Dune: Part Two

The best movie of the year got off to a bumpy start. Initially, it was supposed to release all the way back in November 2023 but got pushed back amid Hollywood strikes and, at some point, seemed like it would never see the light of day. But just when everyone was ready to declare the moviegoing experience dead, lo and behold, “Dune: Part Two” came along, became the center of the pop cultural universe, and reminded people just how much bloody fun it is to watch an entire theater erupt at the same time.

One could argue that director Denis Villeneuve had his work cut out for him when he decided to adapt one of the most revered and influential sci-fi novels of all time. But the fact that he tapped into the greatness and nailed the tone of Frank Herbert’s text while managing to be something that franchise blockbusters far too often forget — exciting, immersive, and bold all at once — still feels like a miracle.

“Dune” hasn’t budged from the top of my list since last February. But for all the fist-pumping gladiator showdowns, colossal battles, and epic worm-riding sequences, perhaps the film is best summarized in one (subtler) moment: an overhead shot of messianic antihero Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) slowly walking through a crowd of worshipping Fremen zealots before setting the wheels in motion for a holy war that will eventually claim billions of innocent lives in his name. Pretty edgy stuff for a $200 million tentpole release, if you ask me.