If you, like me, have been watching the second season of Euphoria, then you’ll know what it means to feel stressed. The opening episode alone featured a girl hanging her head out the window of a truck while the boy driving hit up to 90 mph, and later that same girl hid in a bathtub to avoid being caught having an affair (that second one was tenser than it sounds, I promise!). The premiere ended on a distinctly violent note, too, in which the show’s villain, if one can talk about Euphoria in such binary terms, was beaten to a pulp by the local drug dealer. Yet none of that compares to episode five, in which Rue (played exquisitely by Zendaya) goes on the run after refusing rehab, and, honestly, it’s still too soon to talk about it even two weeks later. But, in all the chaos, the show is often funny. A scene in a recent episode in which a large number of the female cast discuss the musical Oklahoma! in the school bathroom is a brilliant piece of comic writing. 

Amongst all this tension and humour, though, the show has consistently been a lightning rod for discussion by those who say they get the show and those who don’t. Its first season was measured by how many dicks were on screen (was it 30 or 80?), and it was dogged by a moralistic discussion of how much sex was too much. Was it appropriate to show teen characters, albeit those being played by adults, taking drugs and having sex? This was mixed up in the endless debate surrounding whether shows like Euphoria glamorise sex and drug use or condemn them, as if each piece of art needs to have a clear moral position on every issue it chooses to engage with. 

The show’s second season, currently airing on Now TV in the UK, has been chiefly used as a litmus test for coolness. If you say you don’t understand the show, you’re old and out of touch (either that or you admit to your own “uncool” teenage years). Moreover, people have questioned whether the show is any good when you peel back its shocking parts. Recently, various writers have levelled accusations of valuing style over substance, with Dazed calling the show a walking meme and The Guardian proclaiming season two contains “far too much nudity, sex and violence.” Still, the show has repeatedly dominated online conversation each week and has seen its viewing figures double since it premiered in 2019. Clearly, something appeals to people, and surely that can’t all be smoke and mirrors? 

I have found, perhaps surprisingly given its success, that the show’s second season reminds me of  John Cassavetes’ deeply depressing 1974 independent masterpiece about a woman’s declining mental state, A Woman Under the Influence. Not in its style – Cassavetes always favoured realism, and his films are brutal in their commitment to the grimness of reality – but in its central performance. It is certainly not light praise to compare Zendaya’s turn as Rue Bennett, a teenage drug addict, to that of Gena Rowland’s as Mabel, the latter a performance which crops up often in discussions of the greatest ever captured on film. Yet there is something to be said for the sheer panic of them; the way both actresses relinquish themselves totally to their respective roles.

Watching the first ten minutes of episode five, when Rue discovers her mother has flushed her stash, I saw shades of the scene in which Mabel’s family try to convince her to go to the hospital. Mabel’s demeanour moves from fear to denial to anger. When the doctor shows up, she makes nervous jokes, becoming increasingly uneasy as the inevitable dawns on her.  It is a heart-breaking scene, one that feels painful to watch—much like those opening ten minutes of episode five were, with Rue spiralling between severe anger, terror, and regret. 

A Woman Under the Influence was initially written as a play, but Rowlands told her husband, Cassavetes, she could not do the role eight times a week. It would be too demanding and too draining. Her performance earned her an Oscar nomination although, shockingly, she did not win, a decision that looks even more bizarre in hindsight. Zendaya has already won an Emmy for her role on Euphoria, and rightly so, but just as Rowlands found the idea of performing as Mabel, again and again, to be impossible, it’s a wonder Zendaya is able to manage the long shoots the show demands. Even the actress herself took to social media before season two started and told fans that it would not be an easy ride. Of course, the vehicle is different. A Woman Under the Influence was made with very little money, with Cassavetes literally stealing electricity and casting his own family in most of the roles. By contrast, Euphoria is a buzzy and expensive show funded by HBO. It routinely employs complex camera tricks, dream sequences, and complex deconstructions of its artifice, but the whole show feels rooted around Zendaya. Like Rowlands before her, Zendaya is carrying the weight of something on her back. Still, both actresses handle it with total grace and leave their audience in awe. I find myself, each week, texting my friends with the same simple worlds: Zendaya really is the best actress of her generation.

