Delayed from late 2023 due to the strikes preventing promotion, Denis Villeneuve's Dune: Part Two, the sequel to the 2021 blockbuster, is now finally in theatres worldwide. If you saw the first one, with its incredible sense of scale, with buzzing ornithopters hovering above giant sandworms, you’ll know that this is as epic as movies get.
What sets Dune apart from the usual blockbuster fare, however, is that it has an emotional and spiritual power to match the beauty and drama of its visuals. If you appreciate this, it's not too hard a stretch then to see why this is an event film that deserves to be seen on a cinema screen – and on a good one at that. Here then, I’ll run through the various formats that the film is available in, so you can make your choice based on a level of knowledge.
In a break from tradition though, I’m going to go through them in my reverse order of preference. Of course, even the “worst” format here is better than the alternative fate that nearly threatened Dune Part One, when Warner Bros threatened to limit it to a streaming release – a move that meant most people would only see it on the small screen, which its director Denis Villeneuve described as being equivalent to “driving a speedboat in your bathtub.” As such, if you are going for any cinematic option rather than waiting – you’re doing the right thing.
11. Digital 2D
In last place then, is the cinema format that most cinemagoers will go for – though possibly not the opening weekend crowd – and that’s digital 2D. This is your regular, run-of-the-mill, cinema screen, with a digital projector showing the film at 2K resolution, with 5.1 surround sound. Screen sizes may vary, as does quality. Many multiplex screens these days have a 1.85:1 aspect ratio – and the regular 2D DCP of Dune: Part Two will be 2.39:1. As most screens these days don’t have any masking, you’ll have black bars on top and bottom, as you would at home on a TV. On the upside, this is going to be the most affordable ticket price, and if the image is bright, the speakers and decent and the seats are not too uncomfortable then sit down and enjoy – but surely Dune: Part Two deserves more?
10. ScreenX
This format offers a 270-degree image with extra picture projected onto the side walls. I’ve had mixed results when I’ve experienced it. It was superb with Gran Turismo, when the sides made it feel as if you were inside the racing car, but with The Creator, the extra image looked weirdly stretched and I missed the larger scale of the move on the much bigger screen of my first viewing. To be honest, it might prove to be better than regular 2D, or it might prove to be worse, but I’ll nudge it up a spot on this list to be optimistic it will bring something extra to the experience.
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9. 4DX 2D
4DX 2D is a rather confusing title for the uninitiated – with two “d”s in the name (but no 3D). 4DX originated in South Korea and involves cinema seats that move in conjunction with the action on screen. Not only that, but you’ll also get pummelled in the back when there are explosions and gunfire, and hit by water and jets of air, and have lights flash. You’ll either love the thought of it – or hate it. In my experience it makes a bad film even worse (Fast and Furious 9), and a fun film kind of “funner” (Jumanji: The Next Level). I wouldn’t want it to be the only way I’d see the film, but it could work for a follow-up with a difference.
8. Premium large format (PLF)
A PLF screen This consists of a larger than normal screen, with 4K projection and high-quality sound, often Dolby Atmos. A recent viewing of Michael Mann’s Ferrari showed what a difference this can make to the experience – the Dolby Atmos was excellent. In the UK Cineworld calls its PLF Superscreen, and Empire calls in IMPACT. In the USA, you’ll find it under brand names such as Regal RPX and Cineplex UltraAVX. If you don’t have any of the options below, then this will be a decent choice.
7. Dolby Cinema: 1.85:1
Let’s not beat around the bush – Dolby Cinema is a fantastic format. As such, it might seem odd to have this mid-pack, but the reasoning will become clear. Dolby Cinema is arguably the most technically accomplished digital format – a dual-laser Barco projector delivering up to 22 foot-lamberts of brightness, Dolby Atmos sounds and plush, recliner seats – a feast for the eyes and the posterior. While most Dolby Cinema screens are 1.85:1 aspect ratio the deep black level you get from the system means you won’t see the black bars. I plan to see in this format – but not for my first viewing.
6. 70mm
The notion of watching something on film has been made almost mainstream by Christopher Nolan, with film showings of Oppenheimer accounting for a significant portion of its one billion smash success. Achieving a film-look is certainly important for Denis Villeneuve and the film’s cinematographer Greg Fraser. For Dune Part One, the film, was captured on film, then transferred to 35mm film stock, to pick up film grain, then scanned back to digital for distribution. However, no film prints of the first film were distributed. This has changed for Part Two, and hence we have 70mm film prints in distribution. As a rare treat, this could be one to seek out if you can.
