Dune Part 2 has now become a huge global success, with the film on track to end it's run earning
around $7-800 million dollars worldwide. It's been hailed by many as one of the best sequels on
all time, and for me, it's an incredible piece of cinema that I think will get a lot of award buzz
come the end of the year too. Years ago, I made a video before the release Part 2 talking about
the potential of it to become a new standard for event filmmaking and the science fiction
genre. And while its all subjective, and some people of course ended up not loving the movie,
I think a lot of us came out of it having been blown away. But with that in mind, it makes me
look ahead to Dune Messiah, and think about how that final film in Villeneuve's Dune trilogy might
raise the bar even further. So in this video, I'm going to be discussing why I personally
believe that Dune Messiah has been set up to be another game-changer for modern cinema. This video
will contain a few spoilers from the Dune Messiah book, so if you don't want anything spoiled, then
I would recommend watching this video at a later time. Before I get into it though, if you want to
keep up to date on any of my content surrounding Dune Part 2, Messiah and beyond, then don't
forget to support this upload by giving it a like rating and subscribing to the channel. But without
further a do, lets dive into the reasons why Dune Messiah can change modern movies forever.
So after Frank Herbert's Dune, came Dune Messiah, the ending of the iconic Paul Atreides arc that
had begun way back in 1965. Having read the sequel book now multiple times, I for one
have an odd relationship with it. On first read, it was almost too much of an alteration for me
to enjoy it as much as that first book, and I found myself wanting more from it, even though
I loved some of the story beats and central themes at play. But after re-reading the book,
I had quite a different experience and I found that I couldn't stop thinking about the ideas it
presented. I had an even greater appreciation for the deeper themes and complex characters on show,
and it gripped me in a way in a way that nothing else has in a long time. The first
Dune was one of the most influential science fiction books in history, often hailed as the
best-selling novel in the genre and considered as one of the greatest books of all time. Whereas,
Messiah didn't receive the same level of love. Publishers claimed that readers preferred stories
of heroic triumphs rather than a protagonist facing internal struggles and isolation. However,
I believe that within this there's potential for a unique and intriguing conclusion to a
third chapter of an epic saga. In Dune Messiah, we delve into a captivating blend of intertwined
philosophies and religions. The story takes us on a journey that is shaped by the culmination
of thousands of years of human history and a decade or more after the events of Dune,
Paul Atreides has now seized control of Arrakis and established his empire. To some of the Fremen,
he's the long-awaited messiah who was destined to lead them. However, to the envious Houses and
feudal factions, he is seen as an imposter. It appears that the influential figures in
the known universe are plotting to overthrow him, and this is because, in order to protect
his empire and maintain control over spice production, Paul's war had extended to the
far reaches of space. Billions have died, and the fighting shows no signs of stopping. While Dune
depicts the rise of an empire, Messiah explores its downfall in very unexpected ways. Paul,
torn between his roles as a Fremen leader and emperor, faces opposition from both
external worlds and his own people. Once seen as a hero, he is now a complex and isolated figure,
struggling to convey his profound visions to those around him. As he evolves beyond humanity,
Paul must make difficult choices to ensure the survival of his people, even if it means breaking
with tradition. And in my opinion, this is where the brilliance of the book lies. It takes us back
to the same magnificent universe, but with a completely different perspective. In Dune,
we fought alongside Paul Atreides and the Fremen, battling for justice, navigating the complexities
and political intrigues of an incredibly intricate universe. And as we saw at the end of Part 2,
that perspective started to shift, as we began to see what was happening through the lens of
character's like Chani. Villeneuve made this change for a reason, because as we learn in
Messiah, we find Paul fighting to preserve his empire, and we as readers are challenged in our
perspectives of him as a heroic figure. How do we navigate the thin line between right and wrong,
and how do we react to the process of guiding humanity towards a prosperous future amidst
enduring generations of struggle? Dune concluded with a victory, but the aftermath is far from
simple and Messiah demonstrates that endings aren't always neatly tied up because they are
too complex to be that. It's a conclusion to Paul Atreides's story that only Frank
Herbert could have imagined. And now, with Denis Villeneuve's adaptation of this book, he has the
opportunity to conclude what could be a grand trilogy with a unique take on the traditional
approach to sci-fi or fantasy endings. So what do I think we can expect from the
film adaptation. Well, as I touched on the book is very character driven and it takes
place in mainly one location. Messiah focuses on politics and philosophy, the book continues after
a 12-year time jump and it highlights the reign of Paul Atreides’ as Emperor and his challenging
relationships with characters like Princess Irulan and Chani. While Paul's fears of a violent jihad
have faded away, he now faces other problems. There's a conspiracy to overthrow him from
power and then the complications surrounding his desire for an heir and the outside forces trying
to prevent that. The focus of the book is mainly on palace politics rather than being alligned to
a grand movie spectacle and it definitely calls for some reworking both in tone, structure and
character work. While Dune was an epic tale of revenge, Messiah delves into Paul's struggle to
