“Dune: Part One” came out in 2021 and flourished in the theaters, bolstering 400 million dollars in the box office and scoring an 8/10 on IMDb. Based on the best-selling book, the all-star cast including Zendaya and Timothee Chalamet brought the story to life. With part one being a success, part two was bound to be successful as fans awaited the first day of March.
“Dune: Part Two” came out with overwhelmingly positive reviews, scoring 93% on Rotten Tomatoes, surpassing the high bar set from the previous movie. In a motion picture directed by Canadian filmmaker Denis Villenueve, a tale of persistence is told through the lens of Paul Ma’dihb Atreides.
The film follows Atreides (Chalamet), a boy living on the planet Arrakis in the desert who stumbles on a tribe, the Fremen. The Fremen believe in the religion Zen-Sunni, and come to view Paul as their Messiah. This sudden rise to power sets up the movie and paints Paul as still a boy yet a daunting task stands in front of him.
Atreides is a member of the house of Atreides, a member of the Great Houses who rule over the planet Arrakis. Meanwhile, the House of Harkonnenan wants to kick out the House of Atreides so that the Harkonnens can rule the world’s spice production. Paul must stop the Haraokennes and lead the Fremen to “paradise.” As Paul figures out what to do with all this power, he explores who he is as a person. Atreides battles against himself and the House of Harkonnen as he tries to lead the Fremen who believe that Paul is their savior.
This compelling storyline is mixed in with beautiful battle scenes and amazing cinematography, which all together produce a candidate for the best movie of the year.
However, it can be a little confusing to follow along with all the dialogue and the runtime of nearly three hours. Coming in, I had not read the book and only had limited knowledge from the previous movie. This put me at a disadvantage and kept me pondering with questions throughout the movie.
For example, the mother, Lady Jessica, is pregnant with a baby as she becomes the Reverend Mother of the Fremen. This gives her newfound wisdom and out of nowhere the baby in the womb starts talking. This startled me and I did not find an answer for my questions about the scene until I searched it up after the movie.
At the end of the movie, Paul murders his cousin to take control of the planet and launches a holy war against the Great Houses as he betrays his lover, Chani. With this, Paul seems power-hungry and is unlike the hero he is painted as in the beginning. He finally gets what he wants, yet he goes for more, putting his pride ahead of the bloodshed of millions.
Overall, the movie is an adventure to watch. It’s a rollercoaster of emotions including pride, love, anger and resentment. It keeps you engaged as you have to keep up as it will move on without you. The movie still left me satisfied, but seems to leave everyone with the same question: do the ends justify the means?
