🎬 The Ideal Length for a Movie? 🥱

[Samraiwise]

These days, I think, movies are getting longer and longer.

Even good movies have a few boring lengthy scenes that make me check the clock and yawn.

Is it just me or does anybody else feel that way too?

What is your ideal length for a movie?

or

What movies do you think suffer greatly from being too long?

[LogicalLifts]

2 hours 30 minutes.

Proof: Tenet.

[JackyChin]

30 seconds is all I can last

[nothingshocking]

Yeah, I noticed that too. In the 80's/90's there were 90 minute comedies.

I think it depends on the genre. If the plot is strong and the characters well developed I can appreciate a 3 hour movie. But comedies should be short, under 2 hours.

[markkillerings]

I've seen some films that were 80 minutes that felt too long and others that were 2 hours that I wished had more time. There is no ideal. It's the quality of the film. But I also think people's attention spans these days is really bad.

Oh, and to answer your question, a good example of a film that suffers from its long run time, John Wick 4. It's story is almost non existent. But for some f'ing reason it's almost 3 hours. Lulz. Had they cut 30-60 minutes from this film, it would have been better. As is, it is tedious as hell for me to watch. Actions scenes that go on forever. I read that this is the last one for a while. And that's a good thing.

[Adam16121]

It depends on the movie. Have you watched the deleted scenes from Godfather 1 & 2? They are absolutely worth watching, and I’d watch a complete 5 hour movie with those scenes for each movie for that experience.

Others are best left as they are. 2 hours is a good middle ground.

[Mr.PissShivers]

I watched Once Upon a Time in America for the first time one night starting at 1am. I figured I'd watch it for a little while before I fell asleep. All of a sudden it was 5 in the morning and the movie was over. Time flies when you're watching a great movie.

[Mulloway69]

For a regular movie about 1.5-2hrs I reckon. If it's an epic/great saga of a movie then it's more and they obviously need to break up the story over a few movies e.g. LOTR. I think quality TV shows fit this space better nowadays as you dont need to wait 2-3 years+ between installemnts.

[Adam16121]

I watched Once Upon a Time in America for the first time one night starting at 1am. I figured I'd watch it for a little while before I fell asleep. All of a sudden it was 5 in the morning and the movie was over. Time flies when you're watching a great movie.

Yup. Anytime I watched something worth watching, time didn’t really matter that much.

Kaz, you probably know this much better than I do, but I’ll post it anyway, since it’s worth mentioning in relation to film.


That time is important.

[Omnivium]

Movies are weird man. It's like the timing doesn't work. On one hand, they're so short that you don't even care about the characters by the time it's over. But on the other hand, they're so long that you have to sit there for 2+ hours at a time. The format for tv shows works a lot better imo

[stevemckenna]

Any comedy should be at most 90 minutes long.
Any movie by Denis Villeneuve should be at least 150 minutes long.

[skier!]

2 hours

Just watched the new Scorcese movie over 3 days. Roughly an hour a night

[LargePeter]

I normally click out of the Hub after 10 minutes, so that

[baroni01]

90 minutes for a comedy or thriller, or action

120 for a drama

horror depends on set up

Big ol westerns and sci-fi epics need more

[SirFapsAIot]

depends on the movie srs

[BigDeeps01]

90 minutes for most

120 minutes if they have a really good story

180 minutes if it's some epic war or fantasy movie

[Bodhy]

2 hours 30 minutes.

Proof: Tenet.

I think anything longer than 2 hours is only justifiable if the movie has the requisite plot depth, intelligence, production value, acting talent etc. to do it justice. Tenet is a good length because it's Nolan, and it's got a complex story which needs a bit of time to unpack.

I read somewhere there's a rule of screenwriting which says 1 page equals 1 minute of screen time and the proposed length is 90 minutes. Beyond that, and you'd need a reason to justify the extra screen time.


Ultimately, I think it depends on the complexity and nature of the plot. Commando with Arnie is perfect at 85 minutes. Terminator 2 is perfect at just over two hours. Opppenheimer works at 3 odd hours. Hobbit and LOTR perfect at 3 hours, Star Wars ditto at its length, since they are epic fantasies told over grand scales with massive battles.

Tarantino IMO makes movies that are slightly too long. Sometimes it comes across as indulgent and self-absorbed. Like The Hateful Eight, man that could have used a trim since it had so much pointless dialogue. A movie that drags on too long is worse than a short movie that could have been longer.


But Roger Ebert said: No bad movie is too short and no good movie is too long.

[Kiop]

7 inch's

[TokenV]

anything between 80-120 minutes

[BigElephant]

It depends on the movie honestly. The first time I watched Casino I didn't even notice the time but it was almost 3 hours long. Other movies I'm like damn isn't this over yet and they're not even 2 hours. As a general guideline I'd say movies should aim for 2 hours or under. Some movies however can pull off a longer form and not suffer.

[liftandsleep30]

regular movies 1.5 to 1 hour 50 minutes

movies that have bigger budget 2 hour 10 to 2 hour 45

[alltrapbrah]

All of Woody Allens movies are 90 minutes.

He knows the score.

[Samraiwise]

2 hours 30 minutes.

Proof: Tenet.

Still can't finish "Tenet" I don't get it, everything about the concept of “time inversion."

[gwg77]

2 hours to 2 hours and 15 minutes if the movie is good.

[Strawng]

I’m with you, OP. 80-90 minutes max should be good for all but the most intricate stories. Those shouldn’t exceed 2 hours.

[Samraiwise]

Yeah, I noticed that too. In the 80's/90's there were 90 minute comedies.

I think it depends on the genre. If the plot is strong and the characters well developed I can appreciate a 3 hour movie. But comedies should be short, under 2 hours.

That is exactly my thought.

Lack of ability on the production side to throw away unnecessary scenes that have nothing to do with their character development.

Not all but quite a few movies have problems with their pacing and editing, a lot of fat on them instead of muscles.