In the year 10,191, the desert planet Dune is a battleground between two sides: Paul Atreides and his mother Lady Jessica unite with the native Fremen tribe to fight against the House of Harkonnen that have taken over the monopoly on the exploitation of the coveted "spice" resource from the planet. Fremen tribe leader Stilgar assumes Paul is the prophecized messiah, a title which Paul begrudingly accepts to achieve his vengence against the Harkonnen's. Several raids against "spice" extraction platforms cause Vladimir Harkonnen to send sadistic nephew Feyd-Rautha to counter-attack and wipe out the Fremen. Paul drinks the "spice", declares himself Mua'Dib and uses atomic weapons to break the wall of the capital. There, he battles and kills Feyd-Rautha and Vladimir Harkonnen, captures the Galactic Emperor and forces him to hand him over the throne. Paul thus takes the Emperor's daughter Irulan as his wife.
Director Denis Villeneuve achieved one of the biggest turnarounds in cinema history when he transformed the story excommunicated in Lynch's first film adaptation into gold with this new version that was critically recognized and became a hit at the box office. Unlike the first part, which took a lot of time to establish this futuristic world, "Dune: Part Two" cuts right to the chase and delivers a more dynamic, tight storyline with a perfect pacing—in fact, the longer this movie lasts, the more intruiging it gets, since all the pieces start connecting closer and closer towards the finish line. This is one of those epic spectacles that need to be seen on the big screens to enjoy it in its full form. A lot of this credit goes to the cinematographer Greig Fraser who has a dreamy camera that documents a plethora of aesthetic, magnificent images. Even the 100ft long giant sand worms appear pretty in this crystal-clear cinematography.
One instant classic is the monumental sequence where the camera pans left to right around Paul standing on a sand dune, looking at the approaching giant sand worm over the horizon, and as the worm "crashes" through the dune, Paul jumps on top of it, riding it across the desert. Two other sequences of Fremen "riding" these worms are also incredible to look at due to the amazing technology they were filmed with. One sequence stands out stylistically from the rest of the film—the bloody fight in the arena involving sadistic villain Feyd-Rautha, filmed in black and white. Paul's raids against the "spice" extraction platforms are exciting, linking the story to guerilla attacks against colonial powers and various independence movements. However, while Villeneuve is a highly professional director, he still lacks some creative-innovative playfulness that would make his movies really fun to watch. The scenes where Lady Jessica (a rather underused Rebecca Ferguson) and Paul drink "spice" to gain a higher consciousness or the sequence of the final battle lack some abstract 'raw power' that would make "Dune: Part Two" a sheer joy to watch. Nonetheless, this is arguably the best possible "Dune" film adaptation. As much as Lynch's "Dune" was a dirty mess, so much is Villeneuve's "Dune" a clean sweep.
Grade:+++
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