This review may contain spoilers.
afilmbro’s review published on Letterboxd:
i've noticed something regarding timothée chalamet (paul) & zendaya's (chani) relationship in this one after the second viewing that i wasn't able to appreciate until now — one of the most outstanding components of the film is their emotional crux and it assists this one into becoming one of the greatest sequels of all time.
ever since DUNE: PART ONE — paul's narrative has been (even if unintentional) interconnected with chani's character using the perspective of his dreams to have them linked together at the end of the film as their arcs coincide into one unit. this trend continues on in DUNE: PART TWO as their personalities are shown as the outliers of the fremen: their bond leads to some of the most intimate scenes of the film but in comparison to that factor — it is also the crucial cause that led to paul's indoctrination as his dreams that involved chani left him blinded to the point that he abandoned her entirely: losing chani is the allegorical representation of the loss of his moral sense.
as the film begins to come to a close — the last shot is zoomed in on chani's face as she is prepared to ride on a sandworm over the horror & chaos that is occurring above her: she has been freed from paul's dictatorship and though it has been paul that was established as the protagonist of this series: that might've been a misdirection.
chani has been the hero all along.
