2024 Larry Prater Award for Best Viewing

The 2024 Larry Prater Award for Best Viewing goes to Dune: Part Two, by Denis Villeneuve. Some of you will say that it’s a safe and boring choice and maybe it is, but among the films I’ve seen, there wasn’t a legitimate case for anything else. There probably were better films released this year, but none that I’ve seen or even heard about. I enjoyed the first Dune movie a lot, but this was different. This was Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings level of smart, but fun and unifying. I thought this kind of movie didn’t exist anymore.

Dune: Part Two doesn’t exactly push the envelope in any department, but it is so above and beyond every other blockbuster movie in every department that it makes for an unforgettable experience: narrativity, cinematography, special effects, visual storytelling, everything. Disney and Warner Brothers have tried and failed to manufacture cultural moments, but Denis Villeneuve (a creator) made it happen in a year where corporate cynicism reigns supreme. Maybe it’s safe and boring, but it’s a well-earned award.

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