After releasing my full movie breakdown and biggest questions video for Denis Villeneuve's
Dune Part 2, I covered a lot of the talking points that the film raised in detail.
But one thing I wish I had talked about a bit more was some of Paul's visions in the
film, how they reflect on what we saw in Part 1 and what his new ones mean for what's to
come in Dune Messiah.
Yes it's true that once Paul takes the water of life he can now see the possible futures
clearly, but there are things that happen before that in his prior visions that symbolically
touch on events to come in the dune story.
So in this video, I'm going to be discussing those vision scenes and what they mean in
the context of Denis Villeneuve's Dune universe.
This analysis will contain spoilers for Dune Part 2 and references to big events in the
Dune Messiah book, so if you don't want to know about things that take place beyond part
2, 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 upcoming content
on 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 vision scenes from Dune Part 2 explained.
So in Dune Part 2, Paul Atreides finds himself haunted by recurring visions of destruction
caused by his holy war.
He confides in Gurney Halleck, admitting that all of his visions lead to horror, and we
learn that he hesitates to fully embrace his role as the Fremen's promised messiah, the
Lisan al Gaib.
He fears that if his visions come true, his army of devoted followers could inadvertently
bring about the death of billions across the entire universe.
However, as we see in part 1 and a good chunk of part 2, Paul's visions have also been confusing.
Enhanced by his exposure to the spice, his visions become abstract and in a way metaphorical
predictions rather than straightforward prophecies.
He witnessed a vision of a deep bond between himself and Jamis, the Fremen warrior whom
he ultimately had to duel and kill at the end of part 1.
He also saw Chani draped in a white robe, guiding him into the vast desert, where a
battle between the fremen and sardaukar took place.
And for most of Part Two, that confusion continues to build in Paul's own mind.
But it would be a mistake to dismiss Paul's visions as inaccurate or purely metaphorical.
And that's because these ever-changing visions are a reflection of the ever-shifting futures
that Paul possesses the unique ability to perceive.
In Frank Herbert's novel, Paul's visions of the future are vague and constantly changing.
By catching a glimpse of what lies ahead, he has the power to alter the course of events,
and as he witnesses this future, his thoughts and interpretations of what he sees shape
the very future he is observing.
Through his dreams and visions, he is able to perceive multiple potential outcomes and
as he gains more prescience across the course of Part 2, he gains a deeper understanding
of the significance behind them.
After drinking the water of life, he's able to make sense of the future, providing valuable
insights into the events of Dune 2 and beyond.
He sees all possible paths and futures, including one path that leads the Fremen to victory.
And like all the other paths, this one results in the Holy War, but with him alive to fight
it and the Fremen eventually being led to a green paradise.
So while he can now see the way, what do the visions he had prior to taking the water of
life suggest, and what is their importance within the plot of Part 2 and what's to come
in Dune Messiah.
If you remember in part 1, Paul had a grand vision of the future where he leads an army
into battle.
Him and the Fremen don golden armour, and they defeat their enemies in close combat.
However in part 2, the reality of war is clearly quite different.
Paul and the Fremen are draped in darker clothing, and the one character who has a very similar
scene to that is actually Chani during the battle of arrakeen.
Instead of Paul, she seems to embody his vision more closely than he does.
And taking this as one example, I believe there are a couple of factors at play here.
Firstly, his visions may be more symbolic than literal at times, and additionally, prior
to consuming the water of life, his foresight isn't crystal clear.
He's catching glimpses of potential futures, some of which involve paths not taken, like
being friends with Jamis.
So this vision of him in the armor suggests a potential blend of these elements, as it
might either symbolise his impending role as the lisan al gaib or act as a glimpse into
one of those unexplored paths.
The visions are not straightforward depictions of reality, but rather inversions of them.
When Paul envisions himself engaged in combat with the Sardaukar, it's actually Chani who
stands in his place during part 2.
And in a similar way, when he see Chani holding the bloody knife in a vision from part 1,
we learn that in part 2 it's he who eventually wields it.
