Dune: Part Two

This topic contains:

• overall comments and recommendations
• details of classification and consumer advice lines for Dune: Part Two
• a review of Dune: Part Two completed by the Australian Council on Children and the Media (ACCM) on 5 March 2024.

Overall comments and recommendations

About the movie

This section contains details about the movie, including its classification by the Australian Government Classification Board and the associated consumer advice lines. Other classification advice (OC) is provided where the Australian film classification is not available.

ACCM review

This review of the movie contains the following information:

• a synopsis of the story
• themes
• use of violence
• material that may scare or disturb children
• product placement
• sexual references
• nudity and sexual activity
• use of substances
• coarse language
• the movie’s message

A synopsis of the story

After his father’s death, Paul Atreides (Timothee Chalamet) joins the Fremen, much to the dismay of his mother Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson). Believing both Paul and Lady Jessica to be dead, the Harkonnen step up their attack on the Fremen in their ongoing battle for control of Arrakis. While much of the Fremen population is wary of Paul, tribal leader Stilgar (Javier Bardem) believes Paul to be the legendary chosen one who is destined to save them all. Initially, Paul wants no part of this and denies that he is any sort of saviour, instead trying to blend into the tribe and learn their ways. He strikes up a relationship with the young warrior Chani (Zendaya) and the pair soon fall in love. To prove his worth, Paul passes the numerous tests put to him by the Fremen and takes on the title of Muad’Dib, vowing vengeance on the Harkonnen who continue to attack the Fremen at every turn and who were the ones behind his father’s death. Meanwhile, Lady Jessica becomes a powerful religious figure among the Fremen and uses her power to pave the way for Paul’s ascendency. Trying to avoid a holy war, Paul struggles against the visions he sees of millions killed in his name and does his best to prevent what may be inevitable. After suffering numerous Harkonnen losses, Feyd-Rautha (Austin Butler) the violent, sociopathic nephew of the Baron Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgard) is given the chance to be named Emperor if he uses his brutality to tame Arrakis and free the spice, a valuable commodity that everyone is fighting to control. Can a holy war be avoided or will Arrakis be destroyed by insatiable greed?

War; Greed; Power; Revenge; Subjugated control based on fear or faith; Fanaticism.

There is some violence in this movie, including:

• There are large piles of bodies being burned by characters with blow torches.
• Characters are shot off a mountain.
• Two characters engage in a sword fight. One eventually slices through the other.
• One character smashes through the helmet of another, repeatedly bashing a rock into the man’s head.
• The bodies of Harkonnen soldiers are stacked in an enormous pile and a worm is summoned to eat them. They are swallowed in a single gulp by its wide, tooth filled mouth.
• A character grabs an officer’s face and repeatedly slams him into a control panel. He then shouts at his subordinates: “Kill them all!”
• There are numerous fight scenes involving Fremen rebels defending Arrakis against Harkonnen invaders. Numerous characters are shot or stabbed.
• Many Fremen rebels burst out of the sand and attack, stabbing their opponents, or placing explosives onto the invader’s machinery.
• Chani shoots an invader with a rocket launcher and propels the man into the side of a machine, which promptly explodes.
• Fremen fighters shoot at and destroy Harkonnen weaponry, aircraft and personnel.
• A character describes the massacre of their family.
• The Fremen fighters target more Harkonnen ships, shooting them down from the sky.
• Women are heard screaming behind closed doors, there is a loud bang and shortly thereafter the bloody bodies of two women are shown on the floor.
• Paul has visions of a future where millions of people are exposed and starving to death because of him.
• The Fremen blow up a spice depot so the Harkonnen can’t have it.
• A man threatens to kill a woman.
• A commander breaks a pilot’s neck.
• Harkonnen fighter ships destroy a sacred site of the Fremen.
• One man is shot, another is stabbed and a third has his throat cut.
• A rebel fighter nearly kills a Harkonnen leader. The rebel is shot after nearly strangling the Harkonnen to death.
• Feyd-Rautha cuts his own tongue and then stabs two women to death.
• Feyd-Rautha fights three men in an arena with swords. He stabs them and slits the neck of one.
• Characters fight with swords, as well as hitting, kicking, punching, and stabbing each other.
• A character is about to stab Feyd-Rautha but at the last minute it is Feyd-Rautha who is victorious in killing his opponent.
• One character tells another: “I ought to drown you in your tub”.
• It is rumoured that Feyd-Rautha killed his own mother.
• Explosions fill the air as the Fremen launch another attack against Harkonnen forces.
• A ship lands and then immediately explodes.
• Paul mentions that if he goes south, he sees millions of corpses on the ground and if he goes north all his visions lead to war.
• A man tells Paul that he knows where Paul’s father hid the family atomics. Paul later explains to some Fremen that they have enough atomic warheads to blow up the planet.
• A character strangles a baby worm and drowns it in water. He then stabs something into its body and drains the blue fluid that flows out.
• The Harkonnen destroy the temples and holy water of the Fremen.
• One character slices a man in the neck.
• One character tells another: “Kiss my feet or die”.
• Injured and dead Fremen are shown after a bombing, including children who are covered in blood and dust.
• The Harkonnen firebomb a bunch of birds and their nests. The charred bodies of the birds fall to the ground.
• Chani slaps Paul across the face.
• Paul takes a forbidden poison and is on the brink of death but then is brought back to life. It is at this point that he claims that no one can stand against him.
• Two men are knocked in the back of the head with swords.
• The Fremen shoot missiles at an enemy base, trying to destroy their forces.
• Multiple worms assist the Fremen in attacking the base.
• Harkonnen aircraft shoot at the worms from the sky. Many of them fly into a desert storm and explode.
• The Fremen and Harkonnen armies clash with much sword fighting, slashing and stabbing.
• Paul stabs a character in the side of the neck.
• A man is stabbed in the neck after he tries to kill someone else.
• Piles of bodies are burned with a blow torch.
• Ants crawl all over a dead body.
• The Emperor admits to killing Paul’s father because he believed that he was weak.
• Paul and Feyd-Rautha fight with swords and knives. Paul is stabbed twice in the chest. He grabs Feyd-Rautha’s blade and it slides through his hands.
• Paul stabs Feyd-Rautha in the heart and announces that the holy war has begun.

