turn as Feyd-Rautha in the 1984 Dune movie.
The new film is very good. In fact I liked it more than Part 1. The production design (a fusion of Afrofuturism and dieselpunk) and special effects are both superb, as is the sound design. It's a visually stunning film that's worth experiencing on the big screen if you get the chance. Arrakis and Giedi Prime are particularly well realised, with the Atreides, Fremen and Harkonnen cultures each having a distinctive aesthetic of their own.
The one area where I found the production design underwhelming, and the film as a whole lacking, was in the depiction of the Imperial House Corrino. The sets and costumes on Kaitain are simply less interesting than those on the other planets, and the performances aren't as spirited. Maybe it's because those characters get less screen time and are somewhat removed from the main action, or maybe it's because they were introduced too late in the narrative. At any rate, I think the depiction of House Corrino is something the 1984 movie and 2000 miniseries both did better.
My biggest gripe with Dune: Part 1 was that they left out so many key players from the story and postponed their entry until the sequel. I remember thinking at the time that I'd have to wait and see how Part 2 handled those elements before judging the first film. Aside from the comparatively uninteresting depiction of the Imperial House Corrino, I'm mostly happy with how those elements turned out. But there are still quite a few things from the book which didn't make it into the movie. Some of these, like the subplot about Paul and Chani's first child who is slain by the Sardaukar, I can understand excising. But other omissions, such as the absence of the Spacing Guild, are more frustrating.
The Spacing Guild is one of the most important political factions in the novel, and their reliance on the spice melange to facilitate interplanetary travel is crucial to the functioning of the Imperium. That's one of the reasons the spice is so valuable. The absence of the Guild in the movie is unlikely to bother people unfamiliar with the books, and the film works fine without them. But this is one aspect of Dune: Part 2 that might disappoint fans of the novel. The Guild play a villainous role in the second book, Dune Messiah, and it could be the case that Villeneuve is holding back on depicting them now so they'll have more impact in the next movie.
Another change is the rather sinister portrayal of Lady Jessica, who comes across less sympathetically than she does in the book. Frank Herbert modelled Jessica on his wife and portrayed her in a positive light. The movie gives us a darker version of the character, and the decision to condense the timeframe and have Alia remain in her womb (the name 'abomination' is here applied to Jessica rather than Alia) is a further deviation from the novel. This is another of those times when I'll have to wait and see how they follow up on this in the sequel before making a judgement. They wouldn't have cast Anya Taylor-Joy in the role of Alia if they weren't planning to bring her back in an adaptation of Children of Dune. But again, the changes to Jessica and Alia's story aren't detrimental to the film and won't bother anyone who hasn't read the book.
None of the performances really blew me away in Dune: Part 2, but the acting is generally adequate. The actor who makes the strongest impression is Austin Butler as Feyd. If anything, the cinematic Feyd is even more psychotic and bloodthirsty than his literary counterpart, and that's saying something. He makes a suitably loathsome villain and a worthy threat for Paul. Villeneuve nails the dark depravity of Harkonnen culture, with the scenes on Giedi Prime evoking a hellish nightmare world worthy of David Lynch's vision in the 1984 adaptation. I sensed they were taking some inspiration from H. R. Giger's unused Dune concept art, and the idea of the black sun rendering every outdoor scene monochrome was an inspired artistic choice. I was very pleased with how dark and twisted the Harkonnen scenes were.
Equally satisfying are the numerous action scenes, which the stunt team do an excellent job staging. The battles are well executed and don't drag on too long. They're pretty much perfect and put to shame the forgettable battles from the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy. The sequence where Paul rides the sandworm for the first time is also breathtaking and effectively conveys what it must feel like to engage in such a dangerous but exhilarating activity. The depiction of the Weirding Way is more grounded than in the earlier adaptations, but again, it works. I loved how dark Arrakis looked during the opening action scene set during the eclipse. The bleak orange sky reminded me of Lynch's Arrakis, and I wish the planet had looked like that throughout the rest of the film.
I know I keep comparing it to the 1984 movie, but that's inevitable. While Villeneuve's adaptation is in many ways superior, there are still things I prefer about Lynch's version. For one, Lynch managed to condense the entire first book into a single movie while maintaining a decent pace of storytelling. Sure, he left things out. But so did Villeneuve. I prefer Lynch's depiction of House Corrino and José Ferrer's performance as Shaddam IV over Walken's. Lynch did a good job portraying the Spacing Guild's role in the story, which is something Villeneuve largely ignored. I also like the soundtrack to the 1984 movie more than Hans Zimmer's work on the new films.
In general though, I expect the new films will be remembered as the definitive screen adaptation of Dune. They're not perfect, but they are very, very good. And perhaps Villeneuve will address their minor shortcomings in Dune: Part III. Rumour has it he's combining the novels Dune Messiah and Children of Dune into a single cinematic project. John Harrison did the same thing with the 2003 miniseries and the strategy worked well there. Hopefully Dune: Part 2 will be successful enough that we'll get another film.
To conclude, this is a solid thumbs up from me. I do have some issues with it, but those mostly relate to how it adapts the book, and specifically the things it leaves out. None of these issues, however, detract from its quality as a standalone film. It's a solid adaptation and an excellent sci-fi epic in its own right. Had Dune: Part 2 been released last year, as originally intended, it might have challenged Godzilla Minus One as my pick for film of the year. As it is, it's set a high benchmark for other 2024 movies to reach. I recommend seeing it on the big screen. You don't need to have read the book to understand it, but you do need to have seen Dune: Part 1.