maintain order within his house and grapple with his legacy. I think that the film will expand on
the Messiah storyline, have at least a few more moments of action, include a few more locations
and have visualisations of that which excede what we've seen before. Now I do think that Denis will
keep the spirit, tone and general themes of Messiah in place, making us feel the political
arc of this story and keeping an intimacy with the characters and what they deal with. Essentially,
a more character focussed film that feels slightly like what we got in part 1, but a
bit more conclusive and dramatic in the scenes we get. But again, at the same time, I think he will
make some big changes. I think part of the first act will be the end of the holy war that Paul had
lead the fremen into at the end of Part 2. Whether Denis chooses to open with a prologue set around
the holy war like he did with certain aspects in the previous films, is up for debate, but
regardless of how its done, I think he will aim to show a change in the fremen perspective. I think
we'll see how certain fremen feel differently about Paul and his empire. And within that,
you can connect the change to Chani at the end of part 2, how she eventually comes back to Paul's
side once she learns of the conspiracy against him and all the elements surrounding her giving him an
heir. Some people have suggested that maybe Chani is pregnant and this is what leads to her coming
back to Paul. It's definitely a good theory, and to be honest, I wouldn't be surprised if something
like that happens. I think we'll also see other characters like Lady Jessica have a part to play,
either getting scenes from a far on Caladan or her being closer to everything happening on Arrakeen.
There will be some big changes when it comes to characters and based on how the director has
executed the ones we've seen previously, I expect them to be good choices that elevate the central
story in a cinematic way. And with most of the second and third act taking place in Arrakeen,
the potential for pure drama, performance and character work could trump what's come before.
I really like the idea of this because it means that this final film could be very different to
the conclusive movies we've seen in other big franchises in the past. It's not a full out
war with the hero prevailing, it's essentially a complete reversal of that. And this doesn't mean
that Denis has to remove the scale or moments of action throughout. I just think he needs to rework
it so that he can make a film that has both. So as a whole, I think we'll see an aspect of the holy
war, maintaining the scale and sense of war that we we're set on at the end of Part 2. But then
as the movie progresses, I think it will become more character driven and
tap into this feeling of isolation that the Messiah book captured really well.
And speaking about that drama and character-driven emphasis, this
brings me onto some of the fascinating and even weird characters that are introduced in Messiah,
ones which dune fans have yearned for since the beginning of this cinematic adaptation. The first
of these characters are the conspirators, who are mainly presented from the perspectives of Scytale
and Edric. Now yes there is also Princess Irulan and the Reverand Mother Helen Mohiam in this plot,
and some other new characters who have a part to play as well. But Scytale and Edric have a
central part to play when it comes to the idea of big political opposition and that idea of
added strangeness in the Dune universe. Edric, a third-class navigator of the Spacing Guild,
is an intriguing character to begin with. Originally a human who joined the Spacing Guild
school, he went to great lengths to enhance his abilities by consuming copious amounts of spice.
This resulted in his body undergoing mutations and lead him to spend most of his time submerged in a
tank filled with liquid spice. In the sequel book, Edric becomes one of the conspirators plotting to
assassinate Paul Atreides, who has now ascended to the position of emperor. And Edric's unique
gift of prescience plays a crucial role in the conspiracy, as it prevents Paul from foreseeing
their actions. Then there's Scytale, a Tleilaxu Face Dancer who led that conspiracy. Unlike other
Face Dancers in Dune, Scytale seemed to have his own agenda and his interactions with the
other conspirators indicated a certain level of authority and trust from the Tleilaxu. The
Tleilaxu, also known as Bene Tleilax, were a secretive group of genetically modified humans
who resided on Tleilax, the only planet in the Thalim star system. Their customs and morals
disgusted the other civilizations in the Known Universe, and it only fueled the Tleilaxu's desire
to dominate their opposition. Despite the negative perception, their expertise in genetic engineering
made them a necessary force to be reckoned with. There's a scene with Scytale, where he kills and
replicates the appearance of someone to use and much surrounding his actions over the course of
the novel that is kinda like a cross between a murdurous Anton Chigurh from No Country For
Old Men and Peter Baelish from Game Of Thrones. He can be a really interesting villain and give
us much more to chew on then what we got with characters like the Baron or Rabban in Dune 2.
Another character that is going to have a big role come Messiah, or we'd expect to, is Hayt, who is a
returning version of Duncan Idaho. In the Messiah book, the Tleilaxu present Hayt, a ghola of Duncan
Idaho as a gift to Paul, but Paul can sense that he shouldn't trust him without relying on his
prescient abilities. Hayt's presence immediately damages Paul's reputation among the Fremen, who
hold a negative view of gholas, considering them as mere imitations of the original. Furthermore,
Hayt seduces Alia, resulting in a lot of sexual tension between those two characters. So I think
it will interesting to see how they'll adapt Duncan's return in this form and to be honest,
I think it's something that Denis will have to bring to the big screen, because the character
is involved within a good half of the events that unfold. The other character that we already
know is going to be apart of the film, is Alia Atreides, who is being played by Anya Taylor Joy.
