Hear Me Out: ‘Dune: Part Two’ is so good it embarrasses the rest of Hollywood
Any sceptics of the brilliance of Denis Villeneuve’s Dune movies following the release of the first part back in 2021 (present company included) were emphatically silenced when the Canadian director released the series’ sequel earlier this year. Dune: Part Two is a true masterpiece of science fiction and modern cinematic storytelling and yet another marker of excellence in Villeneuve’s increasingly quality filmography.
Charting Paul Atreides’ continuing journey south on the desert planet of Arrakis as he reluctantly becomes a messianic Christ-like figure to the native Fremen people, Villeneuve delivers a faithful screen version of Frank Herbert’s wildly influential original sci-fi novel. it is one that supersedes David Lynch’s rather disastrous 1984 attempt in every conceivable way.
The sheer scope of Dune: Part Two is terrifying, and Villeneuve clearly pays homage to one of his favourite movies of all time in the shape of David Lean’s legendary work of cinema, Lawrence of Arabia. Lean’s decades younger successor, Villeneuve, brilliantly captures the desert landscapes of Arrakis with the help of cinematographer Greig Fraser, just as Lean had expertly depicted the shimmering yet barren and hot plains of Syria and Jordan with Freddie A. Young.
In that light, Villeneuve has established himself as a genuine auteur filmmaker, worthy of discussion in the same breath as some of cinema’s all-time greats. As if the likes of Prisoners, Sicario and Blade Runner 2049 weren’t enough, Dune: Part Two has proven that Villeneuve has what it takes to deliver a captivating movie on an epic scale, as Lean had done so many years prior with Lawrence.
And captivating is precisely what Villeneuve’s Dune sequel is. At two hours and 45 minutes long, Part Two never falters and at moments where things just about threaten to drag, Villeneuve masterfully picks up the pace. He demonstrates his understanding of narrative and pacing, revealing a master storyteller, not only as a director with a keen eye for visual excellence.
A film can only ever be as good as its actors, though, and what a cast Dune possesses, it is absolutely littered with performative gold. Evidently, the best of Hollywood all want to work with Villeneuve, knowing his brilliance in the director’s chair. He’s managed to bring the best out of Josh Brolin, Stellan Skarsgard and Rebecca Ferguson once again, while newcomers Austin Butler and Lea Seydoux also profit from his focused direction.
With all that in mind, it’s clear to see that few directors in Hollywood are capable of achieving the kind of scale and scope that Villeneuve has in Dune: Part Two, even the fearsome talent of Christopher Nolan, who has practically reinvented the epic scale blockbuster. Villeneuve has a deep talent for delivering a sweeping, grand narrative with some of the most mesmerising attention to costume and effects in recent memory. He truly puts most other Hollywood productions to shame. Who would want to see a CGI-based Marvel movie ever again after watching Villeneuve’s Arrakis masterpiece?
The cinematic medium is admittedly rife with quality at the moment. Still, in terms of big-budget Hollywood blockbusters, few can contend with the genius vision of Villeneuve, who seems to be improving with every film. Though Nolan himself delivered an equally excellent work of cinema in the shape of Oppenheimer, one simply can’t negate the quality of Villeneuve as showcased in Dune: Part Two. That worm-riding scene will long live not only in memory but in the body, too; it was such a truly visceral experience.
Villeneuve’s first Dune movie merely set the scene in hindsight and introduced us to its world, but from there, the director took the reins and ran as far as he could, creating one of the best science fiction movies of the 21st century – if not of all time. The wait for part three begins now, and one simply cannot beg it to end quickly enough.
Check out the trailer for Dune: Part Two below and read our full review of the film here.
