The Spectacle of Shai Hulud and the Grand World-Building of Dune: Part Two

Whereas many modern big-budget movies feel like they have as much depth as a theme park ride premise, Dune and Dune: Part Two combine to reveal a fully formed world that’s wonder is in its details.

Photo: Warner Bros

Dune: Part Two is not without its flaws, and to deny them is an act of delusion. Even the staunchest sci-fi fans among us can’t watch this sequel without noticing its blemishes. 

Beneath the sands and impressive scale of this film are murky character motivations that aren’t immediately clear to non-book readers, a spectacular abundance of influence from Middle Eastern and North African cultures, which helps ground the film, but that’s gone completely unacknowledged by the film’s creators, and a lack of time spent on newcomers that could leave one unsure of why we should either fear or care about them.

However, what Villeneuve and the team behind the Dune series have excelled at with near perfect marks is the act of world-building. 

It may seem like an easy task given the source material’s wealth of imaginative and, often downright weird, elements to pull from. Frank Herbert’s novel is similar to the oceans of Caladan described within its pages. One could plunge right in and tread for hours before even beginning to touch the vastness of it. In his universe, your thirst for lore is always quenched. 

In fact, Dune, the book, is almost single-handedly responsible for most of the themes and image-making seen in nearly every piece of science fiction since. Does Anakin Skywalker come to mind when you witness Paul Atreides violate his prophecy? What about Tatooine? Surely, a group of mystics overseeing the inner workings and “protection” of the galaxy scratches the same part of your brain that saw the Jedi for the first time.

The beauty of Villeneuve’s two Dune adaptations, like Herbert’s work, is in the particulars. 

Did the first film dilly along, taking its time to move through castle corridors? Yes, but this meant viewers could revel in the specifics of the sand walk or the Gom Jabbar, and gape at the inventiveness of the ornithopter design. They could visit each of the major planets and, from image alone, distinguish why each’s occupants were so wildly different. 

In Dune: Part Two, the action is ramped up, the pace much quicker. Nevertheless, the mythology is still, like the Spice Melange, rich and transporting. 

Upon viewing the film, audiences are left with an intense understanding of how the Bene Gesserit operate and the horror of their intricate web. They can see for themselves how the Fremen harness *Oscar Isaac voice* DESERT POWER. The unique gadgets they use to capture moisture. 

In a sequence late in the film, we’re shown a ceremony used to extract a substance called the “Water of Life” from a young sandworm (told you Dune was weird) that feels like you could be watching documentary. Which is to say, it felt historical. Real. 

Nothing in the film captures this magic more than Paul’s ascension to proper Fremen by way of a joy ride atop Shai Hulud, or in layman’s terms, the humungous sandworms that occupy the deep desert of Arrakis. 

The scene opens with Javier Bardem’s character, Stilgar, telling Paul (Timothée Chalamet) not to do anything fancy. Basically, just get on the worm without killing yourself, is what he’s saying.

Once Stilgar rejoins Chani (Zendaya) and the Fremen on a nearby dune, Paul begins his task setting a thumper, the small instrument used to call sandworms. While he psychs himself up, we watch from his perspective, as this Jaws-ian monster crashes through the landscape. 

Then, spoiler alert, he does it. He mounts a sandworm…a HUGE sandworm. For one glimmering, shining moment, Paul IS the Lisan al-Gaib, and the film makes sure you feel it.

As Paul digs his hooks in, Shai Hulud’s nostrils are exposed - helping us understand why sandworms don’t dive deep below the sand. Of course! They have blowholes! It’s in this shot that we also get a sense of the sandworm’s skin for the first time. It’s tactile. You know exactly what the dry, split surface feels like without ever running your hand across it. It felt the way it was supposed to feel the first time we beheld a dragon on Game of Thrones. Could this creature exist somewhere, right now?

The scene isn’t just a stroke of genius from the production, property, and costume departments. It’s a showcase for everyone. Greg Fraser’s work to glide the camera alongside the worm. The sound mixing between Chalamet’s shallow, frantic breaths and the clouds of sand smashing into his goggles. The score from Hans Zimmer kicking in at the exact right moment.

It’s breathtaking, exhilarating, masterful, and filled with so much specificity. 

So, while there’s plenty to pick at when it comes to Dune: Part Two, I think we can forgive ourselves for getting lost in the moment when everyone involved is working at this caliber and Shai Hulud is literally in front of you as a physical 90-foot-long by 24-foot-wide set piece.