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@ZackM it's been almost 25 years since I read the books. What was the change that bummed you out? You can obviously hide it with a spoiler.
 
Chani leaving Paul at the end. It actually isn’t a very impactful change for this story, so it bothered me less on rewatch. It’s more so about what it means for a Messiah adaption, where their dedication to each other is critical to the story.
 
Does she kneel with the others in the book? I seem to remember something pretty cynical like that. I assume that for a modern audience they wanted her to be more "empowered."

I'm sure they can always have her come back around. Paul himself said he saw in his visions that she came to accept it.
 
Much better than the first movie, btw. The critique of the corrupting influence of power and the dangers of messianic cults was much more in the forefront.

The first movie was probably always going to be more of a table-setter, I guess. But this movie did a better job of showing audiences what makes Dune unique and special. I felt like the first movie was probably a bit too easy to misinterpret if you hadn't read the books. I'm sure there are still people who will view Paul's journey as a wholly positive one even after this movie, but not anyone who's decent at understanding narrative fiction.

It's also much more difficult to miss the Middle East allegory. It really made you understand why fanaticism is, in many ways, a valid response to imperialism. But of course, it also showed you how religious leaders exploit that response.
 
BTW, I felt like Zendaya did a great job as the conscience of the movie/audience surrogate. I don't always love her line delivery, but her ability to convey what she's feeling through her facial expressions is actually pretty great.

Javier Bardem was surprisingly funny. I didn't expect so much comedy. Really, I thought everyone did a great job. Austin Butler was iconic.
 
I definitely need to go see it again. Unfortunately, I started feeling kind of sick about halfway through. I think it was lack of sleep and lack of a decent meal combined with an enormous Coke and a ton of popcorn. But I started feeling almost feverish. I felt better this morning, so I doubt it was an actual fever. But it cut into my enjoyment of the last hour or so.

Looking back, the pinnacle of the movie for me was Paul riding the worm. I almost started crying for some reason. It was a scene where you knew he was going to succeed, but somehow it was super-rewarding anyway.

Is there anyone who uses CGI better than Villeneuve right now? Marvel movies are praised for their effects, but they always look plasticky to me, and they always take me out of the movie. The only visual effect I felt that way about in this movie was the close-up of the muad'dib (the actual mouse, not Paul).
 
Part of the reason it looks so good is because they shot it and edited it digitally, but then transferred it to film before scanning back into digital. Through that process they're able to reduce the harshness/crispness of the CGI in a way that feels really natural.
 
ZackM said:
Part of the reason it looks so good is because they shot it and edited it digitally, but then transferred it to film before scanning back into digital. Through that process they're able to reduce the harshness/crispness of the CGI in a way that feels really natural.
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That makes sense. And it's really interesting to hear that as a musician. One of the things people struggle with while recording music to digital these days is how "clean" everything sounds. A trick some people will do is to record in digital, run it out to tape, and run it back into the computer. So pretty much exactly the same process for the same reasons.

I think another thing that helps is that the CGI looks properly "lived in." I remember seeing a shot of Arrakeen and thinking how grimy it looked -- just like you'd expect a city that had been hit by sandstorms over and over for decades to look. Nothing is too glossy looking, except maybe the Emperor's ship, which SHOULD look glossy because it comes from a different planet. There's a really grounded, logically sound design approach.
 
Speaking of transferring it to film, they're showing it at my favorite theater in Chicago in 70MM. Wish I still lived there.
 
ZackM said:
Part of the reason it looks so good is because they shot it and edited it digitally, but then transferred it to film before scanning back into digital. Through that process they're able to reduce the harshness/crispness of the CGI in a way that feels really natural.
Click to expand...
This is really interesting, thanks for sharing. Had no idea.
 
I don't know yet, but I'm going to do a double feature of Poor Things, followed by Lisa Frankenstein. And then I'm going to wonder what conspiracy theory can account for these two movies being released at the same time.
(There's also a newly released B-movie, Frankenstein: Legacy. Wtf, people?)
 
SeanMayTriedToEatMe said:
Is Poor Things worth watching? I haven’t loved Yorgos Lanthimos movies, though I appreciate their weirdness.
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I loved The Killing of a Sacred Deer. Hated The Lobster, which ironically seems to be his most well liked movie. Was lukewarm on The Favourite.
 
deepdarkblue said:
I don't know yet, but I'm going to do a double feature of Poor Things, followed by Lisa Frankenstein. And then I'm going to wonder what conspiracy theory can account for these two movies being released at the same time.
(There's also a newly released B-movie, Frankenstein: Legacy. Wtf, people?)
Click to expand...
You'd be surprised at how often this happens.

- Hercules and The Legend of Hercules both came out in 2014
- White House Down and Olympus Has Fallen both came out in 2013
- Mirror Mirror and Snow White and the Huntsman both came out 2012
- Friends with Benefits and No Strings Attached both came out in 2011
- Paul Blart: Mall Cop and Observe and Report both came out in 2009
- The Illusionist and The Prestige both came out in 2006
- Dante's Peak and Volcano both came out in 1997
- Armageddon and Deep Impact both came out in 1998

There are plenty more examples, but some of them are technically a year apart (like The Truman Show and EdTV, or Capote and Infamous).
 
My attention span cannot handle long movies these days. I tried to watch Killers of the Flower Moon last night, and I had to give up after 1.5 hours. I’ll try to finish it this evening, but I have 2 hours left! Probably will spill over to Sunday.
 
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