Also Read: Did High-End TV Replace The Mid-Budget Indie Film?

The post How Film Changed Me: On Euphoria appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

Welcome to Arrakis!

For those of you who haven’t read the novel by Frank Herbert or seen the previous Dune movies, here’s what you’ve missed. Dune is taking place in 10191 on Arrakis. This desert planet is the only place where spice can be found. To ensure that this precious product is being preserved, Duke Leto Atreides (Oscar Isaac) from the House Atreides has been asked to take over Arrakis from Baron Vladimir Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgård) and to keep the spice production ongoing. While he’s fulfilling his new function, his son Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) is getting all the attention. Ever since Paul was young, he dreamed of Arrakis and its Fremen. While those dreams seemed fictional, there might be a lot of truth to them after all.

Because of his real-life looking dreams and mind-controlling capabilities, Paul might be Kwisatz Haderach, who will lead the universe in the years to come. His mother, Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson), a member of the Bene Gesserit and who has special powers, is being tested by the leader of the Bene Gesserit, Gaius Helen Mohaim (Charlotte Rampling). As if the House Atreides hasn’t had enough to deal with already, their arch-enemies, the Harkonnen, want Paul dead because of his powers. The Atreides family is fighting multiple battles on different fronts, but how long will they be able to keep going?

Villeneuve takes his filmmaking to a higher level

We’ve tried to keep it simple, but we do get that Dune might seem a bit confusing, especially if you’re not familiar with it and its inhabitants. Once you get the chance to absorb the story, the characters and the different worlds, the film will never let you down. This is thanks to the incredible work by the Dune cast and crew!

First of all, there’s the striking cinematography by Greig Fraser. Suppose you have seen his work, such as Zero Dark Thirty and Villeneuve’s Arrival. In that case, you know that both men are experts in creating out-of-this-world cinematographic experiences. So you can already imagine what happens when they work together. Yes, we might be a bit biased as we saw this movie in IMAX (we recommend you do the same). Still, we’re pretty sure that even during a ‘standard’ screening, the cinematography will mesmerize you in an instant!

The special effects go hand in hand with the cinematography of a grandiose sci-fi movie like this one. The spaceships are gigantic and remarkable, and the palaces are splendid and extremely detailed. So yes, the special effects team of Dune certainly deserves all the praise it can get. Especially because of the scenes during which Josh Brolin (who portrays Gurney Halleck) pulls Chalamet into the spaceships during a rescue mission mid-movie. 

Speaking of Brolin and Chalamet, both men are part of a massive and perfect cast. Chalamet (Call Me by Your Name) puts on an excellent performance as Paul. You can see Chalamet’s confidence and Paul’s determination coming through life perfectly. Isaac (Ex Machina) is extremely impressive and emotional as Leto Atreides and Ferguson (Mission: Impossible – Fallout) remarkably conjugates the Atreides family with a fierce and emotional performance Momoa (who portrays Duncan Idaho; Zack Snyder’s Justice League) and Brolin (Sicario) certainly bring the (dry) humour and strength to this movie in a beautiful way. Both Skarsgård (Good Will Hunting) and Bautista (Hotel Artemis) deliver villainous and electrifying performances as Baron Vladimir Harkonnen and Beast Rabban Harkonnen.

We’ve saved the best for last! For this movie, Villeneuve worked together with Hans Zimmer. With around 140 composing credits (including Inception), do we still have to tell you what a fantastic composer Zimmer is? Probably not, but we’re going to do it anyway! His Dune score is epic and incredibly bombastic. The drums and violins create undoubtedly pulsating and extraordinary scenes. After the handful of almost entirely silent scenes, Zimmer intense work feels even louder than ever.

Ready for Dune: Part Two!

When watching the movie, you certainly feel that this movie is part one of a superb and epic Dune-saga. It would be an absolute shame if we don’t get to see part two. Not only because there’s much more to discover on Arrakis but also because if the highly talented cast and the ultra-creative crew work together again, you will get another astonishing sci-fi rollercoaster.

Dune is out now in U.K. cinemas.

Rating: (4.5 / 5)

Also Read: The Best Sci-Fi Films of the Decade (2010 – 2019)

The post Review: Dune appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.