Movie villains are always the most interesting – just look at Austin Butler’s Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen in The Movie. Dune: Part 2 See what I mean.
although dune While protagonist Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) is tortured by visions of an impending holy war in his name, Fede Rausa is busy perverting his monster . Killing people in rigged gladiatorial combat, kissing his uncle Baron (Stellan Skarsgård), and stalking the planet Geedi Prime like a high-ranking war criminal—it’s just a day in the life of Baron Na.
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Feyd’s appeal is considerable Dune: Part 2 This is a result of the Butler’s electrical properties.He is fearless, commanding, and willing to put his head down, which is very different from his performance in other prestige projects, such as Elvis Presley. But he wasn’t the only actor to make Feyd-Rautha popular on movie screens.
Adapted by David Lynch in 1984 duneIn “Police,” Police frontman Sting plays the Baron’s mentally ill nephew and heir apparent. Although the film was a commercial and critical failure, Sting’s performance in it was surprising.if i need to feel dune—adjacent joy, I only have to think of his impassioned utterance of “I’m going to kill him!” in the film’s final fight scene. It works every time.
While there are differences in Butler and Sting’s portrayals of Feder, as well as director Denis Villeneuve and Lynch’s interpretations of the character, there’s no doubt that Feder is the funniest part of the pair dune Film adaptation. Yes, he and his family are pretty nasty – but isn’t that part of the appeal?
The Fed-Lausa and Harkonnen families are perfect foils to Paul and the Atreides.
Sting in Dune.
Image source: Universal/Kobal/Shutterstock
Atreides family we meet in any version dune Focus on being honest and doing business the “right” way – even if it means walking into the trap planet of Arrakis. House Harkonnen, on the other hand, is obsessed with secret dealings with the Bene Gesserit, the Emperor (Christopher Walken) and his Sadoka, and general debauchery.
in lynch’s dune, says the debauchery takes the form of the Baron (Kenneth MacMillan) spinning around in a sling, dousing himself in oil and ripping heart plugs from young slaves (Lynch’s addition). (Oh, and there’s the milking cat.) Villeneuve’s Harkonnen’s flavor of depravity leans more toward terrifying human-spider hybrids, a retinue of cannibal “pets,” and perhaps the most lethal work environment possible.Seriously, how many Harkonnen cronies did Fede or his brother Laban (Dave Bautista) kill in this whole thing? Dune: Part 2?
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Even industrialized Giedi Prime feels grimy compared to Caladan, the water-rich homeworld of House Atreides, or to the beautiful, nearly unspoiled deep desert of Arrakis. Lynch painted Giedi Prime in steel, plastic, and sickly green, with a healthy dose of S&M vibes. Rendered in black and white, Villeneuve’s version of the planet is eye-catching due to its dark sun. The inked fireworks and buildings look right at home in HR Giger’s artwork, adding an extra touch of evil.Both films celebrate just how weird this planet is dune can be obtained – and Feder feels like the truest embodiment of all this debauchery and chaos.
If the Harkonnens are the antithesis of the Atreides, and the Geedi Masters are the antithesis of Caladan and Arrakis, then Fede is the antithesis of Paul.as frank herbert’s dune It has been pointed out repeatedly that Feder is Paul’s dark mirror. He is the heir to a large family and a key figure in the Bene Gesserit eugenics program that founded Kwisatz Haderach. He’s also psychotic, sadistic, and has strange sexual desires, which Paul is definitely not. (Paul clearly had his own problems.) In short, Feder brought this freak to dune — If you’re going to make this weirdness happen, you’d better be all in.
It’s so much fun to watch heartthrobs like Sting and Austin Butler unleash their inner weirdo.
Austin Butler in Dune: Part II.
Image Credit: Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Both Butler and Sting put their all into Feder—and I mean crazy eyes, knife licks, and some inspired lines.Yet I was hesitant about both of them before watching each version dune. The Feder we meet in Herbert’s novel is a calculating child, a tyrant in training, with some of the most vicious and evil internal monologues in the book. Are you telling me the frontman of “The Police” can do justice to this level of gruesome evil?or love interest from The Carrie DiariesAbout this question?
Thankfully, my concerns were quickly dispelled within the opening few seconds each actor was on screen. Sting brings a willful swagger to the role, while Butler exudes unhinged menace from the start. It helps that every actor seems to be having as much fun playing Fede as the audience is watching them. Recall Sting’s cry, “I’m going to kill him!” or his wild bite of Paul’s (Kyle MacLachlan) finger during their fight. Or what about Butler’s mischievous wink or well-placed drool as he engages in a deathmatch with the last of the Atreides’ soldiers? (Don’t even get me started on his taunt to Paul, “May your knife shatter!”) None of this is the heartthrob behavior we’d expect—especially when rocking blackened teeth and a completely bald head time, a face as pale as Butler’s – which makes these depictions of Feder all the more surprising.
However, there are still calculated moments in each process dune The film weaponized Sting and Butler’s heartthrob status.notorious lynch dune In the scene, Feder wears nothing but a metallic blue outfit, a picture of a sex symbol from outer space. A Lynchian twist? We see Feder through the eyes of his greedy uncle.
Meanwhile, Feder’s first on-screen moment Dune: Part 2 He was shirtless, with his abs on full display. He will then take the sexiest Gom Jabbar test ever, courtesy of Lady Margot Fenling (Léa Seydoux). In each case, dune You’re invited to ogle Feyd – but there’s an element of transgression, either due to the nature of the observer (hello, Baron!) or the general fact that Feyd is a horrific psychopath. The escapades are further heightened by the casting of two sex symbols.
The tension between desire and repulsion is what fascinates us about Feder, but there are many other factors that contribute to his appeal, from the plethora of big choices Sting and Butler make to seeing him in Giddy’s sordid How important it is to be free in the dirty world.Like Bene Gesserits’ centuries-long plan to perfect the Kwisatz Haderach, every element of Lynch and Villeneuve duneEverything falls into place to create the scariest, most threatening little weird space ever created.
You can’t look away, but then again, why would you?
Dune: Part 2 Now in theaters.
