Finally got around to this rewatch. While there's the Lisan Al Galib/sad fucking virgin who has seen this 18 times, seeing this again straight after revisiting "Part One" was very satisfying.

"Dune Part Two" picks up soon after its predecessor left off- that being Paul and Lady Jessica meeting the Fremen. What this does so well is expanding on the themes and ideas previously established.

What this does is complete Paul's coming of age journey from an innocent if privileged teenager to a maniacal warlord. Quite the transition. The path has been set- his father has been murdered and most of House Atreides has been destroyed by the cruel House Harknonnen- which was all set up by the Emperor.

But through his mother's connection to the Bene Gesserit, he is also being hyped up to be the Lisan Al Galib- the messiah for the Fremem people.

Paul has already killed a man and we see him kill many more as he fights alongside the Fremen killing the Emperor's Sardukar and Harkonnen soldiers. But Paul here is a far more morally complex character as he influences the events of the narrative rather than being influenced by the events. This further develops the conflict between destiny and free will.

First off, we'll explore the destiny side- in other words the part that depicts Paul in a better light and makes this a tragic tale. Of course obviously Paul didn't choose to be in this situation- he never wanted to move to Arrakis; to lose his father and his nice mentor Duncan; to have visions; to be regarded as a prophet. And yet here he is in this situation. Having to prove his worth to the Fremem people who are sceptical towards him and his mother because they are outsiders, he has to leverage their superstitions of him being the Lisan Al Galib. While he has to play into them somewhat for survival at the same time you can see how he is trying to play them down. He wants to be accepted and learn their ways forming an alliance just like his father wished. His father Leto was put in such a hostile political situation gaining control of Arrakis where he knew it was screwed but hoped to make peace with the locals rather than oppress them.

Anyway Paul does make a genuine effort to be one of these people and his connection to them is best demonstrated through his romance with Channi- the literal woman of his dreams. She does not believe in the prophecy becoming more and more a defiant voice in a sea of believers- especially the faithful believer Stilgar who is desperate to make others believe. Channi is who humbles Paul, who wants Paul to genuinely fight for her and hopefully his people. It's this relationship which is the focal point for the empathy Paul has.

In of the prophecy, we know it to be one artificially crafted as Lady Jessica has been spreading the lie more and more in a climate where Fremen are desperate to put their faith in a saviour figure to lead them to "paradise" and so they are easy to manipulate.

The water of life/worm piss is a key substance here for how it dehumanises its characters. When Lady Jessica drinks it to become the Reverend Mother the side of her that genuinely wanted to be a good mother for Paul is gone. You see this water which some may know as Cervisa Cristal grants the knowledge of past generations allowing its to see into the past and the future all at once. So in other words they lose sight of the present except what needs to be done in the moment to make the right future happen.

Paul knows that if he goes to Southern Arrakis (which is full of believers of him) and drinks said water, it will lead to a Holy War in his name where billions perish in his name. He knows how to avoid said fate- don't go to Southern Arrakis but is forced to go there when the sietch of his community is bombed by the Harknonnens and so has to lead his people to safety. Therefore all these factors raise the question of how complicit he really is in his fall from humanity.

Paul is nowhere near innocent here. Yes you cannot help your circumstances but you can help how you move forward with it. This film is him moving forward.

In the first film, there is a great metaphor about how Leto's fate is similar to his father's where he fought bulls for sport and died doing so. Both men died when they lacked power and control in the situation. Paul is scared of how powerless he was in the massacre of House Arrakis. When you think about it, most of the time someone else saved him in that test of his courage and survival instincts. Paul is not only scared of feeing powerless again, but also is enraged as he knows the Emperor's involvement. What's really interesting is that, even before Lady Jessica has drunk the water of life in the opening act, Paul already makes clear his plan. To gain Fremen via the prophecy in order to gain an army to have revenge on the Emperor. Even his mother is shocked as that goes against his father's beliefs of avoiding violence when possible and seeking diplomatic solutions. It's this which makes you question from the start how genuine Paul really is about wanting to be a part of the Fremem instead of leading them.

