In Defense of Long Runtimes
“‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ is so long, in the time it takes to watch it, you could drive to Oklahoma and solve the murders yourself… There’s so many great movies that held audiences captive this year, and I mean that literally – your movies were too long this year.”¹
Jimmy Kimmel at the Oscars, and many other award show hosts, recycle the same sentiment nearly every year: movies are too long. They also make sure to emphasize their distaste for the increase in runtimes. I can never seem to understand why hosts fall back on this same joke each time at events meant to honor the best films of the year. I guess this year it was hard to keep milking the “Barbenheimer” phenomenon for a fifteen minute introductory monologue.
There is merit to a long runtime, and I like to think the successes of films like Oppenheimer and Killers of the Flower Moon this year trailblazing the trend of longer runtimes in Hollywood will destroy the notion that Gen-Z is doomed to face declining attention spans and continued obsession with short-form content.
We are craving escapism more so than ever before, especially after facing the realities of a pandemic for the past couple of years. Films have consistently been a way to enter a new realm, so when there is more content to indulge in, I find it hard to complain. I am a huge proponent of movies being the exact length necessary to tell a story in the most compelling and interesting way possible. If that is only possible through a three hour long film, even better!
Probably the biggest reason why many filmmakers, producers, and observers are convinced that films have better box office results when they are under two hours is because they undermine the intelligence of their audiences. Despite its brevity in comparison to other recent films, Marvel’s latest Madame Web is littered with confusing storylines, a script that seems to be written by artificial intelligence, and a monotone, lackluster delivery. It received backlash like nothing I’ve seen before with a Letterboxd reviews calling it even worse than Morbius, which was also abysmal according to audience response. The creators of Madame Web delivered Marvel fans a story that insulted their intelligence. Longer runtimes, when done with care, demand that an audience use their brainpower to the fullest extent and respects their ability to draw conclusions and recognize the significance of certain directorial choices without being spoon-fed a plot. I think we like to be more challenged than some filmmakers, or even we, think.
One of the reasons I love Christopher Nolan’s work is because nothing is cookie cutter. He considers himself as part of the audience receiving his work, saying that his “take on the audience is very simple: It’s not us and them. I’m the audience, you’re the audience; that’s one audience.”² He himself is constantly seeking a new challenge and demands complicated anti-heroes and, as part of the collective audience, translates this demand into his work. Interstellar, Inception, Tenet, and even Oppenheimer, manipulate the concept of time to bring us something non-linear to give us something unlike reality that we’re able to engross ourselves in its entirety. Each of these films are longer than two hours.
I do recognize, however, that creating and executing a much longer film is a difficult task that might only be successfully done by a masterful director with an immaculate creative vision and adequate funding. Having the power to engage an audience for a large chunk of their day is a true feat, and I applaud the Martin Scorceses of the world for making us feel things so deeply in that time. While shorter films can be poignant and elegant in their own ways, it is an offense to discredit the meticulous nature of films toeing the two and a half hour to three and a half hour mark. In the words of Scorcese himself, “you can sit in front of the TV and watch something for five hours” and at the theater “there are real actors on stage… You can give it that respect. Give cinema some respect.”³ In the age of streaming where binge-watching an entire series in one day is the new norm, he begs the question — why can’t audiences devote the same time to epic tales that span three hours? Killers of the Flower Moon is arguably the most important and informative exploration into the atrocities faced by the Osage people, shedding light on the intense injustice faced by Native Americans throughout history and even today. Respecting the content and artistry is the least we as consumers can do.
Another reason I am a proponent of longer films is because sometimes, the genre demands it. Take science fiction for example. Films like Dune, a two and a half hour saga, that are based on lengthy novels require a certain level of detailed and careful world-building. Without being completely buried in the sweeping deserts of Arrakis, we are unable to understand how dire the conflict between the House Atreides and House Harkonnen are or how integral the setting is to the development of a story. Beautiful cinematography takes time to sit with someone and resonate. World-building is the complete and utter immersion into a new reality that requires patience from the audience as they get acquainted with it. It connects the visionaries of a film with those they hope to invite into it. Denis Villenueve concurs with this idea, stating that “the youth love to watch long movies because if they pay, they want to see something substantial. They are craving meaningful content.”⁴ Villenueve understands that in order to gain respect for a young audience, you must respect them back in the form of showing, not telling – something he does masterfully in the new two hour forty-six minute Dune Part Two.
Of course, one cannot talk about films without discussing how streaming has changed the industry forever. Despite its drawbacks and the obstacle that is a decline in revenue for traditional movie theaters, streaming platforms offer movie enthusiasts a vast array of choices. This, in turn, provides filmmakers with greater freedom to explore complex narratives that cross the two hours mark, fostering creativity and innovation in storytelling.
It all comes down to this fact: if they are captivating stories, a film runtime will not matter to an intelligent audience. As consumers, we must embrace longer films for their ability to immerse us in rich storytelling and appreciate its transcendence from the limitations of shorter formats. We may be in the TikTok age, but the allure of meaningful cinema endures.
¹ Brandy McDonnell, "Oscars host Jimmy Kimmel jokes 'Killers of the Flower Moon' is too long," The Oklahoman, March 10, 2024, https://www.oklahoman.com/story/entertainment/2024/03/10/oscars-host-jimmy-kimmel-jokes-killers-of-the-flowre-moon-is-too-long/72772455007/.
² ET Bureau, "Truth is indeed stranger than fiction, says Christopher Nolan," The Economic Times, November 5, 2024, https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/truth-is-indeed-stranger-than-fiction-says-christopher-nolan/articleshow/45042038.cms?from=mdr.
³ Devansh Sharma, "Martin Scorsese on Killers of the Flower Moon: 'It’s a Western, not a detective story'," Hindustan Times, February 13, 2024, https://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/hollywood/martin-scorsese-interview-killers-of-the-flower-moon-leonardo-dicaprio-robert-de-niro-apple-tv-101695989444345.html.
⁴ Jacob Stolworthy, Independent, "Dune 2: Denis Villeneuve confirms sequel runtime and why he 'cannot stop making' epic films," The Independent, accessed March 11, 2024, https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/dune-2-movie-runtime-director-denis-villeneuve-b2506437.html.