Material that may scare or disturb children

In addition to the above-mentioned violent scenes, there are some scenes in this movie that could scare or disturb children under the age of five, including the following:

• When a body is prepared for burial, a strange goo is spread across the eyes of the corpse and its bodily fluids are sucked out and returned to a lake filled with the bodily fluids of countless dead. The corpse itself shrivels as it dehydrates.
• Occasionally, Lady Jessica looks possessed once she has been transformed into the powerful religious leader. Her eyes are intense and her voice takes on a sinister ring as she instructs or demands things of people, including telling Paul that he must drink poison and then afterwards, “he will see”.
• There are large worms living under the desert sand. They are monstrously huge and capable of swallowing a hundred large men at once. They have enormous, gaping mouths filled with countless, fang-like teeth. They are feared by foreigners and respected by the Fremen who have learned to live with them, but their appearance is likely to be very distressing to some children.

In addition to the above-mentioned violent scenes and scary visual images, there are some scenes in this movie that could scare or disturb children aged five to eight, including the following:

• Paul and a group of Fremen fighters arrive with the body of a man who has been killed. They are surrounded by a swarm of angry Fremen who are shouting, “You killed Jamis!” There appears to be an imminent threat of mob violence directed at this small group. Though no attack is made, the scene is intense and emotionally charged.
• Lady Jessica drinks a blue poison which some would call “worm piss”. It is said that she will die upon consuming it and viewers witness the progression of the poison through her body, especially as it comes near the placenta and her unborn child. She writhes on the ground in pain and appears to be suffering a series of seizures, but she does not die. The scene could be confusing and upsetting for some viewers.

• Nothing further noted.

Product placement

• None noted.

Sexual references

There are some sexual references in this movie, including:

• A woman is pregnant. There is some debate as to the father of the child and there are multiple in utero shots of the foetus.
• A character is described as sexually vulnerable.

Nudity and sexual activity

There is some nudity and sexual activity in this movie, including:

• Chani and Paul kiss.
• Chani lies on top of Paul. They are both panting, their faces are close together and what little we can see implies that they are naked and have just had sex.
• The Baron is shown getting out of a special bath, his bare backside is shown, along with alien-like technology running down his spine.

Use of substances

There is some use of substances in this movie, including:

• A blue poison is consumed. It often leads to death but in a select few, it gives them knowledge of the past and the power to see things that have not yet taken place.
• Chani tells Paul that he sand walks, “like a drunk lizard”.
• Spice is depicted as a good substance (sometimes even found in food) but one that can also be addictive and one that everyone wants to get their hands on.

Coarse language

There is some coarse language in this movie, including:

• Shit
• Piss
• Hell
• Moron
• Demons.

In a nutshell

Dune: Part Two is a sci-fi fantasy adventure that picks up where Dune (2021) left off. Based on the 1965 novel by Frank Herbert, the film features an epic storyline, excellent cinematography and a well-cast group of characters. The film is not for young children and is best suited to older teen and adult audiences.

The main messages from this movie are that great things can be achieved by working together; and that you can’t see the future without seeing the past.

Values in this movie that parents may wish to reinforce with their children include:

• Teamwork
• Trust
• Courage
• Empathy
• Persistence.

This movie could also give parents the opportunity to discuss with their children attitudes and behaviours, and their real-life consequences, such as:

• Using violence to solve conflict.
• Trying to eradicate a civilization just to get what they possess.
• Betraying others or going through life being deceitful.
• Using power and perception for personal gain, regardless of what it does to those around you.
• Focussing on revenge.
• Ravaging a planet for its resources.
• Religious fanaticism and the potential harm it can cause.