After seeing a preview of Dune: Part Three ahead of a showing of The Odyssey, I’ve decided Denis Villeneuve’s film could be the best of 2026.
Currently, that title belongs to Christopher Nolan’s mythological epic, which undoubtedly will be an Oscar frontrunner in several categories in March.
The scarcity of IMAX 70mm screens in the UK, where there are three to be precise; two in London (the BFI and Science Museum) and the Vue Printworks in Manchester.
Scarcer are tickets for IMAX 70mm screenings of The Odyssey, so an eight-hour-plus round trip to Manchester was needed to enjoy Nolan’s masterpiece in its full form.
A ‘Dune: Part Three’ sneak preview
The Odyssey in full IMAX 70mm didn’t disappoint, and it was truly satisfying to watch a film ‘as Nolan intended’ in the non-meme fashion.
But Villeneuve’s Dune preview was a surprise, as I’d wrongly assumed it was reserved for the IMAX 70mm screenings at the BFI.
It was a delightful surprise, with Villeneuve presenting Javier Bardem’s Stilgar leading an army’s offensive on a dark, seemingly barren planet, far from Arrakis.
Stilgar’s men are quickly confronted by an immense turret, which promptly goes about disintegrating dozens before a gargantuan conical craft emerges from the ground, causing death and destruction by the hundreds.
Imagine Saving Private Ryan in space.
Watching the preview was a nigh-on breathtaking experience.
A superb end to a brilliant sci-fi adaptation
Villeneuve built something special with the first Dune films, both of which are based on Frank Herbert’s acclaimed 1965 novel.
The French-Canadian filmmaker is adapting Herbert’s follow-up novel, Dune Messiah, which doesn’t receive the same acclaim as the first in the series.
Still, based on the evidence put forward in trailers and special previews, Dune: Part Three looks as if it could be the perfect ending to a trilogy.
Villeneuve has been going grand in scale with his Dune films, and Part Three should be upping the ante in a major way, pushing the theatrical form to the extreme.
So while The Odyssey currently holds the crown, Dune: Part Three could ascend beyond it.
The Odyssey has set the mould for visceral film presentation; Dune: Part Three could break it.
Based on the special preview sequence alone, audiences could be treated to a truly original experience.
Roll on 18 December.
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