The first advance screening for general audiences was on February 25 in IMAX cinemas. This thread is for people who have seen the film to discuss ahead of the official release on March 1.
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Amazing adaptation of the second half of the book. As expected, the cinematography, set design, and music are all beautiful. I was skeptical when Denis said a large focus of the film would be the love story, but was pleasantly surprised they were able to pull off a believable romance between Paul and Chani while trying to fit everything else in this huge story. Stilgar was amazing. I think they also pulled of Alia well, which is understandable since it’s kinda hard to have a child character like in the books translated into film without making it cartoonish.
Now for my (minor) criticisms:
We all know how dense the book is, and even with only half the book remaining for this film and almost 3 hours, certain parts still felt rushed; which is understandable because there is only so much you can cram into a movie.
For example, the time Paul and Jessica spent in Sietch Tabr felt so quick, without having a reference/barometer to let audiences know how long it took for them to turn the Fremen to their side and Paul and Chani’s relationship to develop. This took years in the book, and book readers will obviously know that, but I feel like non-readers will complain how “fast” it happened. It also doesn’t help that since they cut child Alia in this version, this means all the events in the film happened in less than 9 months, which is pretty short for someone to integrate into a planet’s native population, train in their ways, and rise up as a messianic figure for an entire planet.
The final big battle also felt rushed. I know it was generally glossed over in the book, but it would have been great if the film took a few more minutes to show some battles before Paul reaches the emperor. Gurney and Rabban’s fight scene should’ve also been a little longer, give Gurney had to emphasize the scar Rabban gave him, which was kinda implying there was a big fight scene ahead.
While I love Christopher Walken, the emperor in this film had barely anything to work with such that you could’ve cast any other decent actor and it wouldn’t have mattered. I was hoping for something special from Walken’s portrayal given how unique of an actor he is.
All that being said, it was an amazing film and I was pretty satisfied. It needed 30 more minutes to flesh out the events more, but I understand you can’t make a 3.5 hour movie without making general audiences bored. Now on to Messiah to complete a trilogy!
You spoke my mind. I just finished my first screening and sharing my initial thoughts. Disclaimer: I have not read the book.
I really liked the slow pacing of part one, it gave me time to really appreciate the cinematography, it’s characters, and the music. This part was paced much quicker, so with me looking forward to “step into Arrakis” again, I left the cinema felling a bit disappointed. I felt that this could have been split into two 2 hour or 2.5 hour movies to flesh out some story bits and the characters. So many new faces, so many potential stories, so little time. It felt like Paul just went to the south for 10 minutes to get his drink, and then we’re back north again. I wonder if the book is also paced like that.
Soundtrack was another that got let down by the fast story pace imo. Not to say that it’s bad now that I’m listening to the album on Spotify, but the slow burn combination of visuals and sound in part one left such a great impact on me, part two just felt like it passed a bit too quick.That being said, the bits where they want you to appreciate the cinematography, they let you know and execute it really well. I really appreciate the black and white tone of Giedi Prime, how they portray the cruelty of the Harkonnens, the sandworm scene, the scale. I would still highly recommend a watch, and I plan to watch it a second time (and maybe third). Maybe I’ll have different thoughts and learn to like it more after that.
Finally got to see it aswell yesterday. And very much agree with you that it was amazing.
For example, the time Paul and Jessica spent in Sietch Tabr felt so quick, without having a reference/barometer to let audiences know how long it took for them to turn the Fremen to their side and Paul and Chani’s relationship to develop. This took years in the book, and book readers will obviously know that, but I feel like non-readers will complain how “fast” it happened. It also doesn’t help that since they cut child Alia in this version, this means all the events in the film happened in less than 9 months, which is pretty short for someone to integrate into a planet’s native population, train in their ways, and rise up as a messianic figure for an entire planet.
Also having read the book i had the exact same impression. It also meant that the birth and death of his first child with Chani was cut, which i guess wouldn’t have fit into the movie anyways with so much going on, but in the book did add more emotions.
As far as minor criticism goes i tenatively agree with another comment in this thread that the soundtrack might have lacked some melody.
It’s been a while since i’ve read the book, but in my memory the death and destruction paul forsees unleashed through the jihad seemed much more intense than what we got in the brief visions in the movie.
Forgive my petulance but I don’t understand how any Dune fans liked Stilgar in the movie. They turned him into a goofball, basically a 180 of his character in the books.
Watched part 2 yesterday and I dare to say it’s the Lord of the Rings/Star Wars of this era. 2h45 min from title to credit were absolutely breathtaking. Can’t wait for Messiah aka part 3.
For me it was Jurassic Park. Nothing has felt as literally massive since Jurassic Park, and nothing has felt like such a level up in the craft of all-around filmmaking since Jurassic Park.
The sandworm is this generation’s T-Rex, and the Sandworm riding scene was this generation’s T-Rex attack scene.
Alia is a tough character to film, not many child actors that can pull that off, so the choice to keep her in the womb is one I’m okay with. As a consolation, they do show her in Paul’s future visions, which is a power of Alia’s you only see with her and no other prescient in the series–the ability to leave future memories and messages for another oracle.
One line of concern from part 2 is Reverend Mother Mohiam’s admission to Irulan that the BG were behind the Atreides destruction, not the Emperor. It conflicts with Mohiam’s ask in part 1 to the Baron that Jessica and Paul be spared. I think the writers for the films added Mohiam’s line in part 1 to balance Yueh’s role being downplayed (since he largely saved Jessica and Paul), then added the line in part 2 to match the expanding role of the BG as the antagonist, and missed it on further passes to see if the characters’ goals still aligned.
I greatly enjoyed part 2, I like what they did with Irulan, Feyd, and Chani. Looking forward to reading the discussions and bringing new fans into the series!
Loved it. I found the pacing was pretty much perfect. And I found the portrayal of Paul as the reluctant… hmm… protagonist (can’t quite bring myself to use the word “Hero”) to have been done very well. I didn’t love how it was left with Chani, but eh, and I found the wrap-up to be a bit … rushed. But I thought Denis did a wonderful job.
I also loved the depiction of Geidi Prime. It was nice to have a bit more context for that part of the story.
Enjoying it more than the first, but I’m in the group of people who don’t like the majority of Villeneuve’s work (certainly his blockbuster stuff other than Prisoners). Soundtrack is much more subtle but still lacking melody. Dune probably works better as a series. Zendaya’s acting is jarring, as usual. Timothy is an OK Paul.
Not a bad movie at all but not something I’ll want to rewatch again and again.
I am very much in the opposite group of people, as i really enjoyed Villeneuve’s Arrival, Sicario and Bladerunner, but actually didn’t care much about Prisoners.
I’d have to watch the movie again and focus on it more, but i also wasn’t quite happy with the soundtrack and i think your point of it lacking melody might be why.
I actually kinda like Zendaya, but i do have to admit that this wasn’t a strong acting performance.
Agree on the soundtrack. I took away no memorable bits other than the high/ low chords punctuating major incidents, but we’ve already heard that in earlier works.
Not as good as the first. Source material may be to blame, but did any actor make a real impression? Skarsgård, the Baron, stole the show until his final scene. Planning for the assault and the subterfuge for luring the emperor was lost too.
Visually stunning, and imax audio blew me away, the training and raids some of the best scenes.
I really liked Stilgar’s Monty Python’s Life of Brian moments. “LISAN AL-GAIB!”
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