Dune: Part Twowas one of 2024’s best releases, earning more than $714 million in theaters as well as five Oscar nominations. The film has massive stars like Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya, as well as spectacular directing from Denis Villeneuve. The movie was filmed for IMAX and deserves to be seen on the best screen possible. Unfortunately, the film has been out of theaters for almost a year, leaving audiences to watch the Blu-ray or streaming releases of the film. Even worse, these releases leave out large parts of the film, preventing viewers from getting the fullDune: Part Twoexperience.
Dune: Part Two
What’s Missing in the Home Release of ‘Dune: Part Two’?
Dune: Part Twowas filmed using IMAX cameras and was intended to be seen in that format. Movies filmed for IMAX look taller than normal movies because the 70 mm film used to make them is about 10 times larger than the standard 35 mm film.WhenDune: Part Twowas released in IMAX theaters, it had an aspect ratio of 1.43:1 or 1.90:1depending on the project used at each theater. However,the Blu-ray and streaming releases ofDune: Part Twouse a ratio of 2.39:1 for the whole film instead, which is the same as the standard projection ratio for the film.
The 2.39:1 ratio is typical for most Blu-ray releases, but it cuts out the top and bottom of the frame from the IMAX release. While 2.39:1 sounds larger than 1.43:1, 2.39:1 is more of a rectangle and 1.43:1 is closer to a square, making 2.39:1 shorter than the other. In fact, 2.39:1 doesn’t even take up the full frame of the TV, which leaves black borders at the top and bottom of the screen. Some films shot for IMAX, likeThe Dark Knight, have tried to alleviate the difference in framing by having some scenes take up the whole TV screen on the home release, but notDune: Part Two.
To fully see just how much viewers are losing watching the home release ofDune: Part Twoand understand this difference in ratios, some math is required. A 65-inch 4K TV is 3,840 pixels wide and 2,160 pixels tall, with about 8.3 million pixels across the whole TV. WatchingDune: Part Twoon that TV with the home release’s 2.39:1 ratio would be 3,840 pixels wide, but only 1,607 pixels tall, using just over 6.1 million total pixels on the TV. If it was possible to watchDune: Part Twoin its original 1.43:1 aspect ratio on the TV, it would be 3,840 pixels wide and 2,685 pixels tall, with 10.3 million pixels total.Audiences watchingDune: Part Twoon their TVs are missing out on about 40% of each frame from the IMAX release, with a quarter of their TVs not even being put to use.
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‘Dune: Part Two’ Deserves to Be Seen in the Best Format Possible
Dune: Part Twois a modern sci-fi epic.Director Denis Villeneuveand his team took the time to use IMAX cameras for the whole film, which are bigger and heavier than standard cameras. Add to that the fact that large portions of the film had to be shot in actual deserts, andit’s clear to see the filmmakers' dedication to putting spectacular visuals on the big screen.
For the upcoming Academy Awards in 2025,Dune: Part Twowas nominated for five Oscars.Three of those five Oscars were Best Achievement in Visual Effects, Best Achievement in Cinematography, and Best Achievement in Production Design, all of which have to do with how the film looks. These Oscar-nominated visuals can’t be appreciated to their full extent without being seen in IMAX. The other two Oscar nominations were for Best Picture and Best Sound, the latter of which almost requires the powerful speaker system of IMAX theaters to understand its immersive impact.
‘Dune: Part Two’ Was Right to Cut This Pivotal Character From the Book (Even if Some Fans Disagree)
‘Dune: Part Two’ left out a key character relating to Paul and Chani, and the movie was better because of it.
Unfortunately, the home releases ofDune: Part Two, as flawed as they are, will just have to do for now, as they’re the most accessible ways of watching the film.
