MOVIE: Dune – Part Two (2024)

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Dune: Part TwoYear: 2024Rating: PG-13Length: 166 minutes / 2.77 hours Years ago, when I first read Dune, I struggled to get through the first half of the book. There was so much exposition and world building I had to get through that when the action finally began, I devoured the rest of the story. While I understand the need to split this epic novel into two movies, it meant I was eagerly anticipating Dune: Part Two (2024) after the excellent job Denis Villeneueve did adapting the first half in 2021. I appreciate that movies have multiple chances to become the iconic versions that their source material deserves. The original Dune (1984) has its own cult status among its fans (many of which are merely David Lynch fans). But the wide audience appeal of an epic story that stands the test of time is the high standard most filmmakers strive for. Few have been able to pull it off, but I think time...
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MOVIE: Enemy (2013)

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Enemy Year: 2013 Rating: R Length: 91 minutes / 1.52 hours My first introduction to Denis Villeneuve was Prisoners (2013). This was an intense film, but even after seeing Sicario (2015), I didn't get hooked on his directing until Arrival (2016). What's interesting is that another Villeneuve film from 2013 evaded my radar until now. My film-loving friends made me aware of Enemy (2013), but I didn't get around to watching it until now. I'm glad I did. Seeing Villeneuve in the early stages of defining his style is fascinating, and Enemy certainly is more stylistic than Prisoners ever was, even if it felt like a student film at times. Of course, being one of Villeneuve's earlier films, Enemy has some rough edges. It's difficult to tell whether the source material influenced some of this film's weird choices, but it's the one thing that really prevents me from giving it a perfect score. Maybe cutting out the spider bits would have made Enemy more cohesive,...
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MOVIE: Dune – Part One (2021)

by benmweilert1 Comment
Dune: Part One Year: 2021 Rating: PG-13 Length: 155 minutes / 2.58 hours Adaptations of beloved books can be a challenging endeavor. It's not impossible, as we've seen with The Lord of the Rings (2001-2003), Harry Potter (2001-2011), or The Hunger Games (2011-2015) but there are certain traps that can doom a film version of a story to be hated by the community that loves the book. While Dune (1984) attempted to give this story life on the big screen, the special effects at the time and your opinion of David Lynch's filmmaking may have tainted an otherwise "impossible" adaptation. When a new adaptation of Dune came along with Denis Villeneuve as its director, I had hope that he would honor the source material. Villeneuve has proven himself to be a fantastic sci-fi director. From Arrival (2016) to Blade Runner: 2049 (2017), he has shown that he understands stories as much as aesthetics. The best way to honor Frank Herbert's legacy in this adaptation of...
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MOVIE: Blade Runner – 2049 (2017)

by benmweilert1 Comment
Blade Runner: 2049 Year: 2017 Rating: R Length: 164 minutes / 2.73 hours Back when I first heard about a Blade Runner (1982) sequel, I was skeptical about its quality. Sure, the ending was a little open-ended, but it stood by itself quite well. A Blade Runner sequel coming out mere years away from the original’s futuristic timeline of 2019 seemed just as ridiculous. The one redeeming factor that eventually led me to think this sequel would be any good was that Denis Villeneuve was tapped to direct it. While I’ve liked Villeneuve’s films as far back as Prisoners (2013), I’ve really become a fan since his Best Picture-nominated Arrival (2016) revealed how well he can do science fiction. Of course, Blade Runner isn’t really science fiction. Sure, it has the trappings of a futuristic society, but at its core, the movie is a noir. The plot and aesthetic of noir is considerably different than that of sci-fi, but Villeneuve manages to merge the two...
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MOVIE: Arrival (2016)

by benmweilertNo Comments
Arrival Year: 2016 Rating: PG-13 Length: 116 minutes / 1.93 hours Despite all the mindless action and sex that hits the big screen every year, every once in a while there comes a film that's a little more . . . cerebral. Arrival (2016) certainly fits this category. Not only do you really have to pay attention to what's happening in this film, it makes you question how we perceive our world as it is right now. Never before have I seen the topic of encountering alien life forms approached from such a realistic and logical way. It makes sense that we wouldn't be able to understand them, so the first step in establishing an understanding is to establish communication. Much like Christopher Nolan, who has done a number of great, "cerebral" films including Memento (2000), Inception (2010), and Interstellar (2014), I have recently come to appreciate the directorial talents of Denis Villeneuve. From his previous films like Prisoners (2013) and Sicario (2015), I've seen him deliver...
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