he former Atreides compound on Arrakis--a collection of massive buildings safe behind
a natural formation known as a shield wall--is now a hellish place, ruled by the
sadistic Rabban Harkonnen. Various scenes depicting his intimidation and torture
of the natives are interspersed with the other action throughout this episode.
Several years have passed. When Paul first appears on-screen, he is gaunter and more
solemn, burdened by the responsibilities of his destiny. His eyes are now spice-blue.
(Lady Jessica's changed after her water-of-life ritual.) His Fremen followers take
their orders from him readily, conducting cat-and-mouse operations with the occupying
forces, utilizing native fighting tricks such as bursting up from concealment under
the sands. But some factions urge for a massive operation to drive the invaders
entirely from the planet. Paul counsels patience.
Muad'Dib's visions continue. He sees warriors acclaiming him, a potential fight with
Stilgar for ultimate leadership, Dune covered by grass, a herd of sandworms obeying him.
Jessica cautions her son about the dangers of prophecy, how seeing the future and
acting on one's visions can actually warp what one first saw.
A new generation of characters comes to the forefront. First is the son of Chani
and Paul, named Leto after his dead grandfather. Despite his ritual significance as
heir to the Atreides line, the toddler pales in comparison to Paul's little sister,
Alia. Mature beyond her years from her embryonic steeping in spice, she scares
the Fremen. Jessica sorrows for Alia's fate, but can offer only emotional
comfort.
While capturing some smugglers, Paul is reunited with his father's liege,
Gurney Halleck. Gurney casts his lot with the rebels. A lesson from Chani
reveals to Paul that spice is a byproduct of sandworm biology, planting in his
mind some useful information later to be used as a threat to interrupt the production
of the invaluable commodity.
On his imperial world, the Emperor makes the decision to visit Arrakis in person,
with his whole court, to finally lay the rebellion to rest. He sets out in a great fleet
of starships. Meanwhile, reunited with Lady Jessica for the first time, Gurney Halleck
nearly kills her, having been convinced for years she was the traitor in Harkonnen
employ. This tragedy is narrowly averted.
Paul senses a crisis is near, but feeling incomplete to meet it, he resolves on a
desperate gamble: to undergo the same water-of-life trial as did his mother, and
become the legendary "Kwisatz Haderach," a messiah whose enhanced mental powers span
all space and time. He sneaks off alone to the empty Petra-like sietch and doses
himself, falling into a coma. Found and carried home, he is finally brought round
by Chani's intuitive use of more water-of-life. Paul grips his mother's hand and
conveys to her what he has become: "I am the master of fate. I am the tool of
fate." Stunned, Jessica plumps for caution, but the tide has turned. "A terrible
purpose awaits us."
A Harkonnen raid just before the planned Fremen assault results in the death of
little Leto and the capture of Alia. The emperor and his retinue, including Baron
Harkonnen, are interrogating the girl when the war begins. The shield wall
is breached by worms, and warriors pour through. In the confusion, Alia kills
the Baron. The emperor escapes offplanet, and after a long climactic battle, full
of both hand-to-hand fighting and mechanized attacks, the Fremen win.
Once the dust settles, the emperor returns to Arrakis to negotiate terms. Still
haughty, he is undone by the revelation that Paul will destroy all spice forever if
he is not awarded whatever he requests. Grudging surrender is made, including a
token marriage with Princess Irulan thrown in for political purposes (this being
Irulan's own idea). But at the last moment Feyd Harkonnen calls Paul out to
individual combat. This final fight brings the whole interstellar conflict
down to two men, embodiments of two different philosophies and orders, one of
which is doomed to extinction, the other of which will become ascendant.
Frank Herbert's far-future myths
This final portion of the Dune saga lives up to the first two, combining the
tumult of Part One
with the more reflective and philosophical passages
of Part Two.
At the conclusion of this series, John Harrison easily earns hearty accolades, both
for his intelligent and sensitive reduction of Herbert's original wordage and for his
cinematic skills. Dune is stuffed with fine shots and superior editing, as
the narrative skips from one venue to another in a fashion that's never confusing.
Once again, the unique color schemes, costuming and landscapes contribute immensely
to making these transitions easy for the viewer. Lady Jessica's narration at the
opening and closing of each night also contributes to
a viewer-friendly atmosphere.
The special effects continue to impress. For a hard-core SF story, Dune offers
little chance to depict actual space travel, being necessarily planetbound most of the
time. But Harrison makes the most of his opportunities, and the massing of the
Emperor's weirdly shaped fleet around Arrakis in this segment fulfills all
expectations. And the moment when Paul takes Jessica's hand and invades her
mind is genuinely surprising and shocking.
Even though Alia is on-screen relatively little, her character is well acted and
pivotal. Child prodigies of any type are hard to portray, but in her nunnish
outfit, Alia convinces. The interplay among Gurney, Paul and Jessica also
stands out. And Chani's acceptance of her role as mistress rather than wife
is psychologically deep.
What really comes across by the end of this miniseries is how cleverly Herbert
utilized mythological devices, and how well Harrison translates them to the screen.
The Oedipal subtext among Duke Leto, Jessica and Paul remains intact. Christ,
Lawrence of Arabia, Moses and Robin Hood all make subliminal impressions. And
when Chani bends to kiss Paul, hoping to awaken him from his coma, the legend
of Sleeping Beauty gets a gender-swapped workout. Additionally, Herbert was
cutting-edge in his adoption of various mystical philosophies, sounding New
Age before the term was even coined. Paul's zen-like mantra against fear
trumps Lucas' urge to "trust the Force" every time. And the revelations
about the tangled blood connections between the Harkonnens and the Atreides
tap into Ur-myths about foundlings and step-parents.
Herbert was a man who managed to be part of his era, ahead of his time, and
eternal, all at once.
