I should preface this review by saying that though I am not a sci-fi fan, I am an easy movie go-er to please.

From the start, “Dune: Part Two” was louder, with more dialogue compared to “Dune: Part One,” which had many slower scenes with music in the background as characters walked in sand or a large futuristic fighter plane flew. Off to a good start, and I was definitely able to further understand why people like Dune. 

I have not read the books, but to me, “Part One” was all world building and very little plot. I’m glad “Part Two” gave me more to think about and connect to. 

“Part Two” is backed by the star power of actors Austin Butler and Florence Pugh. This film feels thematically more important than the first because of the heavy hitting messages hidden in the plot from the topic of dictatorship to religion. 

The main character Paul, played by Timothée Chalamet, is in hiding with his mother. They join a group of people who live in the desert called the Fremen. This is where he meets and falls in love with Chani, played by Zendaya. 

Because of his fighting skills and status as a prince, Paul fits the description of a prophecy that a group of Fremen, called Fundamentalists, believe in. This is where Paul loses control of himself to gain power. Paul abandons his mother to stay in the north with the Fundamentalists, which causes the film’s main point of conflict. 

Paul goes on to fight for Princess Irulan’s (Florence Pugh) hand in marriage, which causes more conflict with Chani. 

Like many sci-fi films, the main conflict is over power. In “Dune,” Paul’s power reflects current societal issues such as fake news and politics. Paul’s character completely falls apart when he starts to believe in the prophecy and abandons himself to become the leader of the Fundamentalists. 

Paul has visions that cause him to believe that he has the power to cause a genocide if he joins his mother in the south. Everything he does, including abandoning his mother and Chani, drinking a poison that will give him more visions, and killing Feyd Rautha (Austin Butler), Is in order to gain power, because he truly believes he is the prophet and the rightful leader of the Fremen, even as an outsider. 

Going in, I was not a fan of “Dune,” but I can appreciate the story telling and thankfully developing plot.