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MOVIE REVIEW
'Dune: Part Two Is The Blockbuster That We Need Right Now
By Dan Dubon | March 3, 2024
The long anticipated sequel has finally hit theaters. Let me start by saying this is easily the best movie of the year so far no competition. In fact I would go so far to say I’m pretty sure this movie will end up being in my top ten for this year when it’s all said and done unless the rest of this year completely surprises me. This movie rocks. I went into this with really high expectations and it somehow blew them away.
I think the thing that makes this special is that you can engage with this on any level and still have an incredible time. If you don't give a shit about Dune, you can basically just tune out the story and let the sound and the visuals wash over you and you're gonna have a good time. If you want to engage with the story, you're going to be thoroughly entertained. If you want to dive into the characters and explore their motivations and allegiances, there is a ton to unpack. If you want to dig into the world building and the political scheming, there is plenty to find there. If you want to look at the themes of faith and power and corruption, you will be deeply rewarded. If you want to apply those themes to real world events, there is a lot of commentary to read into. Most movies demand that you meet them on their level to fully experience them and this is one of the rare movies that is happy to accommodate you wherever you are.
Performance wise here huge credit to Timothée Chalamet He pulled off a level of intimidating presence I didn't think he was capable of. I also had my reservations about Austin Butler here because he just seemed like the newest hot flavor of the week after Elvis. However, he was terrifying here. Him doing a Stellan Skarsgård impression the entire time was wildly entertaining and he definitely proved he’s the real deal with this.
I’ve never been a huge fan of Zendaya and never understood all the hype surrounding her. I thought she did a good enough job in Part One but in this movie I found she was the weakest link performance wise. Granted I know that her character is supposed to be the main voice of reason here however I think the underlying problem with her character is that although Chani is firmly against Paul’s ascension into this half manufactured half inevitable god hood, she really didn’t have an alternative to it. They are hunted by the Harkonnens, they have to go south. After that point of plot, her rejection to Paul feels more like throwing a tantrum. All she could do is yell at people, but that feels really ineffective to say the least. The character is written as really passionate, independent and brave, but she is left with a plot where her input is ultimately irrelevant.
I know in the book Dune: Messiah there’s a 12 year time jump but after this movie I feel like these actors specifically Chalamet have become so synonymous with these roles that it would be a disservice and might even be a huge mistake to recast so I hope they can find a way around that.
With such a strong opening weekend box office for this a third movie announcement is imminent but Villeneuve is planning to direct something else first so it’ll likely be a while before we see it. In terms of sequels I think this movie will genuinely go down in the conversation of the best sequels ever alongside Godfather Part 2, Terminator: Judgement Day, The Dark Knight, Empire Strikes Back and Blade Runner 2049 (which Villeneuve also directed funny enough.) But easily the best movie of 2024 so far no competition. I can't see anything topping this for me for a while.
Grade: A
What are your thoughts?
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