Dune 2 Holy shit. Islamic Star Wars part 2 was amazing. I dunno of another movie this year that comes close in terms of being epic, well-done and with source material worth the time (cough cough Rebel Moon). This is 2024's "Avatar/Endgame". It puts Villanueve up there with must-see directors like Scorsese and Nolan, increasingly rarified air. It begins essentially the moment where part 1 ended, and takes the Dune Saga well into the 2nd book. This is essentially Lawrence of Arabia in space, and you get to see the world that was crafted and detailed so beautifully in Part 1 become so much more elaborate, gorgeous and powerful. I can't think of a weak performance, they thankfully skipped a bunch of the bizarre shit that David Lynch's version included (the time-bending spaghetti testicle monsters, for example), and the film was just...beautiful. Spoiler: SPOILER The only complaint is where it didn't track the book, and skipped ahead to "space jihad", and dealing with the Emperor, as opposed to just stopping short of the Harkonnens. Also, the film was long as hell, and the ending still felt rushed, specifically Chalamet's turn to warlord/heel at the end. For a film about a very gruesome and violent conflict, the sex, blood and guts was kept to a minimum to keep a PG-13 rating. Also, the timing of a "space jihad" film feels a little....difficult politically, right now.
DUNE 2: DUNE HARDER I dunno. Great movie, epic moments. But I was too distracted by the book material they changed or left out entirely, mainly because what was the need? Might've added a few minutes to the run time, but it certainly would've fleshed out some characters significantly. Spoiler for all the hubbub about Princess Irulan actually having something to do this time, she really didn't do much. Cut her out and you'd miss nothing. But I guess she had to be strong and independent since they made the Emperor near senile; no offense to Walken but he was not the one for this role. I've more to say about Feyd and Chani and Alia but tag is long enough.
I read these books so long ago that there is no way in hell I remember all of the details, less so with each subsequent book as they became progressively more involved with benne gesserit minutae. I’m watching for the special effects and the overall feel of it.
Spoiler I never finished the book, but the Emperor coming down to Arrakis seemed like such an unforced error to move the plot forward.
Spoiler In the book the Emperor came of his own volition, to help the Baron put down the Fremen rebellion. There was no note, no phone call. Yo Mr Incredible can we just do a Dune Spoilers thread, there's really so much to talk about.
Thank You. So, here's what I mean by character development: Between Paul being accepted by the Fremen and the final assault on Arrakeen, years go by. Years' worth of successful attacks on Spice Harvesters, years' worth of Muad'Dib legend building. He doesn't just become the Supreme Leader after one live taping of Crossing Over.
For whatever reason, they wanted Feyd Rautha to be Paul's complete equal. He's really not tho. He's a Harkonnen thru and thru, no honor whatsoever. Tricky and deceitful, he only wins that Gladiator match at the last second by triggering hypnotic paralysis in the sober Atreides. The duel with Paul, he has a poison needle built into his belt that he tries to use. No redeeming qualities at all.
Easy; she's not pregnant anymore. Alia is born, and thanks to the Water her mother drank she's essentially a Reverend Toddler. But I see that'd be difficult to present, especially the scene between her and the Baron. "Creepy adult-sounding child" is a horror movie trope, wouldn't fit well here.
This is where the Alia plot line matches the timeframe in the book (and to some extent the 1984 version) but the 2024 version....Jessica is still pregnant, so this campaign is wildly brief. I don't think that plot line works as well in this film. The "Paul turns heel" as a commentary on white savior syndrome is also...hard. I think they are setting this up to deviate more from the books in the 3rd film, and....good. It doesn't take long for the books to go from weird (Paul has kids, and one of them becomes a human/sand-worm hybrid) to SUPER FUCKING WEIRD (an offshoot of the Bene Geserit has violent vagina powers). Revenge for Chani will be a hashtag for Dune 3, I can almost guarantee it. One thing I think about this movie is that it...stands alone, like so much of Villanueve's work. I can re-watch Blade Runner over and over again, but the 2049 sequel just...not as much. Also, where is the sound weaponry? That was a major plot point as to why the Atreides were on the emperor's radar in the first place. They had superior weapons tech that made them ideal for "conquering" Arrakis. It's been a minute, but in the book I vaguely recall one of the reasons the Atreides were given Arrakis was because the emperor thought they could "tame" the planet using their fancy new noise guns. Also, I am beyond livid that we didn't get Momoa, Brolin, Chalamet or Zendaya each doing the goofy as "uuuh CHAH" shit that the actors in the David Lynch version had to do.
How's the third movie supposed to start? Will it be flashbacks to every Fremen ship landing (and somehow *not* getting blown out of orbit), the jihadists leading Paul's enemies to paradise? Now that Chani is a completely different character, is it even her who has the twins, or the Princess? I can already see the corners Villeneuve has written himself into. Or was it Herbert's son Brian, riding his dad's coattails once again?
Is the longer timetable of their skirmish fighting against Emperor or Baron Harkonnen all that important anyway? If the point is to establish Paul as an effective leader of the Fremen, I feel like they accomplished that in the movie anyway.