Dune: Part Two Review: A Spectacular Sequel.

I absolutely adored Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part One.
Adapted from Frank Herbert’s novel of the same name, which is widely regarded as one of the greatest science fiction novels of all time, Part One did a fantastic job of setting up this world’s story, characters and themes.
I had been anticipating the sequel ever since I saw the first one in theaters, even waiting through a few delays.
Once I got the chance to see it, I figured there would be no way better than to watch a double feature, with both Parts One and Two played back-to-back.
This resulted in undoubtedly one of the greatest cinematic experiences I have ever had, and it is through watching this double feature that I can confidently say that Part One flows perfectly into its sequel.

Both movies feel at their best when watched together.

Dune: Part 2 sees Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) and his mother Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson) take shelter with the Fremen of Arrakis after the Atreides family is massacred by their old enemy, the Harkonnens, under the orders of the Emperor (Christopher Walken).
From there, the film follows Paul’s journey to get revenge upon the Harkonnens and help the Fremen, while also attempting to avoid the messiah role being crafted for him.
After watching the first movie, some fans of the book were concerned that Villeneuve was not leaning into the theme of not trusting charismatic leaders, which was Herbert’s key message when writing Dune.
This second film, however, should dispel any doubts about that.
Timothée Chalamet does an excellent job of showing Paul’s gradual transition into becoming the Lisan al Gaib, culminating in a confrontation scene which left the audience I saw the film with in stunned silence.

Chalamet nails his performance as Paul Atreides at his most tyrannical.

Everyone else in this film does a fantastic job as well.
Rebecca Ferguson is unexpectedly terrifying in her manipulation as Jessica.
Austin Butler is also terrifying but for very different reasons as Feyd-Rautha.
Then there is Javier Bardem who somehow works as both the comedic relief of the film and a chilling representation of radicalization.
Josh Brolin, Stellan Skarsgård Florence Pugh, and Dave Bautista all do great, as well.
The most surprising character in the film, for me though, was Chani, played by Zendaya.
She has so much more agency than her book counterpart, and the way her ideas differ from Stilgar’s helps make the Fremen feel much more realistic as a culture.
This also makes her movie-only conflict with Paul interesting, and I look forward to seeing how this is followed up on in the inevitable adaptation of Dune: Messiah.

I much prefer movie Chani to book Chani.

So, the characters and the themes they portray are all excellent, but what about the visuals and soundtrack?
Well, if you saw the first movie then you definitely had no doubt that they were going to be just as amazing.
Watching this movie on Xtremescreen was a sight to behold, and I would not be surprised if Greg Fraser received at least an Oscar nomination for his cinematography.
The same goes for Hans Zimmer, whose score is just as epic as it was in the first film.
These visuals, supported by excellent CGI, along with the score, made for a jaw dropping experience.

*Part Two* is full of stunning shots like this.

As you have read, I have been heaping praise upon this movie from the moment the review started but do I have any criticisms?
Well, yes but those issues really only come down to things from the book that were not included.
For example, one of my favorite characters in the novel had their role greatly reduced and this was disappointing to see.
However, at the same time, I do acknowledge that this character would have been difficult to adapt completely.
Besides Part Two clearly sets up their importance in the future of the story.
Not only this, but I cannot deny that if I had never read the book then this would not have been an issue for me.

Although I was sad to see a certain character’s role reduced, I liked how their importance was foreshadowed.

Other than a few, biased, book reader issues, Dune: Part Two is just as much a masterpiece for me, as the first.
It and Part One are the greatest science fiction movies in years.
If you still can, I would highly recommend watching them as double feature, like I did.
Watching these movies on the big screen was a cinematic experience I will remember for years to come.
Whenever I decide to rewatch these films, it will definitely be back-to-back.
Let the sequels continue to flow.

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One Review: A Satisfying First Part.

I first got into the Mission: Impossible franchise, not long after the release of the previous film Fallout, which I thought was one of the best movies of 2018.
So, going into the seventh installment in the series, once again directed by Christopher McQuarrie, I was expecting a well-directed action film with a fun story and characters, and thrilling stunts from Tom Cruise, which is exactly what I got.

The latest *Mission: Impossible* movie captures everything great about the franchise.

