Some long movies overstay their welcome, but there are a rare few which feel like they could be even longer. It’s often said that no good movie is too long, but whenever a movie’s runtime creeps over three hours, it can begin to test the patience of its audience. Only the very best movies can captivate an audience for so long and still leave them wanting more, thinking about the unanswered questions or mysterious characters who deserve more attention.
In some cases, a movie’s runtime becomes a contentious topic in the build-up to its release. We’ve seen this in recent years with movies likeAvengers: EndgameandOppenheimer,which are both more-or-less three hours long. Both of these movies quickly proved the doubters wrong, showing that their lengthy runtimes were entirely justified, and that they could have kept going for another 30 minutes without becoming tiresome.
The Godfatherruns just under three hours, andThe Godfather Part IIblows past this threshold with a mammoth three-hour and 22-minute runtime. It’s the kind of movie that handily includes an intermission, which is increasingly rare these days. One reason whyPart IIis so much longer than the original is thatit tells two stories side-by-side, with Michael Corleone’s continuing rise contrasted by his father’s early life after moving to New York from Italy.
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These movies have ludicrously long runtimes, but it doesn’t feel that way when their masterful storytelling makes it all go by in an instant.
The Godfather Part IIis one of thebest movies ever made, but it could just as easily have been made into two movies instead. It’s easy to imagine a modern studio wishing to cut the movie into a sequel focused on Michael and a prequel focused on Vito. Of course,The Godfather Part IIis much better as it is, but it would be interesting to see how much detail Francis Ford Coppola would be tempted to add with a longer runtime.
Oppenheimeris arguably Christopher Nolan’s best movie yet, and it’s certainly his most ambitious, using techniques from his cerebral sci-fi thrillers to examine the life of one of the most divisive and influential figures of the 20th century.Oppenheimeris a biopic like no other, weaving its timelines into a knot that makes it hard to distinguish between the past and the future, the cause and the effect, the science and the politics.
Oppenheimeris arguably Christopher Nolan’s best movie yet, and it’s certainly his most ambitious.
AlthoughOppenheimeris Nolan’s longest movie, it feels like it could be even longer, since it keeps up such a rapid pace. The story bounces around between different periods of J. Robert Oppenheimer’s life, never lingering in one moment for too long. There are so many interesting characters inOppenheimer’s ensemble castwho could get a lot more attention if the movie were stretched out further, andthere are more chapters of the main character’s life worth exploring.
Titanicbecame the highest-grossing movie of all time when it was first released, which is a remarkable achievement for a standalone movie that clocks in at three hours and 14 minutes. James Cameron’s flair for delivering jaw-dropping cinematic spectacle turnsTitanicinto a sumptuous period romance when it could easily have felt like a stuffy bore in the hands of another director.
James Cameron included many real passengers and crew from the ship as characters.
Although the long runtime is perfect for developing Jack and Rose’s slow-burn romance as organically as possible, a longer runtime could allowTitanicmore room to explore some of the supporting characters. Cameron’s fascination with the story of the Titanic compelled him to recreate the ship as accurately as possible, and he even included many real passengers and crew from the ship as characters.Only a few of these characters get the attention that their stories deserve.
Once Upon a Time in Hollywoodhas been described as Quentin Tarantino’s love letter to cinema, as it revels in the glamour of Hollywood in the 1960s. The story follows an actor struggling to adapt to a changing industry, with his Old Hollywood pedigree quickly falling out of fashion as new trends emerge at the dawn of New Hollywood. In the background of this story, the Manson family continues to grow in Los Angeles.
Tarantino seems to enjoy adding stylistic flourishes toOnce Upon a Time in Hollywood,like his remakes of classic movie scenes and his meandering side stories which barely affect the main plot.Once Upon a Time in Hollywoodcould be made longer without adding much to the plot. Tarantino creates such a vibrant and enjoyable atmosphere thatit wouldn’t hurt to see some more vignettes of his nostalgic world.
The Goblet of Fireis one of the longerHarry Pottermovies, so it’s odd that it’s also one which cuts the most content that appears in the book. IfThe Goblet of Firewere stretched out, it could include the subplot about Rita Skeeter being an Animagus, or it could bring the Triwizard Cup’s maze to life in more detail, with all the obstacles from the book. Characters like Ludo Bagman and Winky don’t even appear in the movie.
