missing the epic codpiece - Dune Part Two: the Reckoning: A Dune Story: Punctuation!
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Ya, I was contemplating wearing diapers for this one. Lots of people went out at opportune moments for a bathroom break around the 2 hour mark.
Almost forgot:
No Thufir Hawat in the climactic scene at the end as in the book and the original Lynch flick. Sad.
Their marking dept. needs to make a crysknife with a fleshlight handle
and call it a jizzknife...
Turns out I'm extremely unlikely to be seeing this tomorrow after all because I've spent the entire week sick with a cold, and I can't see myself having a miraculous recovery overnight.
Got tickets for IMax viewing on Sunday with my wife.
I love living near museums with Imax screens!
I love living near museums with Imax screens!
In a delightful turnaround, after a good night's sleep I actually felt better and ended up going. It was the 1pm session today (Friday) and I'd be surprised if there were many more than ten people in the theatre, it was delightful.Turns out I'm extremely unlikely to be seeing this tomorrow after all because I've spent the entire week sick with a cold, and I can't see myself having a miraculous recovery overnight.
Man, the movie was incredible, as expected. Apparently Denis Villeneuve is already working on the screenplay for adapting Dune Messiah, though he said he's going to take a break before going back to it.
The only person that I think could have been cast better was Christopher Walken as the Emperor. I like Walken, but all I saw was Walken when he was on screen and not the Emperor. Probably would have better to just use a no-name actor for that role. I really liked Javier Bardem in this one. He was great.
Great movie. If I were to nitpick, it might have been with struggling to understand the passage of time between scenes. Also, Chani really did not care for Paul's ascendancy and change at the end.
I have to say this: I get the title of this thread is eye-catching, but I have to disagree that Sting/Feyd Rautha's codpiece was epic. I mean, it's okay, but IMHO an "epic codpiece" should be fashioned to look like a roaring lion, or a snarling gargoyle at the very least. That "wings with a hint of Giger" thing is just pathetic. Think, "Bahamut" when you think "epic codpiece."
/rant
/rant
I haven't been to a theater since shortly before the start of the pandemic, last movie I saw was Bad Boys 3 in January 2020.
I've had a 20 dollar Regal gift card I got from a vendor for years since why would you go to Regal when Flix and Alamo are options. But I decided to make the trek out to the Nashville IMAX to give this a shot.
I've had a 20 dollar Regal gift card I got from a vendor for years since why would you go to Regal when Flix and Alamo are options. But I decided to make the trek out to the Nashville IMAX to give this a shot.
I highly recommend seeing Dune 2: Electric Boogaloo in a Dolby Atmos theater if available. The sound design was just unparalleled by anything I can recall. 11/10, would get nearly deafened at points again.
Pocket non-spoiler review: Am strongly considering seeing it again when I'm not wiped from a day at the office and with a fresh rewatch of part 1 in my head. An absolute home run of a sequel IMO. Gorgeous to look at and excellent-to-superb performances all around. Tom Bombadil-level book purists will probably quibble with some of the liberties taken but I feel the movie really delivers Herbert's overarching philosophical arguments
I’m going tonight at 11pm and I’m going to be tired but unlikely to doze because Dune. Noisy, dangerous Dune. My noise. My Arrakis.
By comparison, Dune Messiah should be about 45 minutes long unless they give it the dreaded Hobbit treatment.
Yeah, where was the impact of the classic quote from Jessica?
“Think on it, Chani: the princess will have the name, yet she'll live as less than a concubine - never to know a moment of tenderness from the man to whom she's bound. While we, Chani, we who carry the name of concubine - history will call us wives.”
There is definitely a third movie at least being teased:
they cast the Queens gambit actress as Alia, why bother unless St Alia of the Knife will be a thing? They also bothered to develop key tensions between Chani, Irulan and Lady J though of course the marriage concubine thing would be tense anyway even without setting up a sequel. But once I saw Alia it felt clear to me.
I dont fear a Hobbit treatment I think they could try to do a tense political thriller and it’d be movie length decently easily.
they cast the Queens gambit actress as Alia, why bother unless St Alia of the Knife will be a thing? They also bothered to develop key tensions between Chani, Irulan and Lady J though of course the marriage concubine thing would be tense anyway even without setting up a sequel. But once I saw Alia it felt clear to me.
I dont fear a Hobbit treatment I think they could try to do a tense political thriller and it’d be movie length decently easily.
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Excellent movie and a superlative cinematic experience, even more so than the first. I’d probably have a few quibbles if I’d watched it at home, but it’s objectively great, and the big screen experience was a visceral thrill ride that I’m eager to do again.
Just returned from the cinema, and I am weeping from the awesomeness that is this movie. Seriously, the is the first time since LOTR that I had a true cinematic experience.
This is just utterly breathtaking and even very faithful to the book and it's overarching messages.
This is just utterly breathtaking and even very faithful to the book and it's overarching messages.