So these visualised glimpses into the future hold significant double meanings and messages
that play a crucial role in the unfolding of both films events and also, what takes
place beyond Part 2.
So coming to Paul's visions in Part 2, his most significant one includes envisioning
a future that unfolds if he chooses to go south on Arrakis.
In this vision, he follows his mother through the desert, witnessing numerous dead bodies
and starving figures along the way.
This vision serves as a warning, revealing the catastrophic consequences that will befall
him and the entire universe if he decides to proceed south.
It foretells a galaxy-wide war that will result in the deaths of billions, with Paul being
held responsible for that genocide.
This haunting glimpse of a possible future continues to weigh heavily on Paul throughout
the rest of Part 2, and while it's not the first time that he's envisioned the outbreak
of Dune's Holy War under his name, the specifics of how it would come about were previously
unknown to him.
As a result, Paul repeatedly rejects the notion that he is the Lisan al Gaib and does everything
in his power to avoid heading south.
He's determined to prevent the immense loss of life, but when he sees a clearer vision
of this future later on, it reveals that his mother, Lady Jessica, is the one leading him
there.
This glimpse into the future allows Paul to understand that Jessica has her own plans
in motion.
With Jessica having become the Fremen's Reverend Mother, being armed with knowledge of the
culture's prophecies and aware of the growing belief among many that Paul is their messiah,
Jessica takes matters into her own hands to gather followers for him.
Once Paul does eventually travel south, he takes the water of life, sees the paths of
his future clearly and convinces the fremen to join him in the narrow way through.
So again just with this example there's multiple meanings to this vision of following his mother.
The depiction of starving individuals across a barren landscape does not just imply that
Jessica is paving in the way for Paul and the Holy war.
It symbolizes the detrimental consequences that will arise from adhering to the golden
path with Paul's restriction of spice provisions.
In Dune Messiah there's an understanding that some fremen camps on Arrakis have left the
side of their Messiah.
And I wouldn't be surprised if this vision is combining that meaningful imagery based
on the events of Messiah with the symbolic nature of following his mother into a war.
On top of this, it could also be a visual reference to Paul's fateful walk into the
desert at the end of Messiah.
So if we compare the potential meanings of this vision to what I said about the visions
of Part 1 before, there's the potential for that being reflected here too.
Essentially his visions bring in visual cues from things that are yet to happen or might
happen, and are shown in a slightly different way.
And this brings me on to another cryptic moment during the events of Part 2, a vision that
could also connect to the events of Dune Messiah.
The one I'm talking about is the vision of Chani, which as we learn, has a profound impact
on Paul.
In his dream, he sees Chani standing on a sand dune overlooking Arrakis, as she witnesses
an explosion in the distance.
Paul then rushes to her side, only to find her with burns on her face, and it concludes
with Chani dying in Paul's arms.
When Paul awakes from this dream, a similar instance occurs, but this time, Chani does
not die.
Now one reason for this is that the dream reflects Paul's fear of losing Chani in that
current timeframe during part 2.
It's understandable that he would dread the possibility of Chani dying and it's just another
reason why he didn't want to travel south.
But the other reason is that this could be what Denis Villeneuve is hinting at surrounding
both Chani and Paul's fate come Dune Messiah.
In that book, Paul is blinded by a stoneburner, a weapon that is powered by atomic energy,
and although he becomes physically blind, his prescience allows him to see.
Numerous things happen in the moments that follow but Paul gets to a point where he no
longer has his visions and eventually decides to make a lone walk into the desert to die.
Chani also dies giving childbirth.
So again, this vision of her in Dune Part 2 could be symbolising all of those events
to come.
And like with the other examples, it has a double meaning, impacting both the events
of part 2 and what lies ahead with the next film.
Some other dreams that Paul has, involve another vision of Jamis before taking the water of
life, and then one with his sister in the moments that follow.
Starting with Jamis, Paul's most recent vision of him occurs in a crucial moment of his journey
in becoming the Lisan al Gaib and he's faced with a decision that will determine his path
forward.
