The Sleeper has awoken

The long-awaited sequel, “Dune: Part Two,” directed and produced by Denis Villeneuve, continues the epic saga of Frank Herbert’s 1965 novel. Following the success of the first film, this second installment promises to delve deeper into the intricate world of Arrakis, focusing on Paul Atreides’ alliance with the Fremen to wage war against House Harkonnen. With an all-star cast including Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Zendaya, and newcomers like Austin Butler and Florence Pugh, the film has already set high expectations.

Following the destruction of House Atreides by House Harkonnen, Princess Irulan, the daughter of Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV, journals about her father’s betrayal of the Atreides. On Arrakis, Stilgar’s Fremen troops accompany Paul Atreides and his pregnant Bene Gesserit mother, Lady Jessica, to Sietch Tabr. Some Fremen suspect they are spies, while Stilgar and others see signs of the prophecy that a mother and son from the “Outer World” will bring prosperity to Arrakis.

The Fremen accept Paul but Stilgar tells Jessica she must succeed Sietch Tabr’s dying Reverend Mother by drinking the Water of Life—a drug fatal for males and untrained women. She uses her Bene Gesserit training to transmute the liquid and survive, inheriting the memories of all past Reverend Mothers. The liquid prematurely awakens the mind of her unborn daughter, Alia, allowing Jessica to communicate with her. They agree to focus on convincing the more skeptical northern Fremen of the prophecy. Chani and her friend, Shishakli, correctly believe the prophecy was fabricated to manipulate the Fremen, but Chani begins to respect Paul after he declares that he only intends to fight alongside the Fremen, not to rule them.

Paul and Chani fall in love as Paul immerses himself in Fremen culture: learning their language, becoming a Fedaykin fighter, riding a sandworm, and raiding Harkonnen spice operations. Paul adopts the Fremen names “Usul” and “Muad’Dib”. Due to the continuing spice raids, Baron Vladimir Harkonnen replaces his nephew, Rabban, as Arrakis’s ruler with his cunning and psychopathic younger nephew, Feyd-Rautha. Lady Margot Fenring, a Bene Gesserit, is sent to evaluate Feyd-Rautha as a prospective Kwisatz Haderach and secure his genetic lineage.

Jessica travels south to unite with Fremen fundamentalists who believe most strongly in the prophecy. Paul remains in the north, fearful that his visions of an apocalyptic holy war will come to pass if he goes south as a messiah. During a raid on a smuggler spice harvester, Paul reunites with Gurney Halleck, who leads Paul to the hidden atomic warhead stockpile of House Atreides. Feyd-Rautha unleashes a devastating attack on the northern Fremen, destroying Sietch Tabr, killing Shishakli, and forcing Paul and the survivors to journey south. Upon arrival, Paul drinks the Water of Life and falls into a coma. This angers Chani, but Jessica compels her to mix her tears with the liquid, which awakens Paul. Now possessing a partial clairvoyance across space and time, Paul sees an adult Alia on water-filled Arrakis. He also sees a singular path to victory among all possible futures, and that Jessica is Baron Harkonnen’s daughter.

Paul meets with the southern Fremen war council, galvanizing the crowd by demonstrating his ability to discern their deepest thoughts. He declares himself the Lisan al Gaib and sends a challenge to Shaddam, who arrives on Arrakis with Irulan and the Sardaukar. As Shaddam chastises the Harkonnens for their failures, the Fremen launch an offensive, using atomics and sandworms to overpower the Sardaukar. Paul executes the Baron and captures Shaddam and his entourage. Meanwhile, Gurney leads an assault on Arrakeen, intercepting and killing Rabban.

Paul challenges Shaddam for the throne and, to Chani’s dismay, demands to marry Irulan. Previously summoned by the Baron, the Great Houses arrive in orbit, ready to invade the planet, but Paul threatens to destroy the spice fields with atomic weapons if they intervene. Feyd-Rautha volunteers to be Shaddam’s champion, and Paul kills him in a duel. Irulan agrees to Paul’s request for marriage on the condition that her father lives. Shaddam surrenders, but the Great Houses reject Paul’s ascendancy, so he orders the Fremen to attack the orbiting fleet. As Stilgar leads the Fremen onto the captured Sardaukar ships, Jessica and Alia reflect on the beginning of Paul’s holy war. Chani refuses to bow to Paul and departs alone on a sandworm.

I came into “Dune: Part Two” knowing I was in for a treat. Sadly, it’s not very often that audiences are treated to truly immersive, epic storytelling. Everything in this movie works to draw you into the narrative: the lush visuals, the majestic score, the performances, and the visual effects. The pace has been significantly ramped up from Part One, with the film opening on a thrilling battle scene as the Fremen take on the pursuing Harkonnens. It felt like Villeneuve was addressing my own complaints about the first film’s preference for long exposition and establishing shots over high-octane action.

While the film never reaches the frenetic energy levels of “Star Wars” or “Mad Max,” it still delivers plenty of well-staged, albeit brief, action scenes. The central relationship between Paul and Chani is well-established and developed, functioning as a tragic romance story. Paul’s arc from boy to hero to demi-god dictator puts a significant strain on their budding romance. This re-framing of their relationship makes sense and should appeal to modern audiences, especially given that Chani is portrayed as a more assertive and independent character compared to her docile, submissive portrayal in the first book.

Hans Zimmer’s score, along with Greig Fraser’s cinematography, elevates this film to another level, placing it alongside the all-time greats of science fiction cinema like “Blade Runner,” “The Empire Strikes Back,” “2001: A Space Odyssey,” “Terminator 2,” and “Alien.”

My only real complaint about this adaptation is the portrayal of the Harkonnens. The performances were excellent, but they had so little screen time and came across as one-dimensional. There was very little to distinguish the Baron’s personality from his nephews, as almost every scene involved them killing or screaming at someone. In the novel, there was much more depth and intrigue as the Harkonnens and the Emperor formed a fragile alliance to defeat Duke Leto and his family. Because we get so little about the villains or understanding of their motives or what is at stake for the Fremen and the galaxy as a whole, I was never fully invested in the climax when Paul confronts Feyd and Emperor Shaddam.

Most of these complaints come from my perspective as a fan of the novel and David Lynch’s film. I also wanted a bit more of the strange and otherworldly feel that Lynch’s film captured so well. However, we do get a great scene from the book: the arena fight on Giedi Prime filmed in ultraviolet, which is very clever and cool to look at.

I really loved this movie. It is a satisfying conclusion to the film, which walked so Part Two could run. It is sure to be the benchmark by which all science fiction epics are judged.

Disney and Bob Iger, take a close look at these two Dune movies. Kathleen Kennedy and everyone at Lucasfilm, study and learn from them. This is how you deliver a science fiction/space opera epic. This is how you unite a divided fanbase—by creating a stunning, lovingly crafted story that respects both the source material and its devoted fans.

Dune is the Star Wars movie that many of us have been waiting for since 1983. While Dune is its own unique entity, it’s hard not to watch these films and wish that Lucasfilm could produce something of this caliber. There’s something about the way these movies are made that allows you to fully immerse yourself in the world and storytelling, suspending disbelief for the duration of the film.

Modern Star Wars films, by contrast, often remind you that you’re watching a brand. They are filled with sets, VFX, nostalgia bait, and a devil-may-care attitude toward established lore that frequently breaks the fourth wall. Dune shows us how it’s done right.