In the late morning of November 13, 2023, director Denis Villeneuve of “Dune: Part Two” was in Germany, to introduce some journalists from home and abroad to the first scenes of the film and talk about the sequel to the 5-star masterpiece “Dune” to talk. The location was the Astor Film Lounge cinema in Hamburg’s HafenCity. FILMSTARTS was there for you.
The hour-long event was the first of its kind in the world and it was clear that Villeneuve, who looked pleasantly open and cordial, must have been at least a little nervous. After all, at that time no one except the members of his team and the employees of the production studios Warner Bros. and Legendary more than the “Dune 2” trailer. And after all, this film is the most highly anticipated science fiction epic of our time by film fans all over the world…
After a brief greeting by moderator Steven Gätjen, who moderated the event, Villeneuve himself addressed the approximately 40 to 50 attendees. He said he finally completed the film a few weeks earlier and was now embarking on a PR tour for almost six months. This is the first time Dune: Part Two has been talked about publicly since its completion.
“Dune 2” works even if you don’t know “Dune”!
He then announced the approximately twelve-minute opening scene, several brief moments of which can also be seen in the trailer above. Villeneuve emphasized:
This is the opening of “Dune: Part Two”
After the logo appears, the film begins with a flashback in which we hear Princess Irulan (Florence Pugh) in voice-over. She tells how House Atreides was invaded by the evil Harkonnen in the first part. We see thousands of soldiers’ corpses piled up, burned by Harkonnen warriors with flamethrowers. In addition, a framed portrait of Duke Leto Atreides (Oscar Isaac) smoldering in the fire and the House crest on the uniform of one of the fallen soldiers are shown in close-up. The latter begins to melt and eventually disappears beyond recognition.
Irulan herself then appears, sitting with her father, Emperor Shaddam IV (Christopher Walken), in a lush, green garden. Both are silent. Later in the voiceover, the princess explains that Shaddam loved Leto with all his heart. However, he would love his power even more. Therefore, he allowed the Harkonnen to destroy the Atreides and kill the Duke, who became a threat to Shaddam’s own plans and ambitions. Since that day, however, the emperor has not spoken a single word.
After another cut we find ourselves on the desert planet Arrakis. With skill and luck, Duke Leto Artreides’ widow, Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson), and their son Paul (Timothée Chalamet) were able to avoid being murdered by the Harkonnen there and find shelter among the nomadic Fremen people.
We see them hiding in the dunes from a search party of Harkonnen being lowered from a spaceship floating above the ground. Given all this, the Fremen around their leader Stilgar (Javier Bardem) and young Chani (Zendaya) have no choice but to attract one of the giant sandworms that populate the planet…
“Dune: Part Two” has more action
After these photos, the lights came back on and there was complete silence in the room. After a few seconds of frozen amazement, there was loud applause. Villeneuve, who kindly thanked him for the encouragement, took the microphone again and confirmed what most viewers already suspected after the twelve minutes: he explained.
The master director then talked about how he and his team started preparing for the film immediately after completing work on “Dune.” While the actors were able to take some vacation or dedicate themselves to other projects, he, producer Mary Parent, cinematographer Greig Fraser and several other crew members immediately got to work planning and initiating the shooting of “Dune: Part Two.”
When the first rehearsals with the actors took place, According to Villeneuve, it showed how much the cast had grown into a family during the filming of the first part. He was especially touched by the warm welcome and integration of the newcomers by their colleagues already established in the “Dune” universe.
“Dune: Part Two” stars Oscar winner Christopher Walken (“They go through hell”), Florence Pugh from “Oppenheimer”, Léa Seydoux (“James Bond 007 – No Time to Die”) as the Emperor’s closest confidante and Austin Butler. The title star of “Elvis” portrays the brutal Feyd-Rautha, one of the nephews of Baron Wladimir Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgård) and his designated successor.
The “Dune” saga as a privilege
When Villeneuve spoke about the nearly seven years he spent implementing author Frank Herbert’s science fiction classic, his love for the original was always evident. When he was asked to direct the new adaptation of the best-selling science fiction novel of all time in early 2017, he said it had been a lifelong dream since childhood.
When Gätjen in Hamburg asked him how he could keep up the energy and enthusiasm for such a huge double production for so long, Villeneuve said:
In the course of the conversation with Villeneuve we were shown further detailed scenes, the content and form of which we must remain silent for the time being due to an embargo agreement. You can watch this and of course the entire rest of the film yourself “Dune: Part Two” will be released in German cinemas on February 29, 2024.
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Source : Film Starts
I am Dawid Malan, a news reporter for 24 Instant News. I specialize in celebrity and entertainment news, writing stories that capture the attention of readers from all walks of life. My work has been featured in some of the world’s leading publications and I am passionate about delivering quality content to my readers.