In the vision, Jamis appears on top of sand dune, urging him to consider the past, present,
and future, and to ultimately drink the Water of Life.
Despite Jamis's death in the battle with Paul in part 1, and their interaction being quite
hostile, Paul's many visions of Jamis depict him as a trusted friend.
Dune part 2 further emphasizes this bond by portraying Jamis as the pivotal figure in
Paul's decision-making process, and what we saw was Paul envisioning a future where he
doesn’t kill Jamis.
In a lot of the visions he has of Jamis, Paul is using the guidance of him in failed paths
to lead him forward, both in the future and in the present.
In the book, the future is a series of branches spiralling outwards based on decisions and
factors, and those with prescience look into those branches and to try to get the outcome
they want.
Prescience is not just the ability to see the future, and as we learn in Messiah, Paul
gets frustrated with Stilgar because he thinks that Paul just knows the exact future in all
situations.
But like I say, it's the ability to look into potential outcomes and choose the way forward.
And this is where I come to the vision that follows Paul taking the water of life.
Paul's choice to consume the Water enables him to glimpse into the future in a way he
never has before, granting him a vivid insight into what lies ahead for Arrakis.
He envisions the familiar desert landscape of the planet transformed by a vast body of
ocean.
Within the vision he also sees a grown up version of his sister, portrayed by Anya Taylor-Joy.
Alia expresses that she loves him and reveals some big family secrets.
This particular vision holds significant importance as it represents a rare instance where Paul
perceives a glimpse of the potential good in his future.
The resurgence of water on Arrakis directly correlates to Paul assuming the roles of Lisan
al Gaib and Emperor.
It serves as proof of his ability to fulfill the promise of bringing water and life back
to a barren planet.
Furthermore, encountering a future version of Alia introduces him to a family member
whom he has yet to meet but will eventually form a connection with.
And the final vision that I wanted to talk about, is an interesting reflection of how
Denis Villeneuve adapted one of Paul's visions from the book.
And the one I'm referencing is that vision where Paul reveals to Jessica that she is
the daughter of Baron Vladimir Harkonnen.
In the vision, we get a look at the Baron with Lady Jessica as a child, implying that
he's the father.
The revelation of Jessica's connection to the Harkonnen bloodline serves as another
element of the Bene Gesserit's grand scheme to produce the Kwisatz Haderach.
Not only does this imply that the Bene Gesserit intended for the Atreides and Harkonnen bloodlines
to intertwine, but it also establishes Paul as the grandson of the Baron as well.
Paul goes on to kill the Baron at the end of the film, and while this is different from
the book, with Alia killing him instead, it was a welcome change that actually fits in
line with a moment Frank Herbert wrote.
Earlier in that first book, there's a moment where Paul is thinking about his visions and
he makes it clear that he sees two main branches in the way forward.
In one of those branches he is confronted by the Baron and says “Hello, Grandfather".
However, Paul choses the other branch.
So when we see that in Dune Part 2 he does confront the Baron at the end, and greets
him in a similar way, Denis has essentially used one of Paul's visions in the book as
inspiration.
In the book it also says that both paths will lead to the Holy War, so even though the death
of the baron was changed, it relates to that passage in the book and reflects that the
future events are still inevitable.
So when it comes the outcome of all of Paul's visions, he embraces his role as the Lisan
al Gaib, igniting a holy war that engulfs billions of lives.
And despite the immense death toll of 61 billion people, Paul's prophetic visions suggest that
this is not the worst possible outcome.
Through his ability to foresee the future using multiple branches, Paul discovers the
Golden Path, a complex and dangerous route that holds the potential to save humanity
from stagnation and extinction.
Messiah shows how Paul hesitates to fully commit to this Golden Path and deals with
the ramifications of the holy war.
It's going to be interesting to see how the director tackles Paul's prescience in the
next film and whether some of the visual cues we've seen in part 2 come to life as well.
But that was my video discussing the vision scenes from Dune Part 2.
I'm sure there will be many other things that pop up on rewatch surrounding the visions
and topics that you guys may have picked out, so don't forget to let me know down below
in the comments section.
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