The new film is very good. In fact I liked it more than Part 1. The production design (a fusion of Afrofuturism and dieselpunk) and special effects are both superb, as is the sound design. It's a visually stunning film that's worth experiencing on the big screen if you get the chance. Arrakis and Giedi Prime are particularly well realised, with the Atreides, Fremen and Harkonnen cultures each having a distinctive aesthetic of their own.
The one area where I found the production design underwhelming, and the film as a whole lacking, was in the depiction of the Imperial House Corrino. The sets and costumes on Kaitain are simply less interesting than those on the other planets, and the performances aren't as spirited. Maybe it's because those characters get less screen time and are somewhat removed from the main action, or maybe it's because they were introduced too late in the narrative. At any rate, I think the depiction of House Corrino is something the 1984 movie and 2000 miniseries both did better.
My biggest gripe with Dune: Part 1 was that they left out so many key players from the story and postponed their entry until the sequel. I remember thinking at the time that I'd have to wait and see how Part 2 handled those elements before judging the first film. Aside from the comparatively uninteresting depiction of the Imperial House Corrino, I'm mostly happy with how those elements turned out. But there are still quite a few things from the book which didn't make it into the movie. Some of these, like the subplot about Paul and Chani's first child who is slain by the Sardaukar, I can understand excising. But other omissions, such as the absence of the Spacing Guild, are more frustrating.
The Spacing Guild is one of the most important political factions in the novel, and their reliance on the spice melange to facilitate interplanetary travel is crucial to the functioning of the Imperium. That's one of the reasons the spice is so valuable. The absence of the Guild in the movie is unlikely to bother people unfamiliar with the books, and the film works fine without them. But this is one aspect of Dune: Part 2 that might disappoint fans of the novel. The Guild play a villainous role in the second book, Dune Messiah, and it could be the case that Villeneuve is holding back on depicting them now so they'll have more impact in the next movie.
Another change is the rather sinister portrayal of Lady Jessica, who comes across less sympathetically than she does in the book. Frank Herbert modelled Jessica on his wife and portrayed her in a positive light. The movie gives us a darker version of the character, and the decision to condense the timeframe and have Alia remain in her womb (the name 'abomination' is here applied to Jessica rather than Alia) is a further deviation from the novel. This is another of those times when I'll have to wait and see how they follow up on this in the sequel before making a judgement. They wouldn't have cast Anya Taylor-Joy in the role of Alia if they weren't planning to bring her back in an adaptation of Children of Dune. But again, the changes to Jessica and Alia's story aren't detrimental to the film and won't bother anyone who hasn't read the book.
None of the performances really blew me away in Dune: Part 2, but the acting is generally adequate. The actor who makes the strongest impression is Austin Butler as Feyd. If anything, the cinematic Feyd is even more psychotic and bloodthirsty than his literary counterpart, and that's saying something. He makes a suitably loathsome villain and a worthy threat for Paul. Villeneuve nails the dark depravity of Harkonnen culture, with the scenes on Giedi Prime evoking a hellish nightmare world worthy of David Lynch's vision in the 1984 adaptation. I sensed they were taking some inspiration from H. R. Giger's unused Dune concept art, and the idea of the black sun rendering every outdoor scene monochrome was an inspired artistic choice. I was very pleased with how dark and twisted the Harkonnen scenes were.
Equally satisfying are the numerous action scenes, which the stunt team do an excellent job staging. The battles are well executed and don't drag on too long. They're pretty much perfect and put to shame the forgettable battles from the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy. The sequence where Paul rides the sandworm for the first time is also breathtaking and effectively conveys what it must feel like to engage in such a dangerous but exhilarating activity. The depiction of the Weirding Way is more grounded than in the earlier adaptations, but again, it works. I loved how dark Arrakis looked during the opening action scene set during the eclipse. The bleak orange sky reminded me of Lynch's Arrakis, and I wish the planet had looked like that throughout the rest of the film.
I know I keep comparing it to the 1984 movie, but that's inevitable. While Villeneuve's adaptation is in many ways superior, there are still things I prefer about Lynch's version. For one, Lynch managed to condense the entire first book into a single movie while maintaining a decent pace of storytelling. Sure, he left things out. But so did Villeneuve. I prefer Lynch's depiction of House Corrino and José Ferrer's performance as Shaddam IV over Walken's. Lynch did a good job portraying the Spacing Guild's role in the story, which is something Villeneuve largely ignored. I also like the soundtrack to the 1984 movie more than Hans Zimmer's work on the new films.
In general though, I expect the new films will be remembered as the definitive screen adaptation of Dune. They're not perfect, but they are very, very good. And perhaps Villeneuve will address their minor shortcomings in Dune: Part III. Rumour has it he's combining the novels Dune Messiah and Children of Dune into a single cinematic project. John Harrison did the same thing with the 2003 miniseries and the strategy worked well there. Hopefully Dune: Part 2 will be successful enough that we'll get another film.
To conclude, this is a solid thumbs up from me. I do have some issues with it, but those mostly relate to how it adapts the book, and specifically the things it leaves out. None of these issues, however, detract from its quality as a standalone film. It's a solid adaptation and an excellent sci-fi epic in its own right. Had Dune: Part 2 been released last year, as originally intended, it might have challenged Godzilla Minus One as my pick for film of the year. As it is, it's set a high benchmark for other 2024 movies to reach. I recommend seeing it on the big screen. You don't need to have read the book to understand it, but you do need to have seen Dune: Part 1.
