The story of ‘Dune’ is a heck of a thing, so strap in. On one side, you’ve got a group of people who have learned to survive and use the resources available to them in a way to live in harmony and balance with their world. On the other side, there’s an invading empire trying to take their stuff. It sounds familiar, and that’s because it is. It’s a common setting for a multitude of stories across a vast number of genres and mediums, so what makes this one any different? Three words: gigantic sandworms!

‘Dune: Part Two’ picks up pretty much where Part One left us – Paul Atreides and his mother are attempting to integrate with the native Fremen of Arrakis, while the Harkonnen clan continue their ravaging of the northern hemisphere. Paul, understandably, still harbours a grand hatred for the Harkonnens because of the incredible violence they visited upon his family and kingdom, but mainly for the assassination of his father (Oscar Isaac) in the previous film. He seeks to pursue retribution against any who call themselves Harkonnen, but he is just a young man trapped on a world he’s only begun to understand… or is he?

The cinematography, once again, is outstanding. Grieg Fraser and Denis Villeneuve don’t just film scenes, they paint pictures. Large, sweeping shots are the order of the day, letting you know exactly where you are whilst also imparting a sense of the massive scale of the locations. Glittering oceans of orange sand stretch as far as the camera can see, with a lot of the intimate scenes between Paul and Chani having been filmed during the ‘golden hour’ on the top of sand dunes in Jordan.

Much of the screen is often overtaken by browns and beiges which dominate the landscape, broken by the action of laser beams and explosions as the opposing factions wage war against each other.

As a stark visual counterpoint to those oppressive beige hues, we are treated to an entire 15-minute section on the Harkonnen home world that is filmed almost entirely in black, white, and minimal shades of grey. Visually direct and stylistic, it is a very refreshing interlude that stands out among an incredibly well-shot film.

It is in this section where we are introduced to the heir of the Harkonnen clan, a young man by the name of Feyd-Rautha, played with cold and greasy style by Austin Butler in an almost unrecognisable form. Feyd-Rautha is immediately shown to be a violent psychopath who only cares for honourable, yet still very violent, combat. Despite this, there is a confident swagger and slimy charm to the portrayal that will no doubt garner an intense following in those strange corners of the internet. You know the kind.

The performances of returning leads Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya as Paul Atreides and Chani respectively are an unstable metronome of tender moments of character development ticking over to mistrust and rising concerns about how far down Paul is willing to go to achieve victory over his enemies.

Most of the carry-over characters from the previous film start to take darker, stranger, and more intense turns as the story progresses. Javier Bardem gets more opportunities to shine as Stilgar, but also descends into a religious fervour that only feeds more into the machinations of Paul’s mother Jessica, played by Rebecca Ferguson.

Jessica’s plans begin with the intent of not just ensuring survival for herself and Paul, but with calculated ideas to take over the Fremen by manipulating their faith in ancient prophecies seeded throughout the galaxy by her former coven, the Bene Gesserit. However, things take a turn for the weird when Jessica is called upon to take the place of an important mystic faith-leader among the Fremen tribe and to accept all the customs and potentially mind-altering dangers that may entail.

In addition, we get to play the age-old game of “Holy crap, that’s Christopher Walken!” as the legend himself shows up as the Emperor of the galaxy. The Emperor’s daughter Princess Irulan, played with a quiet intelligence by Florence Pugh, theorises that Paul may have survived the war with the Harkonnens and plans to investigate rumours that he’s been seen on the planet Arrakis.

On the surface, Dune: Part Two appears to be a story about a boy aiming for revenge while trying to survive in a harsh situation, but if you spend any time watching this film you’ll see there’s more going on. At two and a half hours long, this film still feels like there were large parts cut for time. The story is slow and methodical, taking its time to make sure we understand what is going on and explaining everything it can to help the average viewer get some kind of foothold into the universe of the Dune saga.

There are heavy themes of the use of religion to gain power and hold sway over people, as evidenced by the Bene Gesserit attempting to maintain their shadowy control over the existing galactic empire, whilst Paul’s mother Jessica twists the prophecies of the Fremen to benefit herself and her son, gaining more power amongst the tribe and leading them towards ruling the planet.

If you’re familiar with Frank Herbert’s series of novels or the previous movie and television adaptations, you’ll know that the main driving force behind all the conflict in this story is the production of a drug known as “Spice” which can only be sourced from the sands of a single planet, Arrakis. Spice is vitally important to the galaxy due to its ability to open people’s minds, giving them the mental capacity to comprehend the incredible vastness of space such that they can navigate it safely.

With Spice being of such central importance to the galaxy, control of Arrakis is continuously contested through violent conflict. This is touched upon in the first film, but there’s barely any follow-up on this importance in Part Two, which may leave viewers who are unfamiliar with the series in slight confusion as to the motivations of the opposing sides.

Dune: Part Two is a sweeping epic of a film, steeped in a weird mix of genre-bending fantasy, mysticism, and science fiction. It’s like a $200 million-dollar indie art film that’s filled with incredible actors, gorgeous sets, and a complicated story that everyone’s heard before, but no one has seen presented like this.

The story of Dune is, indeed, a heck of a thing.

Written by: Johnny Breaker