When you think about it, the first Dune movie is possibly one the biggest anomalies in recent history. It’s a movie that only adapts the first half of a classic novel that used to be long considered unfilmable, and it’s being directed by somebody whose previous movie (Blade Runner 2049) had bombed financially despite being one of the most acclaimed movies of the 2010’s. With all these factors combined, Dune should’ve never been a massive success.

But by sheer chance, the opposite occurred. Not only did the first movie receive all the critical acclaim that was naturally expected, but it ended up connecting with general audiences in a way that I don’t think even the filmmakers were expecting. In a decade where people’s viewing habits have started changing to the point where now big franchises that used to be surefire hits are actively struggling, Dune feels like a complete breath of fresh air. I honestly wanna imagine a scenario where you travel back in time 5 years and you tell someone that in 2024, movies like Dune are the movies that are ultimately bringing people back to movie theaters post-pandemic.

Now let’s imagine a universe where the first movie did end up flopping. If that happened, then we would’ve never gotten Part Two, meaning we would’ve never gotten to see Frank Herbert’s original story finally get a definitive adaptation on the same level as Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy. We would’ve never gotten to see what is easily one of the greatest film sequels of all time. The way that previous generations talk about seeing the original Star Wars trilogy and the LOTR trilogy when they were kids is how our generation is gonna talk about Dune when we grow up. At this point, Warner Bros greenlighting Dune Messiah is an absolute no brainer.

Overall, this movie is a sight to be believed. It’s a movie so good that I’m considering the possibility of rewatching it in theaters sometime this month. If that ends up happening, expect another review.