Dead Reckoning Part One follows Cruise’s IMF Agent Ethan Hunt, who is tasked with collecting a key, which could be used to eventually control a powerful rogue AI known as the Entity.
However, believing that the Entity is too dangerous, Ethan instead sets out to kill it, along with his fellow agents and friends Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson), Luther Stickell (Ving Rhames) and Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg).
They are not alone in the search for the key, as Ethan has to enlist the help of a thief named Grace (Hayley Atwell), all the while being pursued by Gabriel (Esai Morales), a dangerous man from Ethan’s past.
The story of Dead Reckoning Part One is a lot of fun, with its still surprising portrayal of espionage, and interesting take on AI with one reveal about the Entity being pretty intense.

Speaking of intensity, the film is not all fun because there is some sadness to be had, due to specific events that I cannot get into because of spoilers.
There is some good humor to balance the sad moments, though.
One thing I was worried about going into Dead Reckoning Part One is the Part One of the title.
Movies being separated into parts seems to be a returning trend in movies these days and this can lead to some frustrating experiences, most notably Across the Spider-Verse which, while still one of the best movies of the year, ends very abruptly with the rest of the story being continued in Beyond the Spider-Verse.
Thankfully, this was not an issue for Dead Reckoning Part One because, despite being only the first part of the story, it still ends in a satisfying way, while making me want more.
This “more” includes more amazing stunts from Tom Cruise.
I honestly don’t know how the guy can keep doing these death defying scenes, with a cliff jump in the teasers being particularly nerve wracking.

Tom Cruise does it again with the amazing stunt work.

I just hope he doesn’t end up seriously injuring himself or worse with these stunts.
Overall, Dead Reckoning Part One is a satisfying beginning for a two-part story in the Mission: Impossible franchise.
Fingers crossed that they can pull off Part Two just as well but there is nothing which leads me to doubt that.

Dune Review: A Cinematic Epic. One Which Has to be Experienced in Theaters.

For quite a few years, friends were telling me that I should read Frank Herbert’s Dune, calling it one of the best science fiction stories of all time, and one that inspired generations of stories from that genre, like Star Wars, for instance.
However, for whatever reason, I did not take my friends’ advice and read Dune.
Then, I saw the trailers for Denis Villeneuve’s 2021 adaptation of the novel.
These trailers blew me away and Villeneuve is one of my favourite directors working today, so, knowing how dedicated he was to making Dune, I finally sat down and read the book.
I could not put it down.
The novel enthralled me from start to finish and, ever since finishing it I have been eagerly anticipating the film’s release to theaters, and was finally able to see it yesterday.
Did it disappoint?
Absolutely not.
Dune is not just an incredible adaptation but I already think it’s one of the best movies I have ever seen, even though I only first saw it yesterday.

*Dune* is a masterful, cinematic experience.

The film tells the story of Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet), a young noble born to Duke Leto Atreides (Oscar Isaac) and his Bene Gesserit concubine Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson).
Duke Leto is the ruler of the planet Caladan, however, the Pardishah Emperor mysteriously decides to order the Atreides family to take stewardship of the desert planet Arrakis, the only planet in the universe where the substance known as Spice can be found.
Spice not only has various benefits to the user but is also the reason interstellar travel is possible, so it is the most valuable resource in the universe.
You would think this would put the Atreides in an excellent position but, in taking over Spice production on Arrakis, they are taking over the position of the previous rulers of Arrakis, their rival family of the Harkonnens, lead by the cruel Baron Vladamir Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgård).
With the threat of the Harkonnens and even the Emperor’s displeasure hanging over their heads, the Atreides seek an alliance with the native Fremen, among them Stilgar (Javier Bardem).
However, at the same time as this is happening, Paul is having strange dreams, many of which feature a woman named Chani (Zendaya), and these dreams may point to a brutal future for not just Paul’s future but also the future of the entire universe.

Paul’s dreams hold a lot of meaning to them.

Yes, this is the story’s basic opening hook and it is a lot to take in.
Thankfully, Villeneuve presents this information to the viewer perfectly, with only a few things being left out, like the explanation of Mentat powers.
Helping this presentation of information is the incredible acting, cinematography and score.
Speaking of the acting, every single member of the cast brings their A-game, whether their roles in the story are small or major.
I already spoke of most of the characters, but two who I especially enjoyed are Paul’s mentors Gurney Halleck (Josh Brolin) and Duncan Idaho (Jason Momoa).
In fact, I would say that I actually liked the movie’s interpretation of Duncan more than the first novel.
The movie shows the friendship between him and Paul a lot better, making later scenes where the two share screen time much more impactful.

