Summary

• Villeneuve's Dune brings Frank Herbert's sci-fi classic to life on the big screen, proving that the novel's reputation for being impossible to adapt is no longer true.
• The complex story of Dune, set thousands of years in the future, revolves around power struggles, a desert planet called Arrakis, and the valuable spice that controls the empire.
• Timothée Chalamet shines as Paul Atreides, the heir to House Atreides, whose journey begins when his family moves to Arrakis and faces treachery from House Harkonnen. The story is a touching allegory wrapped in a compelling narrative.

Warning: Contains potential SPOILERS for Dune: Part TwoDenis Villeneuve’s two-part Dune remake brings Frank Herbert's 1965 book to the big screen for the second time, yet the seminal sci-fi story is so rich that many of its characters, features, and themes require further explanation. The novel is widely regarded as a sci-fi classic that changed the genre, without which many of the most popular science fiction books and movies would not exist today. Herbert’s novel had previously carried a reputation for being almost impossible to adapt conclusively, but the overwhelmingly positive response to director Villeneuve's two Dune movies has seemingly put pay to this long-held notion.

Timothée Chalamet plays Paul Atreides, heir to Houses Atreides, whose entire world is uprooted to answer the galactic emperor's call. The Atreides house establishes a base on the arid planet of Arrakis, attempting to form a more prosperous and even-keeled rule than their cruel predecessors, House Harkonnen. The Harkonnens, however, have already put nefarious machinations in motion that have set a series of interstellar changes in place. Dune explains a touching and thought-provoking allegory wrapped within a compelling narrative, faithfully exploring many of the novel's key elements.

The Setup Of Dune

Dune is set thousands of years in the future in a world that is simultaneously highly advanced and retrograde. The human race is scattered across the universe, and a different aristocratic house leads each planet. These houses are united by one empire, ruled by Emperor Shaddam IV Corrino. For thousands of years, the all-female Bene Gesserit sect have penetrated all areas of social, religious, and political life across the empire. The Bene Gesserit are superhuman, possessing spiritual and mental capabilities that the average human could never conceive of.

These abilities are the result of selective breeding, and the Bene Gesserit’s ultimate purpose is to use this to produce the Kwisatz Haderach, an omniscient male superhuman. Just as impressive as the Bene Gesserit are the Mentats. In Dune, all artificial intelligence, computers, or “thinking machines” were destroyed 10,000 years before the start of the film in a cataclysm known as the Butlerian Jihad. The Mentats, human computers that can do extremely complex calculations in milliseconds, are their replacements. However, even with Mentats, the absence of thinking machines made space travel impossible. That’s where the planet Arrakis and the spice come in.

Planet Arrakis And Spice

Arrakis is a harsh desert planet in Dune that is extremely inhospitable to human life. Water is extremely scarce, and dangerous sandworms are a constant threat to be avoided by the native, desert-dwelling Fremen. These Fremen can only survive because of their complex systems to conserve water and their belief that a Messiah will revolutionize Arrakis one day – an idea planted by the Bene Gesserit. Ordinarily, Arrakis would be relatively untouched and forgotten, but the spice makes this desert planet valuable.

Arrakis is the source of the spice mélange, and without spice, the empire would fall. Spice has a variety of purposes, but one of its primary uses is to lengthen the human life span. It also allows space travel, as it heightens awareness, so travelers can predict obstacles. A highly-valued commodity that’s only found in the middle of a desert probably sounds familiar: this is because the spice in Dune is an allegory for oil in Herbert's visionary narrative.

Paul & House Atreides

Dune follows the life of Paul Atreides and his inherently noble family. A result of the Bene Gesserit's selective breeding, Paul is the son of Duke Leto (Oscar Isaac) and his concubine, Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson). Duke Leto rules over Caladan, the planet where Paul was born. At the beginning of Dune: Part One, the family are preparing to move to Arrakis, which Leto has been ordered to govern. However, after their arrival, the Atreides' are betrayed by their mortal enemies, the Harkonnens, who kill Leto and Duncan, forcing Jessica and Paul to escape and join the Fremen – where Dune: Part Two's narrative begins.