5. IMAX Xenon (1.90:1 aspect ratio)
Now we get to the big one – IMAX. The film was captured using three IMAX-certified digital cameras, (Arri Alexa 65 IMAX, Arri Alexa LF, Arri Alexa Mini LF) with spherical, rather than anamorphic lenses, and then framed for IMAX screens for a minimum of 1.90:1 aspect ratio. So, in all IMAX screens, you’ll be getting more image top and bottom than you will in all other formats. As such, it demands to be the minimum default way to see the film. Most IMAX screens still use Xenon lamps, and as they get older it could mean reduced brightness and poorer contrast than newer installations. However, unless you know your local IMAX Xenon theatre has an issue, it would still be the default way to go.
4. IMAX Single Laser/CoLa (1.90:1 aspect ratio)
Newer IMAX installations use a single laser projector, (also known as commercial laser, or CoLa) which means a more consistently bright and stable picture than Xenon, with better color and contrast. Additionally, it is usually paired with an upgraded 12-channel speaker system, which means tremendous, thumping, but controlled audio quality. I am lucky enough to have one of these 25 minutes from my house – and it's excellent. The only downside is that a single laser can’t deliver a full-frame IMAX 1.43:1 aspect ratio image – for that you have to jump up this list.
3. IMAX Dual Laser/GT (1.90:1 aspect ratio)
IMAX Dual Laser, as you might expect gives you all the benefits of a single laser but thanks to a dual-laser system, can maintain that brightness over even larger screens. Hence, my local IMAX single laser measures 22m x 11.6m for an area of 255 m2, but the dual-laser Cineworld Leicester Square is 26.5m x 15.6m on a 413 m2 – and it’s very impressive. However, it’s still not quite the absolute top tier. The reason? It’s a 1.90:1 screen so can’t deliver the full IMAX experience.
2. IMAX Dual Laser/GT (1.43:1 aspect ratio)
If you want to see the power of a fully operational IMAX experience, you have to find one that has a 1.43:1 aspect ratio screen – and a dual laser IMAX projector. This means that those films with full frame 1.43:1 scenes can be viewed in all their glory. (These are rare beats. All Nolan films since The Dark Knight in 2008, have 1.43:1 scenes, as do others such as Batman vs Superman (2016), First Man (2018), No Time To Die in 2021 and Dune: Part One (2021) and, of course, Dune: Part Two (2024).)
However, dual laser and 1.43:1 is not a common combination. In the UK there are just two – the London Science Museum and the Vue Printworks in Manchester. So, for those in the UK, are those you’re only options to see Dune: Part Two as the director intended? No, there is another…
1. IMAX 15/70mm (1.43:1 aspect ratio)
IMAX 15/70mm film projection is the ultimate granddaddy of all IMAX formats – and you’ll only ever see it in IMAX theatres that have a 1.43:1 screen – it’s a package deal. Only three screens in the UK that have this capability, the Vue Manchester Printworks, the London Science Museum and the BFI IMAX Waterloo. The latter even eschewed upgrading to dual-laser and went for single-laser as there was no room in the booth for both the dual laser and the film projector, and they were never going to get rid of the latter – a move that the hugely successful run of Oppenheimer at the BFI proved right.
As such, it’s a delight that IMAX 15/70mm prints of Dune: Part Two have been struck. Only 12 locations worldwide will be getting a 15/70 print and the BFI IMAX in London is the only place in Europe that will have one, so for IMAX film fans, the Waterloo roundabout will be a mecca for the next few weeks.
The difference with Oppenheimer is that Dune: Part Two was not captured on IMAX film cameras – just digital and then transferred onto film. In a recent interview with Bruce Markoe, IMAX’s head of post-production, I was told this was not simply a marketing exercise following on from Oppenheimer.
“We did tests with the director and the DP and the studio looking at how the film would look, you know. So, it wasn't just like a decision made in a vacuum. There was a lot of thought and tests that went into it to make sure that he was very happy with the way it looked, which he was. It needed to work creatively and that's why those tests were done. If he was not happy and excited by how it looked then we would have never done it.”
With around 40 minutes of Dune: Part Two in 1.43:1 in 1.43 I’d run, rather than walk to see it in this format if you can – whether that’s in IMAX dual laser or IMAX 15/70mm film.