Denis Villeneuve is one of the finest living directors of science fiction and Dune 2 is a masterpiece - not just of the genre, but of cinema. It is utterly astonishing how even the changes and streamlining of plot lines somehow served Herbert's overarching themes, arguably even truer than the book itself did. I will always love the book and its wild complexity and sprawling plot lines, but the movie cut it down to its most true essence. It was like listening to a song by your favorite band get covered by your new favorite band, and them just fucking killing it.
In particular, I need to call out how effective Chani was as a character. She was one of the weakest in the book, loving and faithful and uncomplicated. The movie makes her a fighter, a commander, and ultimately, the surrogate for the conscience of the Fremen and the audience. Arguably, if Paul was the protagonist of the first part, Chani became the protagonist of the second. It was an incredible play against trope and type for her to say fuck this, fuck you, I'm out, and just bouncing. And in her fury and disappointment, Denis brings forward the disappointment and disillusionment of Dune Messiah right into the triumphal ending of Dune, and tainted it before you could get too pumped by watching Paul declare the holy war. That's killer storytelling right there. A lesser director would have played it straight and rah-rah-rah.
There are a few minor niggles - Christopher Walken was wildly mis-cast and seemed confused and sad and old, rather than conveying the Imperial arrogance and fury of a frustrated king being broken to the will of an upstart religious adventurer. I'd have liked to see an Emperor Corrino played by Mads Mikkelsen or Idris Elba. And there were a few scenes - the war council scene in particular - that landed flat for me. But when you throw those issues against the worm-riding scenes, or the attack through the gap in the Shield Wall, or that insane monochrome gladiator bout with the photo-negative fireworks......they just kind of disappear.
And it is remarkable how positive the fandom is reacting to it. I haven't seen a bad thing said about it. I've read and reread Dune dozens of times, and I'm in shock after watching the movie.
In particular, I need to call out how effective Chani was as a character. She was one of the weakest in the book, loving and faithful and uncomplicated. The movie makes her a fighter, a commander, and ultimately, the surrogate for the conscience of the Fremen and the audience. Arguably, if Paul was the protagonist of the first part, Chani became the protagonist of the second. It was an incredible play against trope and type for her to say fuck this, fuck you, I'm out, and just bouncing. And in her fury and disappointment, Denis brings forward the disappointment and disillusionment of Dune Messiah right into the triumphal ending of Dune, and tainted it before you could get too pumped by watching Paul declare the holy war. That's killer storytelling right there. A lesser director would have played it straight and rah-rah-rah.
There are a few minor niggles - Christopher Walken was wildly mis-cast and seemed confused and sad and old, rather than conveying the Imperial arrogance and fury of a frustrated king being broken to the will of an upstart religious adventurer. I'd have liked to see an Emperor Corrino played by Mads Mikkelsen or Idris Elba. And there were a few scenes - the war council scene in particular - that landed flat for me. But when you throw those issues against the worm-riding scenes, or the attack through the gap in the Shield Wall, or that insane monochrome gladiator bout with the photo-negative fireworks......they just kind of disappear.
And it is remarkable how positive the fandom is reacting to it. I haven't seen a bad thing said about it. I've read and reread Dune dozens of times, and I'm in shock after watching the movie.
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I think Denis made the conscious decision to take it away. We don't get the satisfaction of a happily ever after, we get the ambiguity of watching a hero turn into a genocidal tyrant and the tension between the true believers and the freedom fighters.
Chani being able to see what's coming the more Paul embraces the prophesy and being (essentially) powerless to stop it was a good change. She goes from annoyance to disgust to horror by the end of the movie.
That was amazing.
Also for a long movie at around 2:30-ish in time it didn't feel like a long movie. It never felt like it was dragging or bogged down at any point. Now maybe some of that was because I kind of knew where we were in the story so kind of knew when things were getting close to the end, but even then I never felt like I was wanting things to just get on with it. If anything it almost felt too short and I wanted to spend more time in the world.
I hope there's not a long wait for Messiah. I certainly can understand taking his time with it to make sure it's right, but am hoping we aren't waiting years for it to come out. Also hope the studios are smart and back a dump truck of money up to his door to make it and also let him do whatever he wants for it.
Also for a long movie at around 2:30-ish in time it didn't feel like a long movie. It never felt like it was dragging or bogged down at any point. Now maybe some of that was because I kind of knew where we were in the story so kind of knew when things were getting close to the end, but even then I never felt like I was wanting things to just get on with it. If anything it almost felt too short and I wanted to spend more time in the world.
I hope there's not a long wait for Messiah. I certainly can understand taking his time with it to make sure it's right, but am hoping we aren't waiting years for it to come out. Also hope the studios are smart and back a dump truck of money up to his door to make it and also let him do whatever he wants for it.
I mean sure, if you're a director who thinks they can write better than the creator sure, implement a major change to a major character 'cause you think it's better than Herbert's writing.
But how many major changes can you make before you should stop calling it Dune?
Call me nuts but I'd love to see an actual translation of the books to the screen (and yes, that requires changes especially due to the many scenes with internal dialogue) rather than "We love this so much we're going to change major characters!"
It's like all the Frankenstein movies that don't actually tell the story as written but their own interpretations of it.
I know, I know - old man yells at clouds. Is it too much to respect the author's vision? Imma shut up now.