Lady Jessica is more than Leto’s concubine, acting also as a high-ranking member of the Bene Gesserit, which she uses to train Paul while Leto simultaneously trains Paul as a Mentat. The Bene Gesserit initially ordered Jessica only to have daughters, but she defied those orders and had a son. Due to Jessica’s disobedience, the Kwisatz Haderach arrived a generation earlier than planned, with Paul destined to be the Kwisatz Haderach. He is also revered by the Fremen, who view him as a messianic figure destined to transform Arrakis and lead the Fremen to glory.

The Bene Gesserit

A mysterious and powerful organization pulling the strings behind society in Dune, the Bene Gesserit are both servants of power and determined to pursue their own agenda. Their main objective, through careful selective breeding between the great houses of the empire, is to produce the Kwisatz Haderach – a male child of incredible power whom they hope to control. Originally, the objective was that the female child of Duke Leto would breed with Feyd Rautha Harkonnen, but Jessica's decision to give Leto a son threw millennia of planning into turmoil.

The Bene Gesserit are a contradictory cult, being both individually powerful, yet avoiding wielding direct power themselves. Through abilities like "the Voice" means they can bend others to their will, while their training in Prana-bindu makes them adept martial artists. They also share a connection to all previous generations through their so-called "Other Memory". All-in-all, the Bene Gesserit are one of the most important and influential factions in Dune with an agenda that goes far beyond establishing control over Arrakis.

The Fremen

The native inhabitants of Arrakis, the Fremen are looked down on and mistreated by the imperial forces who seek to plunder the planet for its natural resources. However, while invaders are quick to dismiss them as "primitive", it quickly becomes clear that this is a gross misunderstanding of Fremen culture and character. Not only are they extremely resourceful – capable of utilizing every drop of water on the desiccated planet – but they are even capable of riding the terrifying sandworms that patrol the desert sands. Coupled with a population that dwarfs patronizing imperial estimates, this makes the Fremen a force to be reckoned with.

Initially, Paul and Lady Jessica have to prove themselves to the Fremen and the leader of Sietch Tabr, Stilgar, doing so when Paul defeats Jamis in battle. Eventually, Paul establishes himself as a leader, with Jessica serving as a religious figurehead and helping to train the Fremen in the unique Prana-bindu fighting style, allowing them to take back the planet from House Corrino and House Harkonnen. However, Paul's leadership comes at a price, with the Fremen soon revering him as something more than human, leading to the establishment of a dangerous cult.

House Harkonnen

The mortal enemies of House Atreides, the Harkonnens are a ruthless and sadistic faction that rules Arrakis with an iron fist. Originating from their homeworld of Geidi Prime, the family established a reputation for deviousness and brutality, expanding their political influence through economic manipulation and bloodshed. As Dune beings, the family is responsible for the production of spice on Arrakis and its supply throughout the universe, allowing them to amass considerable wealth. However, despite using their position to launch a devastating surprise attack against House Atreides, the Harkonnens ultimately fall victim to their own ambition.

Baron Vladimir Harkonnen (played by Stellan Skårsgard), not content with his prominent position within the Landsraad, ultimately seeks to overthrow the emperor himself and establish a new Harkonnen empire. This means that the alliance between the emperor and the Harkonnens, which worked so effectively in Dune: Part One, is on tentative ground as Part Two begins. Furthermore, as Fremen attacks increase, the Harkonnens' spice supply is threatened, making their once solid position seem vulnerable.

House Corrino

The ruling house of the interplanetary imperium, House Corrino has maintained an iron grip on the throne for centuries prior to the events of Dune. Their success is mostly due to their command of a feared fighting force known as the Sardaukar. As Dune: Part One begins, however, House Corrino is fearful of its position due to the emergent popularity of House Atreides. This persuades Emperor Shadam IV into an uneasy alliance with the Harkonnens, who use Sardaukar troops to kill Leto and invade Arrakis. This move proves to be House Corrino's downfall, as it becomes the catalyst for Paul to take the imperial throne.

House Fenring

Another of the Great Houses of the Landsraad, House Fenring were particularly close to House Corrino, largely due to the friendship and loyalty exhibited by its leader, Count Hasimir. A deadly assassin and close personal confidante of the emperor, Hasimir is deceptively dangerous in combat, despite his unimpressive physical appearance. Equally dangerous is his wife, Lady Margot (played by Léa Seydoux), who is another member of the Bene Gesserit order and is primarily loyal to the cult. In the novel, this is made clear by her leaving a warning message to Lady Jessica about the Harkonnen attack.

