Dune : Part Two (12A, 167m) Sci-fi/Adventure
Starring: Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Dave Bautista, Christopher Walken, Léa Seydoux, Souheila Yacoub, Stellan Skarsgård, Charlotte Rampling, Javier Bardem, Babs Olusanmokun, Roger Yuan, Alison Halstead, Anya Taylor-Joy
Director : Denis Villeneuve
Like an immense sandworm erupting from Arrakis’ barren dunes, Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part Two emerges as a monumental sci-fi achievement.
This visually stunning epic completes the first half of Frank Herbert’s seminal novel, deftly balancing intimate character drama against a backdrop of messianic fervour and imperial political machinations.
Villeneuve wastes no time in conjuring up iconic sci-fi imagery, with the opening voiceover and visuals evoking 2001: A Space Odyssey.
This establishes one of the film’s major themes - the cycle of death and rebirth.
Timothée Chalamet’s Paul Atreides continues his transformation into near-mythical figure Muad’Dib, while Lady Jessica becomes a chilling authoritarian force.
This metaphor plays out on societal and political levels as well.
The director’s dislike of dialogue has drawn criticism, but his use of minimalistic dialogue serves this material well.
While some conversations still feel lifeless, the sparse exchanges place greater weight on glances, subtle gestures and bursts of emotional outpouring.
Zendaya invests Chani with a moving emotional intensity, her increasing distrust of Paul’s messiah status screaming against the monolithic forces manipulating them.
Javier Bardem brings some welcome deadpan humour as Fremen leader Stilgar.
Where this sequel truly soars is through sheer sensory overload.
Villeneuve has crafted a sci-fi fan’s wildest fever dream, with insect-inspired designs and gargantuan set-pieces. An armada of warships descending through smoke-wreathed skies inspires the same slack-jawed awe as seeing the sandworms in flight.
Though the colour palette primarily comprises blacks, browns and greys, the minimalist visuals are staggeringly epic in scope.
A gladiatorial duel set in a surreal black-and-white dreamscape introduces the villainous Feyd Rautha (Austin Butler), who makes a deliciously nasty impression.
The audacious action is propelled by Hans Zimmer’s volcanic score.
Harnessing the noise of colliding planets, his deafening passages shake theatre seats, underlining the ominous tone as religious prophecy gives way to a looming holy war.
In replicating Herbert’s world, Villeneuve continues emulating both Ridley Scott’s and James Cameron’s cinematic legacies.
The quieter character moments resonate strongest in this operatic tapestry.
Chalamet portrays young Paul’s gradual transformation with subtle strength, while Ferguson makes Lady Jessica a chilling authoritarian force.
Like other sci-fi epics about ‘chosen ones’, Dune: Part Two evokes The Matrix and Star Wars.
The hero’s journey structure and outsider-amongst-rebels plot also recalls tropes from Lawrence of Arabia to Avatar.
But its warnings against zealotry and weaponised fear feel disturbingly timely.
Villeneuve’s pacing fluctuates slightly again under the weight of such dense lore, but his rendition of Herbert’s vision remains an extraordinary accomplishment.
The finale’s dark cliff-hanger leaves one desperately awaiting the concluding chapter.