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Mainstream movies are getting longer and longer, and while some of them justify their extensive running time, others overstay their welcome.
HBO’sHarry PotterTV showpromises to be a more in-depth adaptation, with each season focusing on one of the books. This means that there’s a good chance that fans will finally be able to see all the missing book details fromThe Goblet of Fireon screen. Still, there are a lot of question marks hanging over the series, so a longer movie might have been preferable. For example, it will be difficult to find a cast as strong as the one from the movie franchise.
The first two movies in Peter Jackson’sLord of the Ringstrilogy brush up against the three-hour mark, whileReturn of the Kingtakes its time, adding an extra 21 minutes. Still, this mammoth runtime isn’t long enough for some fans. Ever since the initial success of the trilogy, there have been some fans who are adamant that watching theextended editions of theLord of the Ringsmoviesis the only way to experience them fully.
Casual fans can stick with the theatrical cut, but the extended edition is a necessity for some.
The extended edition ofThe Return of the Kingis a whopping four hours and 23 minutes long, which is much longer than the extended cuts ofThe Fellowship of the RingandThe Two Towers.This extra runtime goes toward fleshing out some of the characters who don’t get enough time on screen, like Faramir and Éowyn, who get married and have children in the end. There are also some great moments for Gandalf in particular. Casual fans can stick with the theatrical cut, but the extended edition is a necessity for some.
Stanley Kubrick’s movieshave wildly varying runtimes, from the brisk comedy ofDr. Strangeloveto the exhaustive historical drama ofBarry Lyndon.2001: A Space Odysseyisn’t his longest movie, but it still clocks in at 2 hours and 29 minutes. It feels like it could easily stretch to three hours, either by spending more time on board the spaceship with Dave or by expanding the story before he is even introduced.
2001: A Space Odysseyisn’t Kubrick’s longest movie, but it still clocks in at 2 hours and 29 minutes.
2001: A Space Odysseybroke new ground in the sci-fi genre, with lofty ambitions of charting humanity’s journey, starting from apes fighting each other in the dust and ending up in uncharted territory in the outer reaches of space and the darkest corners of human consciousness.2001should have a long runtime to match these ambitions, but it’s certainly not a disadvantage that it leaves its audience with so many unanswered questions, aching for just a little bit more.
Avengers: Endgameneeded to be at least three hours long. After years of build-up,Endgamewas the culmination of everything that the biggest movie franchise in history had been working towards, juggling a ludicrous number of characters and storylines, and somehow knitting them together at just the right moment. With so many different heroes competing for the spotlight,Endgamecould have been even longer.
With so many different heroes competing for the spotlight,Endgamecould have been even longer.
Avengers: Endgameis an impressive feat of franchise storytelling. Considering the high expectations of fans and the number of moving parts, it could easily have been a disappointment. Instead,Endgamewas a critical and commercial hit. Still, there could have been even more character development across the universe, more hard-hitting fight scenes, and more scenes of personable comedy.The epic saga deserves an epic payoff.
Heathas a runtime of two hours and 50 minutes, and it never feels too long.This is partly because Michael Mann’s crime thriller splits its time between two characters, Robert De Niro’s daring thief and Al Pacino’s jaded detective. Both of these characters could be seen as either heroes or villains. Really, they’re both protagonists who are given equal weight despite their conflicting goals and philosophies.
Heatis one of thebest heist moviesever, combining the two perspectives on either side of the law to show the similarities between them. A longer runtime would allow Mann to dig even further into his two dueling protagonists, or it could flesh out the world around them. Val Kilmer and Tom Sizemore are just two of the supporting actors who could easily have bigger roles in an extended cut.
Saving Private Ryanis often cited as one of the best war movies ever, thanks in part to the incredibly immersive atmosphere that Steven Spielberg creates. His characters all feel relatable, and it’s interesting to watch them in the long stretches between violent battles. While a longer cut ofSaving Private Ryancould give fans more battles to enjoy, it would also benefit from developing the soldiers even more.
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Of course, Steven Spielberg returned to the subject of the Second World War soon afterSaving Private Ryan.His HBO miniseriesBand of Brothersis the closest thing to an extended edition that fans could hope for.The Pacificand 2024’sMasters of the Aircarry on in the same vein, showing the remarkable circumstances of the Second World War at a human level, and with exquisite production values.
