Dune: Part Two is getting rave reviews from film journalists.

Denis Villeneuve's second movie in the franchise has been compared to Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers in terms of battle scenes. If you recall, The Two Towers is the one with the Battle of Helm's Deep, and for a long time in the fantasy and sci-fi movie space, that has been the scene to beat.

Dune: Part Two is “visionary,” a “magnum opus” and “phenomenal”

Dune: Part 2 movie poster.

The Playlist's Gregory Ellwood posted on X (formerly on Twitter), “Dune: Part Two is damn impressive. Villeneuve crafts some truly VISIONARY moments. Austin Butler gives a truly transformative performance (and not talking makeup either). Very moving ending. A wee bit long? Yes. Did I forget I saw it the next day? Yes. Still, gonna be massive.”

Film critic Courtney Howard wrote, “#DunePartTwo/ #Dune2 is jaw-dropping, breathtaking & wildly exhilarating. It’s an adrenaline rush to the head & heart, soaring in its spectacle-driven action sequences as much as it sings in its refined, evocative stillness.Timothée Chalamet & Zendaya turn in singular work.”

She continued in a follow-up post, “Austin Butler is absolutely transformative, captivating & seductively evil. Yet another compelling performance from Dave Bautista. Rebecca Ferguson tears up the screen, rising to commanding power. Florence Pugh turns in career best work.”

BBC 5 Live's resident film critic Emily Murray had this to say: “Arguably Denis Villeneuve’s magnum opus, #DunePartTwo is a masterpiece. Throwing you right into the action, it is totally immersive, gripping, and ultimately devastating. Timothee Chalamet and Zendaya have never been better. Just truly remarkable filmmaking – I’m in awe.”

Uproxx's Mike Ryan said, “I was kind of mixed on the first Dune. DUNE: PART TWO is phenomenal. Up there with the greatest sci-fi movies I’ve ever seen. I want to ride a sandworm.”

Part Two so much better than the already amazing Part One?

It seems critics are in full agreement with Villeneuve himself who stated at a press conference last year, “There's something more alive in it. There's a relationship to the characters. I was trying to reach for an intensity and a quality of emotions that I didn't reach with Part One and that I did reach with Part Two. I'm not saying the film is perfect, but I'm much more happy with Part Two than I was with Part One. I can not wait to share it with the fans and the moviegoers.”

The movie clocks in at two hours and 46 minutes, 11 minutes longer than the first and is Villeneuve's longest film to date.

However, Steven Weintraub of Collider's only complaint about the runtime is that he wishes “it was longer.”

“Not joking around. The movie is 2hr and 40 min(?) and I would have been happy to watch another hour,” he added.

Dune: Part Two takes up where the first film left off with Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) now living with the Fremen to avenge his father's death and save Arrakis and the rest of the galaxy from the Harkonnens. Reprising their roles are Zendaya (Chani), Rebecca Ferguson (Lady Jessica), Josh Brolin (Gurney Halleck), Dave Bautista (Glossu Raban), Stellan Skarsgård (Baron Harkonnen), Charlotte Rampling (Reverend Mother Mohiam) and Javier Bardem (Stilgar).

New to the franchise are Butler (Feyd Rautha), Florence Pugh (Princess Irulan), Christopher Walken (Emperor Shaddam IV) and Léa Seydoux (Lady Margot Fenring).

The first movie was a box office hit which earned more than $400 million globally. Dune: Part One's relatively low (for its budget and scale) gross was due to the fact that it was also available to stream on Max at the same time it was released in theater. However, Part Two is a different story. It will have a full theatrical release and no streaming date has been announced yet so its box office prospects will likely be much higher.

The film also earned 10 Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture. It won six Oscars for original score, sound, film editing, cinematography, production design and visual effects.

If the critics are touting its battle scenes, then this must be something to behold. If the effusive praises for its cast still won't be tempting enough, maybe Anya Taylor-Joy's surprise role in the movie will get audiences unfamiliar with the Frank Herbert story head off to the cinemas on March 1.