As time went by, movie productions gradually increased in length. While the average length of a film in 1981 was 110 minutes, by 2021, it had risen to 131 minutes. This is without taking into account experimental productions, such as Ambiancé, the film by Swedish director Anders Weberg released in late 2020 that had a runtime of 720 hours, or about 30 days. Per IndieWire, in fact, the trailer for Weberg’s film clocked in at seven hours in length.
Moviegoers’ reactions to a lengthy films tend to vary. Some people are pleased when a movie has a long running time, as the events depicted in the production are more detailed and there is plenty of time to enjoy the movie and immerse oneself in the story. Many others, however, are turned off by a very long movie, especially when it is being screened in theaters. Independent of the audience’s opinion, it is certain that movies, and even TV series, are embracing this trend of extending their running time increasingly, and fortunately, they are achieving great results. Just as an example of this, we can name the Matt Reeves movie The Batman, which runs for almost three hours, as well as the season four finale of Stranger Things, with a length of two and a half hours, topping off the series’ lengthiest season. This article takes a look at the best movies over three hours long.
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9 Titanic — 195 Minutes
Paramount Pictures
In this popular 1997 film, James Cameron revisits one of the worst nautical tragedies in history, while merging it with a tragic love story that was never meant to be. Titanic stars Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio as Rose and Jack, two young people from very different backgrounds that fall in love aboard the Titanic. A lesser known fact about this movie is that, not including the 1996 scenes and the film credits, the events that took place in the Titanic and Jack and Rose’s story is recounted in exactly the same amount of time it took for the ship to sink: 2 hours and 40 minutes.
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8 The Wolf of Wall Street — 180 Minutes
With a running time of precisely three hours, The Wolf of Wall Street is one of Martin Scorsese’s most extensive films. This 2013 production is based on the memoirs of Jordan Belfort, and it recounts his career as a stockbroker in New York, from its origins to its fall. It stars DiCaprio, who is also a producer on the film, alongside Jonah Hill, Margot Robbie, and Matthew McConaughey, among many others. And even though the film is quite lengthy, it could have been significantly longer: according to Scorsese, the initial version of the film lasted over four hours.
7 The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King — 201 Minutes
New Line Cinema
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King wrapped up the LOTR trilogy in 2003, becoming the most extensive film in the saga. The already well-known cast led by Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, and Viggo Mortensen once again reprise their roles at the end of the journey to Mount Doom. Even though the film is already lengthy, with a running time of 3 hours and 20 minutes, the extended version of it features 50 minutes of additional content for die-hard fans of the trilogy.
6 The Irishman — 209 Minutes
Netflix
This 2019 film is officially Scorsese’s lengthiest production, with a running time of three and a half hours. The Irishman marks his ninth collaboration with Robert De Niro, and the first with Al Pacino. Inspired by the book I Heard You Paint Houses by Charles Brandt, the film follows Frank Sheeran (De Niro), a truck driver who becomes a hitman, and his involvement with mobster Russell Bufalino (Joe Pesci). Rounding out the cast are Ray Romano, Bobby Cannavale, Anna Paquin, Stephen Graham, and Harvey Keitel.
5 Gone with the Wind — 221 Minutes
Selznick International Pictures
With a running time of almost four hours, the 1939 film Gone with the Wind was, at the time of its release, the most expensive and lengthiest film ever made. This classic of the motion picture industry recounts the life story of Scarlett O’Hara, her feelings for Ashley, her cousin’s husband, and her eventual marriage to Rhett Butler. Starring Vivien Leigh, Clark Gable and Leslie Howard, Gone with the Wind is a film adaptation of Margaret Mitchell’s 1936 novel.
4 Seven Samurai — 207 Minutes
Toho
Akira Kurosawa directed and co-wrote this epic movie that, at the time, was the most expensive film ever made in Japan. At 207 minutes long, Seven Samurai revolves around a 1586 farming village that is under constant assault by thieves and murderers, to the point where they decide to hire a group of samurai to defend them. Although the first encounter between both groups is far from the best, eventually they learn to coexist, and the samurai teach the farmers all the necessary techniques they need for self-defense.
3 Avengers: Endgame — 182 Minutes
Marvel Studios
With a running time of 3 hours and 2 minutes, Avengers: Endgame is, to date, the latest movie of the Avengers superhero ensemble. Directed by Anthony and Joe Russo and starring Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Don Cheadle, and Paul Rudd among many other stars, the film revolves around this group of superheroes, who must assemble once again in order to reverse the devastation caused by Thanos.
2 The Godfather Part II — 202 Minutes
Following the overwhelming success of The Godfather in 1972, two years later, The Godfather Part II reached theaters, serving as both a sequel and a prequel to the original. Partly based on Mario Puzo’s 1969 novel and directed by Francis Ford Coppola, the film parallels the origins of Vito Corleone, the family patriarch, and the rise of Michael Corleone as the new head of the family business. This production stars Al Pacino, Robert Duvall, Robert De Niro and Diane Keaton, among other actors, and runs 3 hours and 22 minutes.
1 Schindler’s List — 195 Minutes
Universal Pictures
Taking the top spot on this list is the 1993 film starring Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Kingsley, Caroline Goodall and Jonathan Sagalle. With a running time of 3 hours and 15 minutes, Schindler’s List is inspired by Thomas Keneally’s 1982 book Schindler’s Ark, and it revolves around Oskar Schindler, a German businessman that, with the aim of making his business grow, employs hundreds of Jewish workers, thus saving them from an inevitable death. This masterpiece was directed and produced by Steven Spielberg.
