This article contains spoilers from Dune: Part Two
Dune: Part Two is finally in theatres, and fans and critics alike cannot stop raving about it. Starring Timothée Chalamet in the lead, this Denis Villeneuve directorial is the second installment in his Dune trilogy. After the success of Dune, the first movie in the series, fans had hoped the second movie would be just as good, if not better. But the cast and crew completely blew it out of the park with their talent, both in front of and behind the camera.
Apart from Chalamet, another character that has risen above the clouds is Rebecca Ferguson’s Lady Jessica. Concubine to Lord Leto and Paul’s mother, Jessica is a part of the Bene Gesserit sisterhood. But in the first movie, the Bene Gesserit, though a very important part of the story, do not make a lot of appearances, even if their presence is felt throughout. In Dune: Part Two, though, we see the rise of another member of the sisterhood – Lady Fenring, played by the talented, Léa Seydoux.
Denis Villeneuve’s Vision For Dune With The Bene Gesserit
When Denis Villeneuve decided to make a movie on the novels by Frank Herbert, his plan was different from those before him. One movie soon turned into a trilogy that’s slowly but surely working its way through the vastness of Herbert’s epic. He made sure to focus on the story of the sisterhood, which is not as expanded in the novels or in the previous adaptations.
But Villeneuve’s vision for the Bene Gesserit showcases their importance to the overall story. During Brazil’s CCXP convention in 2023, Denis Villeneuve spoke of his love for the Bene Gesserit and how he planned to incorporate more of them in his storytelling.
“In my adaptation, the Mentat suffered… but it’s a declaration of love to the Bene Gesserit.”
The director’s fascination and love for the Bene Gesserit shine through the movie. The sisterhood takes center stage in Dune: Part Two with not just Jessica, who is now pregnant with Alia, but also Lady Fenring, as well as Florence Pugh’s Princess Irulan.
Léa Seydoux’s Lady Fenring is on a Mission
A minor character from the novels – Lady Fenring is given front and center stage in the second movie. Léa Seydoux, who plays this character, is on a mission from the sisterhood – seduce Austin Butler’s Feyd-Rautha to produce the Kwisatz Haderach. Though Timothée Chalamet‘s Paul Atreides is already believed to be the messiah, the Bene Gesserit has another backup plan in the form of the child born from Feyd-Rautha and Lady Fenring.
Speaking to Inverse, Denis Villeneuve shed some light on his vision for the trilogy and the Bene Gesserit’s part in the story he is telling.
“My adaptation of Dune is about the Bene Gesserit. Someone could have made a Dune adaptation about the Mentats or about the Guild Navigators. I focused on the adaptation of the first book mainly on the Bene Gesserit sisterhood. And that informs all the choices I’ve made.”
With Lady Fenring and the rest of the Bene Gesserit, Villeneuve has successfully managed to squash the idea that men don’t like to watch powerful women characters on screen. The debate after The Marvels, about “women-hating” fanboys being the reason for its downfall, is being squandered by the Dune women, who are brilliantly written and portrayed on the screen, something the MCU is failing to do.
Dune: Part Two is available for watching in theatres worldwide.