The Importance Of Sandworms On Arrakis

Although they initially seem monstrous and dangerous, the giant sandworms that patrol Arrakis are actually a central pillar in the planet's ecosystem and spice supply. The larval form of the animal produces the mysterious substance, meaning that without sandworms, there would be no spice at all. This means that, although the huge creatures pose a deadly threat to anyone attempting to harvest Arrakis' essential export, they themselves are essential to its supply.

The animals are also of hugely significant cultural importance to the Fremen, described as "makers" for their indispensable role in maintaining Arrakis' unique environment. Juvenile worms also produce the powerful and deadly narcotic known as the Water of Life, which Fremen use in various rituals – inducing the so-called spice agony in prospective Reverend Mothers. The Fremen also use the worms as transport, using a "maker hook" in order to control their movements and keep them from diving back into the sand. This allows them to travel great distances, and potentially even use the worms in battle.

Dune Movie Story

Villeneuve’s Dune covers the first half of the Dune novel, whose story is undoubtedly complex. It begins with the Bene Gesserit testing Paul to see if he is the Kwisatz Haderach while providing ample planetary exposition. Meanwhile, the Emperor and Baron Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgård) are hatching a plan to take down House Atreides. The trap is sprung when House Atreides relocates to govern Dune, and the emperor allows the Harkonnens to use his Sardaukar to eliminate the Atreides soldiers under the cover of darkness.

The Harkonnens convince one of Leto's most loyal men to turn against him and pin the blame on Jessica. The attack doesn’t seem surprising or suspicious due to the Harkonnens' generations-long feud with the Atreides. The plan, typically, is supposed to go off without a hitch, but the Harkonnens do not account for Paul, who, with his immense abilities, helps Jessica and himself escape the surprise attack. The devastated pair flee to the desert, where they meet the Fremen before Paul proves his worth as a fighter by besting Jamis in ritual-based combat.

Dune 2's Story

Dune: Part 2 was supposed to arrive in November 2023, but the strikes pushed it back to March 1, 2024. Since the first Dune covered half of the original novel, the second movie focuses on the guerrilla war between Paul's Fremen and Arrakis' Harkonnen oppressors. In the source novel, this war lasts two years, though the timeframe is somewhat different in Dune: Part Two. This also leads to the rise of House Atreides, but the movie's decision to exclude Alia from the main Dune: Part Two storyline means that the finale is very different from Herbert's original.

The movie also sees a new cast member with Oscar nominee Austin Butler (Elvis) as the villain, Feyd-Rautha. Other newcomers include Florence Pugh (Princess Irulan), Léa Seydoux (Margot Fenring), and Christopher Walken as Emperor Shaddam IV. The inclusion of these characters emphasizes Dune: Part Two's expanded story, with the movie encompassing never-before-seen planets and examining the dangerous and Machiavellian imperial court, all while the Fremen engage in a desperate fight for freedom.

Dune Messiah's Story & Beyond

Although Dune: Part Two ends with Paul's apparent triumph and the Harkonnen's defeat, Frank Herbert's original Dune series is much more morally nuanced than a straightforward battle between good and evil. This complexity is fully revealed in his follow-up, Dune Messiah. While the book sees Paul successfully ascendant to the imperial throne and ruling Arrakis as emperor, he is also forced to deal with the deadly religious fervor his reign has unleashed. The Fremen's fanatical belief in him has sparked a universal Jihad, killing 61 billion people in 12 years. However, Paul's prescience allows him to understand that this isn't the worst possible fate for humanity.

Meanwhile, behind the scenes, the Bene Gesserit, Tleilaxu, and Spacing Guild plot to overthrow Paul and end his reign. The novel ends with Paul blindly walking into Arrakis' desert, while his children are left to inherit his empire. Their story is explored in Children of Dune and God Emperor of Dune, which sees Paul's son Leto II transformed into a giant human-sandworm hybrid having ruled the empire for 3,500 years. Needless to say, these stories are a long way removed from Villeneuve's Dune movies. However, in laying the foundations, the director has created a possible blueprint for future adaptations.

Key Release Dates

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  Dune 2

  Release Date:

  2023-11-03