Paul's sister has become a religious figure in her own right, with many Fremen worshipping her,
and her priorities include unraveling the growing conspiracy against her brother and finding a
suitable partner. Denis has already introduced her character in a slightly different way,
but with her being out of the womb come the next film, I'm sure we'll get the complete
telling of her arc this time around. She's powerful but she's also weird,
and you do feels that during her early moments in the book and the unusual bonding between her
and hayt. But she's also very interesting when it comes to the political events that unfold and her
massive part within that. So I do expect Denis to maintain characters like this, because they are
crucially important to the story and themes. And I think it can provide a stranger sci-fi presence
that fans have been waiting for. Messiah is still a grand-feeling story and it doesn't go as weird
as some of the later novels do, but I can't deny that it does have a good injection of strangeness,
which can further help to seperate the franchise from what has come before.
So with all of this detailed, it leads me back to the point I was getting at towards the beginning
of this video. And that is that in comparison to other conclusive sci-fi or fantasy epics,
Dune Messiah can really stand out. It has characters that are more reflective,
not just on the situation and conspiracy at play, but of themselves. There's Paul dealing with the
aftermath of his Jihad, his grief surrounding the potential death of Chani and what his visions
ultimately lead to. You've got a resurrected Duncan Idaho who is struggling to comprehending
his former self and is also worried about become a part of a potential betrayal against Paul. And
Chani looks back on her sietch days and wants Paul to join her and be that person she once knew. In
most epic conclusions where they touch on the chosen one narratives, whether its Lord of the
rings, the original Star Wars, Harry Potter and so on, yes there's great character work,
a certain amount of loss and fulfilling arcs brought to screen, but they ultimately stress
on the heroic acts achieved by their protagonists. Dune Messiah brings a very different viewpoint to
the forefront and Paul is portrayed in a way that seperates it from what had came before. The books
convey the message that it's not the messiahs themselves that are the problem, but rather the
blind faith people have in them. This faith leads even the most well-intentioned individuals in
positions of power to commit terrible acts due to a centralized power structure, which Paul strongly
opposed. Paul attempts to manipulate the messianic beliefs of the masses in order to dismantle the
system and eliminate messiahs altogether. And while you are to some degree meant to support
Paul, you should despise the role he was forced into. He didn't create the conditions for the
Jihad and the only solution is the Golden Path. So essentially, Messiah is a deeper character
dive that critiques the idea of the chosen one, and that itself provides for a very different
conclusion than we are used to seeing on the big screen with modern epics. And this doesn't mean
that we can't have the level of scale that we've seen in the previous films, because I do expect
that Villeneuve and his crew will go out of their way once again when it comes to the filmmaking
and production work. While Messiah is mostly set in one location, I think they'll still create an
enormously detailed version of arrakeen from the book, and really expand on what we've seen of it
previously. I also think the oscar winning work of Hans Zimmer, Greig Fraser and Patrice Vermette can
really enhance the whole experience and make us feel the atmosphere and aesthetic of Messiah in
a much darker way too. It can all come together to create a very fascinating epic for the ages,
one that we all connect to because we have become close to Paul Atreides. By seeing his conflicted
and tragic ending play out on screen, I think it will give us a unique angle that makes this
modern adaptation stand out. If most of it is done right, I think it will make us understand
what Villeneuve has aimed to capture from the very beginning, and that is Frank Herbert's
integral warning towards charismatic leaders. But that was my video discussing why Dune Messiah
has the potential to be another game-changing final film. With more twisting story beats and
a lot of character work to explore, Messiah can work as an unusual but also fitting ending
to Denis Villeneuve's dune trilogy. The director and his team consistently aim to raise the bar in
science fiction filmmaking, and while the Messiah story calls for less action than part 2, it's a
story that can provide some unique foundations of it's own and the director can alter a few
things to enhance it on the big screen. He said recently that he would only make it if the film
could be better than what we got in part 2, and that excites me because seeing a creative who is
already at the top of their game aiming for bigger things, means that if he stays true to that,
he could give us a final film that is really special. The director has already overcome
an extremely hard task of adapting the world of Arrakis and that first book for modern audiences,
so whose to say he can't do the same with book as difficult as Herbert's Messiah. But let me know
down below in the comments section what you're personally excited for surrounding Dune Messiah
alongside whether you are hopeful that the film could be a gamechanging one come it's release.
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I hope you guys enjoyed it, I've been Cortex and as always make some noise.