In “Dune 2” Paul Atreides learns the ways of the Fremen and, through the influence of the Bene Gesserit, becomes a prophet. But where is he leading the Fremen?
Dune 2 (Source: Warner Bros. Pictures)
At the end of Dune, Paul Atreides and his mother Jessica encountered the Fremen in the desert of Arrakis. After Paul kills Jamis in a fight, the Fremen take him and Jessica to Sietch Tabr, which is where “Dune 2” begins.
After the Fremen’s initial reluctance to accept Paul and Jessica, they quickly become an important part of the desert community. They owe this primarily to the preparatory work of the Bene Gesserit, who had long been spreading rumors about the arrival of a prophet, Lisan al Gaib.
Of course, Paul’s behavior and his abilities fit exactly with the prophecy, but some Fremen, including Chani, doubt Paul and the prophecy itself. Meanwhile, Jessica becomes the Honored Mother of the Fremen and drinks the Water of Life for it. This not only gives her an overview of past and future events, but also her unborn daughter Alia.
Paul takes his place Dune 2 (Source: Warner Bros. Pictures)
Since Paul insists that he is not the Fremen’s prophesied Messiah, he and Chani become closer and closer. Meanwhile, Jessica does everything she can to make the Fremen across Arrakis believe that Paul is the Lisan al Gaib in order to protect Paul.
Together with Paul, the Fremen continue to attack the Harkonnen spice harvesters, which is why the Baron brings his nephew Feyd-Rautha to Arrakis. This should not only bring the Fremen under control, but also take the place of the Emperor. The Baron is eventually able to prove that the current Emperor was involved in the attack on House Atreides – a secret that would lead to his deposition.
To further strengthen his spirit and his position as a leader, Paul also drinks the water of life, even though it is actually deadly for men. But Paul survives and sees the future. Now he no longer resists his position as Lisan al Gaib, leads the Fremen to the south and convinces the leaders of the other Siechs to join him in the fight.
The fighting on Arrakis turns into a war and Paul has the Emperor arrive. But even all of the Emperor’s Sardaukar cannot take on the Fremen, and so no one stops Paul from killing the Baron and then facing the Emperor himself.
A fight will decide who will rule as emperor in the future and the emperor will send Feyd-Rautha in his place. In the knife duel that follows, Paul is injured, but ultimately he kills Feyd-Rautha, declares himself emperor and plans to marry Princess Irulan, the emperor’s daughter. A hard blow to Chani, who hasn’t agreed with Paul’s path as Lisan al Gaib for a long time.
Since the other galactic houses do not recognize Paul’s ascension to Emperor, he sends the Fremen to foreign planets. A holy war has begun.
A dark ending Dune 2 (Source: Warner Bros. Pictures)
“Dune 2” makes no secret of the fact that we are not dealing with a classic hero’s journey. Paul’s path, which was largely predetermined by the Bene Gesserit, steered towards war throughout the film, although Paul initially refused to go that far.
At the latest after the Water of Life, the fate of Paul, Arrakis and the Fremen is sealed, which Chani rightly recognizes with horror. Paul won, he brought justice to his father and freed the Fremen from Harkonnen oppression.
But the war that is now spreading throughout the universe will cost billions of lives. As long as “Dune 3” is filmed and follows the novel fairly closely, we won’t see this war. Instead, a jump in time awaits us and Paul has been the emperor for many years at this point.
What will become of Chani? Dune 2 (Source: Warner Bros. Pictures)
Director Denis Villeneuve takes some liberties with the final scene from “Dune 2”. In the book, Chani always stays at Paul’s side, accepts him as a prophet and can also live with the fact that he marries Princess Irulan.
None of this is true in the film and so she ends up climbing a sandworm alone – with an unknown destination. Since Paul can already see that Chani will return to him, she could simply disappear for a moment because she needs time for herself and in “Dune 3” we will see her again with Paul.
It is possible that this change will continue through the next film and Chani and Paul will never again be the lovers we saw in “Dune 2”. In any case, there is no shortage of people in “Dune 3” who want to end Paul’s rule.
Dune Quiz: How well do you know your way around the desert planet Arrakis?
(Source: tmdb.org)
What trait are the Fremen known for?
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