The recent Denis Villeneuve adaption of Frank Herbert’s sci-fi classic Dune has won awards and plaudits. Part One snared six Oscars, and cleared $400 million despite a COVID-restricted release. The sequel powered past that to over $700 million and critical scores even ahead of the first installment.
Even so, the movies seem to have split Outposters down the middle. Some think they are tremendous and worthy of all their success. Others seem unmoved, saying they feel a little… if you will excuse the pun… dry.
One person who is very much in the positive camp is fellow director Christopher Nolan.
During a recent Directors Guild Panel (reported via Deadline), Nolan said it made him recall his favorite Star Wars movies and his experience of watching them. Speaking specifically about the second movie, he called it:
“…a miraculous job of adaptation.”
He was effusive about the experience:
“Taking the second half and making an incredible conclusion to the story. What a remarkable piece of work. If, to me, Dune was like Star Wars, then Dune 2 is The Empire Strikes Back, which is my favorite Star Wars film. I think it’s just a great expansion of all that was introduced in the first one.
What I was really struck by is the sense of immersion in that world. It’s a film that has so many unique images, so many things you’ve never seen before in this movie, time after time, and I was so struck by the detail of everything.”
Denis Villeneuve had previously said that his “break” is over and that he will ”go back behind the camera faster than I think” to film the third instalment – Dune: Messiah. The third movie in the planned trilogy has the potential to be a heartbreaker.