Rewatching the trailers after finishing the book got me excited for more Paul and Duncan interactions, and the movie did not disappoint.

As for the cinematography, it is absolutely beautiful and Greg Fraser did an amazing job.
I had a massive grin on my face almost the entire way through the film because of how gorgeous almost every single shot looked.
What made this grin even wider was Han Zimmer’s brilliant score, his best one to date, in my opinion.

The cinematography and score often combined to create stunning scenes, like this shot of the villanous Baron Harkonnen.

Pair this excellent acting, cinematography and score with Villeneuve’s direction, and you have a masterful adaptation of Frank Herbert’s novel that needs to be seen in theaters.
Seriously, I am so glad I decided to watch this for the first time at the movies instead of on HBO Max.
It just provides an experience for this film that cannot possibly be matched on the smaller screen.
I just wish that the studios had realised what they had and agreed with Villeneuve’s wish to film the sequel at the same time, so both parts could be released closer together.
Well, at least we are getting a sequel, with hopefully more on the way, since I have also read the sequel novel Dune: Messiah and loved that as well.
I cannot wait to read the rest of Dune novels now that I have finally finished The Wheel of Time books, and it would be great to see those get future adaptations as well, given how excellent Villeneuve’s Dune was.
In regards to the future of Dune as a movie franchise, I only have one thing to say.
Let the sequels flow.

Dr Sleep Review: Well, That Was Unexpected.

2019 is the year of Stephen King adaptations.
Pet Semetary, IT Chapter Two, and now Dr Sleep; all are books that have been adapted to films in 2019.
However, Pet Semetary and It Chapter Two are decent films rather than the exciting and intense novels King delivered.
This is not the case for the Dr Sleep adaptation, though, because I was genuinely surprised not only by how good of an adaptation it is but also by how it successfully deviates from the source material.
Directed by Mike Flanagan, the film takes places decades after the events of The Shining, with Danny Torrance (Ewan McGregor) having become an alcoholic.
After becoming pen pals with a young girl named Abra Stone (Kyliegh Curran), who has the strongest shining he had ever seen, Dan learns from her of a cult of vampire-like creatures called the True Knot that feed off children with the Shining.
Both McGregor and Curran do great jobs as their characters, especially Curran who gives the best performance of the film in a scene where she is in a car.

Dan and Abra.jpg — The bond between Dan and Abra is key to *Dr Sleep* and, thankfully, both actors do a great job as their characters.

Another highlight is Rebecca Ferguson as the sinister Rose the Hat, the leader of the True Knot who manages to make the simple sentence, “well, hi there” terrifying.
Adding to this terror is the film’s score, one of which is the True Knot’s theme of a heartbeat which is very fitting because it got my heart going a mile a minute in fear every time I heard it.
Likewise, the cinematography is great with Flanagan mixing his own style with that of The Shining‘s perfectly.
What really surprised me about Dr Sleep, though, is the twists it brings to the story.
Having read the novel, I thought I knew what was going to happen but I was dead wrong.
For example, I fully expected one horrific scene from the novel to be cut or left vague but no, they go all out on it, creating the most terrifying scene I have seen all year.

horror of rose.jpg — I was incredibly surprised the most disturbing scene from the novel was kept, and in graphic detail. It was genuinely horrifying.

I would go as far to say that the film adaptation is way more darker than the novel, especially when it comes to the fate of the characters.
I honestly have no idea why people are saying this film is not scary.
It makes no sense to me how people can watch the Bradley Trevor (Jacob Tremblay) scene and not be horrified by it.
Another twist to the story that really surprised me is not only that the film manages to be a great Dr Sleep adaptation while being a sequel to Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining, which King infamously hates, but also that it manages to adapt The Shining novel as well.
This creates an ending very different from the Dr Sleep novel that left me with an entirely different experience that I did not expect but really enjoyed.
However, this is where my one issues comes in, and that is how this ending feels a bit like a different plot to the main one with the True Knot.
It kind of felt like it switched storylines pretty abruptly and that was a bit jarring.

The final 15 minutes of the film felt different to what came before.

The change was still really good but the difference in storylines was noticeable.
So, overall, I have good and bad feelings about the changes to Dr Sleep‘s ending.
Still, I found the film to be the best Stephen King adaptation of the year as Flanagan did a fantastic job adapting and changing the novel for the screen.
It is just a shame that it is currently failing at the box office because it is a really good film.
If you have not seen Dr Sleep yet I advise you to check it out.