Summary
Duneproved one of the trickiest science fiction books to adapt,with multiple iterations across movies and TVin the decades since its inception, including Jodorowsky’s Dune, which never even saw the light of day. In 2021, director Denis Villeneuve reinvigorated Dune with an excellent new cinematic vision that has set an insurmountable bar for the series and sci-fi filmmaking.
While the highlights of this movie series are the world-building of Arrakis, the beautiful display of colors and cinematography from Greig Fraser, and some amazing action sequences, even more so in Dune: Part Two, plenty of dialogue will stick with you. Thanks to the terrific performances, all these quotes live in our heads rent-free.
10"Fear Is The Mind-Killer."
Lady Jessica
This one is such a simple yet iconic quote that’s not easy to forget, especially with how Rebecca Ferguson’s Lady Jessica is so dramatic and convincing in its delivery. Just saying it to yourself, you can probably hear her anxious and whispering voice reciting the words back in your head.
This is tied tothe Litany Against Fear in Dune lore, which is like an incantation for those seeking protection when they have something to fear. Fear is an overwhelming emotion that can influence and take over the mind, an unknown and scary thing; calling fear the “mind-killer” is quite grave, but the litany is meant to calm the mind and is a longer way of saying “you have nothing to fear.”
9"What’s In The Box?"
Paul Atreides
It’s always great to see one filmmaker tipping their hats off to another, and in Paul’s first encounter with the Reverend Motherduring the Gom Jabbar test, Denis dropped a reference to David Fincher’s Seven when he had Paul ask her “What’s in the box?” before being forced to stick his hand inside it.
This is, of course, a riff on the final scene in the movie when Bradd Pitt’s distraught character realizes his spouse, Tracy, is the killer’s final victim and her head is what’s in the box. Although different circumstances, the box still leaves Paul with a similar overwhelming sense of emotion and pain.
8"Dreams Make Good Stories, But Everything Important Happens When We’re Awake."
Duncan Idaho
This is Duncan’s way of conveying to Paul that he shouldn’t believe everything he sees in his dreams, which are more like Paul’s visions. In one of them, he said he witnessed Duncan’s death, which elicited such a response from him.
Paul’s inner conflict with his duty to House Atreides as well as following the prophecy set up by the Bene Gesserit and trusting in those visions is one of the central conflicts in the movie. Duncan Idaho is a great mentor to Paul and is providing him with more of that wisdom, but little does he know that those visions will come to be.
7"This Is My Desert. My Arrakis. My Dune."
Baron Vladimir Harkonnen
Stellan Skarsgård plays an incredibly compelling villain in Baron Vladimir Harkonnen and is perfect in every way for the role. One of his most memorable moments is the scene in Dune where he shows his cruelness and complete disregard for the Atreides to order their deaths in pursuit of gaining back control of Arrakis.
He speaksto the mentat Piter De Vriesin such a menacing tone when he delivers this line, with effective pauses to drive up the intimidation factor. The way he levitates in the air higher and higher at the end of each sentence is brilliantly done.
6"May Thy Knife Chip And Shatter."
Paul Atreides And Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen
A most pivotal full-circle moment for Paul is placed in one line of dialogue that’s said right before one of the most intensely choreographed hand-to-hand knife fights in recent film memory. The one where Timothee Chalamet says coldly and forcefully, “May thy knife chip and shatter” to Feyd-Rautha to initiate their duel to bring justice for his father’s death.
At this point, Paul Atreides learns he’s a Harkonnen from his mom’s side and that the Baron was his grandfather. He rejects both of his ancestral lines and has completely embraced his role among the Fremen by using this phrase, which is the Fremen’s way of saying “I will end you” or “quick death,” so having Feyd-Rautha nonchalantly repeating it back further demonstrates how out of touch Harkonnens are with Fremen customs.
5"We Don’t Hope, We Plan."
Reverend Mother Mohiam
Powerful, intimidating, and extremely sharp words from the Reverend Mother, and this is what she conveys to Princess Irulan in Dune: Part Two when she’s so confident that the Bene Gesserit prophecy will come true. The Bene Gesserit doesn’t believe in hope, they’re the Insidious Parker Crane Brides in Black with a plan.
This quote is especially memorable because it encapsulates the whole purpose Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen’s character serves in the story, where he’s not just Rabban’s psychopathic brother leading the Harkonnen name to glory. Mohiam reveals that they always had a backup plan for Paul and were banking on Feyd-Rautha as the successor, which didn’t pan out so much.
4"I Won’t Be Fighting For Him, I’m Fighting For My People."
Chani
Chani is not in line with the Fremen’s religious fanaticism and has a difficult time coming to grips with the symbol Paul is becoming. Paul’s arc at the end of the movie proved the last straw for her, especially the thought of him and Princess Irulan ruling together, so she parted ways with him.
Before he took the Water of Life, Chani pleaded with him to just be himself, but that wasn’t the outcome, as Paul fully embraced his messiah role. She made it a point to Lady Jessica to reject the prophecy and messiah beliefs before the final battle by saying she only fights for her people because she is Fremen and not because she is following Paul.
This was the final nail in the coffin to finding some redeeming quality in Paul; his yelling “Silence!“and using the Voiceto even overpower Reverend Mother Mohiam was a key moment. However, this quote, which essentially gives the green light to slaughter all the Houses who oppose his ascendency, isaimed to give everyone pause about Paul’s character.
“Lead them to paradise” can be misconstrued as having good intentions, but make no mistake, it’s a definitively evil phrase that calls for the death of Paul’s enemies, all in the name of prophecy and a prosperous future for Arrakis. It’s dangerous rhetoric that gives further credence to Dune’s cautionary message about the messiah complex.
2"Because He Was A Man Who Believed In The Rules Of The Heart, But The Heart Is Not Meant To Rule.”
Emperor Shaddam IV
The confrontation with the Emperor is the climax the film was leading up to, with Paul finally getting the confession straight from his mouth about his father’s murder. The way it was written and Christopher Walken’s delivery did not disappoint in how poetic, brutal, and blunt the words came across.
In a universe with the likes of Emperor Shaddam and the Harkonnens, Duke Leto Atreides was indeed a saint, who believed in peace and wasn’t in it for the greed and spice of Arrakis, but to unite Fremen and establish better relationships with them. But ruling from such kindness of the heart is a quality the Emperor saw as weak and a detriment.
1"The Madhi Is Too Humble To Say He Is The Madhi. Even More Reason To Know He Is! As Written!”
Stilgar
Stilgar was Dune: Part Two’s comedic relief to cut through all the tension, and has fast already become a meme for his hilarious bewildered expressions whenever proclaiming Paul Atreides, or Maud’dib, as the prophet Lisan al Gaib. But this is the line of dialogue that probably had everyone in the audience burst with uproarious laughter.
For Stilgar, every little thing would point to Paul as the prophet, even when Paul claims he’s not. He takes his humbleness as a sign, even commenting that it was written that Lisan al Gaib wouldn’t admit his title so arrogantly, so the constant repeat of the phrase “as written” also feels similar to The Mandolarion’s “This is the way.”