And of course while Paul did need to go to Southern Arrakis to save his people, he didn't necessarily need to drink that worm piss and when he does he loses his romance with Channi.

Paul and Channi's love is based of one spoken condition each at least. Paul will love Channi as long as he breathes while Channi will love Paul as long as he stays who he is or at least the comionate and humble fighter she assumes him to be. Paul breaks both of these conditions as when he drinks the worm piss he stops breathing and in doing so changes drastically. Like with Lady Jessica, this is no longer someone with empathy for others. This is someone, like the Bene Gesserit, is cold and calculated.

It's here where we see the true evil of Paul come through as he leads a gigantic army of Fremen- all who whom appear blurred and faceless in their uniforms, to battle against the Harkonnens and makes a play for the Emperor's throne. The water is merely a catalyst for all this to occur ridding Paul's empathy for others. Previously he was scared of the consequences of what he was capable of causing but now this is what this animal caught in a trap does to not only survive but thrive. Paul's ambition for more power isn't new either as before he made it to Stilgar's group he voiced his ambition for the throne but back then was dismissed for having little power being a fugitive. But his survival means he is living proof of the massacre of House Atreides.

One final piece of my analysis- power. Leto believed in harnessing the natural environment to receive power as on Caladan they utilised wind and sea power and on Arrakis they need to utilise desert power. Lady Jessica believes power comes through control of the people using a prophecy as a tool to do so targeting those most vulnerable and so in need of hope. Paul may have lost Duncan (at least until the later books I've heard) but the militaristic Gurney is back in action further egging Paul on to exploit the prophecy and showing him the Atreides' nuke collection leading into Paul's realisation that "those who have the power to destroy something have the real power over it". Leto sought to create, Paul seeks to destroy.

I've somehow not even mentioned Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen- another prospect for the Lisan Al Galib who acts as a foil to Paul being a maniac who fights and kills for sport and entertainment. He cares only for himself and is ruthless in his hunt for Paul. A villain who Paul becomes more like.

In short, Paul has had terrible influences and circumstances all around him but here has the free will to follow or challenge these believes. It's his lust for power which leads him down a path so dark and brutal that even eclipses the inhumanity of the Harkonnens. He may have swaded the masses of Fremen to blindly follow his rule but he lost the true connection he had- the man he once was- through severing his relationship with Channi.

It's amazing how I feel like my analysis still has left quite a lot of stuff out which I'm sure I'll discover on future watches.

"Dune Part Two" is much darker than its predecessor but also way weirder and unsettling starting off with Paul talking to his unborn sister and the Fremen extracting water from corpses. It already feels like we are diving into the odder parts of Herbert's books which makes sense seeing as part 1 is meant to get audiences on board while this can really go for it.

Stylistically, cinematographer Greg Fraiser somehow manages to outdo himself from the first. The status quo is established in the desert environment and all the ships but he finds new colours to explore whether it be the deep orange for the Arrakis sunset or the black and white moon on the Harkonnen homeworld Giedi Prime shot though infrared. The film as a whole is visually stunning especially when it's all filmed for IMAX. The spectacle here deserves to be seen on the biggest screen you can find.

Hans Zimmer's score is mostly the same as last time because if it ain't broke don't fix it. But there is a brilliant theme between Paul and Channi that is both small and grand in scale and brings strong emotional impact in how it is recontexualised from stirring love to devastating tragedy.

The cast is phenomenal with Timothee Chalamet really making himself a movie star in such a meaty role, Zendaya proving her chops as a great actress, Austin Butler showing he can do more accents than just Elvis's and Javier Bardem nailing sincere obsession.

A jaw-dropping film both in its scale and its narrative audacity exploring such complex themes like the destructive nature of war and the danger of religious fanaticism all through a fascinating and tragic character arc, Denis Villenevue masterfully adapts the second part of Frank Herbert's iconic novel. Collectively, his adaptation is a 5 hour sci-fi epic like no other.