If you want a super-literal, ‘we loved and understood the book, and are going to translate it as faithfully as we possibly can,’ there’s the SciFi Channel miniseries. Despite the tiny budget and a somnambulant William Hurt, it’s quite good!
I saw Dune 2 this morning, and thought it was pretty great. The sound was a bit punishing for 10:30 a.m., but once I got past that, I really enjoyed it. I absolutely did not expect them to have Paul go full Vader; the last half of the movie almost played like a better version of Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith. I really enjoyed the dynamic of Jessica and Gurney being little devils on Paul’s shoulder, whispering in one ear, and Chani whispering in the other. I thought Zendaya was terrific, and I really liked the direction they took Chani’s character. Austin Butler was good, but I still couldn’t help but see Elvis sneering under the Harkonnen loaf.
I just realized I have been avoiding this thread and online videos about this because of "spoilers". Meanwhile I have read through the books twice, seen Lynch's Dune more times than I can count, and watched the mini series at least twice.
Now with all the excitement and changes I have seen mentioned I think this is the first time spoilers didn't feel like the experience will be diminished.
I mean, there is no way I am seeing this in theatre until next week. Maybe this weekend if the morning shows aren't oversold. But I am excited to see it in theatre. I only wish I could see the first half in theatre first.
Now with all the excitement and changes I have seen mentioned I think this is the first time spoilers didn't feel like the experience will be diminished.
I mean, there is no way I am seeing this in theatre until next week. Maybe this weekend if the morning shows aren't oversold. But I am excited to see it in theatre. I only wish I could see the first half in theatre first.
After a night of reflection I merely have a few quibbles:
- The fremen / Paul's shenanigans with the spacing guild is completely absent. During the movie I had to explain that the Fremen are bribing the guild to prevent the launch of satellites and that they manipulate all reports about the south.
- In the end, it is the spacing guild who will confirm that Paul's threats are real due to their limited ability to see into the future.
- I haven't read the books for a while, but I seem to remember that the south had some minimal agricultural
- That Paul and Jessica were training the Fremen was a bit absent, but IMHO not central to the story
- The displayed role and mannerisms of the emperor were off. Also the emperor's throne room was off. Some kind of command room with holographic displays would have fit better. Eh ... Minor quibbles
- What I absolutely love about the movie is that Paul is not displayed as a shining hero and Chani getting a central role as the main voice of the non-fanatical Fremen.
- The movie is also faithful to the central theme of the book that all demagogues are dangerous. They directly hinted that the Atriedes "honour and heroism" schtick is just an act to gain power and influence
This is a great article: https://ew.com/dune-part-two-timoth...stin-butler-florence-pugh-cover-story-8584736
When I was watching the movie I was super-impressed with how real all the portions when they were speaking Chakobsa felt, turns out they actually hired a linguist to fully create the whole damn language properly:
On the changes from the book with Jessica and Chani:
When I was watching the movie I was super-impressed with how real all the portions when they were speaking Chakobsa felt, turns out they actually hired a linguist to fully create the whole damn language properly:
On the changes from the book with Jessica and Chani:
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I think that first two things have a chance of coming back in the next movie.
The minimal agricultural stuff, is something that comes up more in Children of Dune, IIRC.
I disagree about throne rooms. Throne rooms are just that. I would say less Star Trek bridge and more finery is in order. All the tech should be hidden away to reveal splendor. The holographic war status room for the Harkonnens was truly great.
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A nice touch is that "paradise" is a dual-edged meaning. It can also mean leading them to their deaths whether in battle or in life.
A green, rain covered Arrakis would also be the death of the sandworms and Arrakis and the Fremen.
It's one of the things hinted at in the ending of Dune novel about turning Salusa Secundus into a pleasure world, to deprive the Sardaukar of the hardships that train them into (until the Fremen) the galaxy's toughest troops.
And if you get as far as book 4 of the series, you'll find that the old Fremen way has died, as Arrakis was greened. Only by book 5/6 does Arrakis start to go back to being a sandy world, until that too goes away. Then it is the Bene Gesserit home world that turns into a new Arrakis.
A lot of this is what makes me fairly certain there'll be another movie.
This was excellent, btw. It was nice to have a story told that doesn't slap you around the face at every turn. There was quite a lot of subtlety, and I think that's a pretty good way to adapt a book that does contain so much inner monologue.
I liked it, I think. I need to rewatch it. I did think that it needed to be trimmed up by about 15-20 minutes. The sound and the visuals were absolutely incredible.
A lot of these were cut because they would have required lots of screen time for the exposition and dialogue required to unpack them, for minimal benefit. I know everyone misses the "Gurney thinks Jessica is the traitor" subplot and the Spacing Guild shenanigans and the dinner party in the first half and so on, but I don't actually think the story the movie tells is harmed by the omission of those threads.
I do agree that Walken was not arrogant, haughty, and forceful enough.
I would even argue that Chani is actually the protagonist of this one, low key.
I think we've all gotten so used to heavy, explicit exposition that we're not used to subtlety and context. There's a lot in the movie that's almost subtextual.