There is no answer to the question ‘how long should a film be?’. Ask the question to Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, Quentin Tarantino or Denis Villeneuve, and they would throw the figurative string back at you and shame you for being a philistine. You can’t restrict an artist, limit the limits of their canvas, or regularly clip their wings feather by feather, or can you?

As long as a director can justify the length of their film, there really is no limit to the length of any given film. Take the 2005 animated film Valiant, which also happens to be the shortest feature we can think of. Gary Chapman’s bizarre WWII film did everything it could have done in just 76 minutes, leaving audiences wanting absolutely nothing more by the time the credits rolled.

On the other hand, consider the 1965 David Lean drama Doctor Zhivago, a romantic epic about the hardships of World War I and the October Revolution in Russia, which uses up its entire runtime without a gasp of baggage. Indeed, a film can be any length a director desires, with our list of ten very long films that are definitely worth watching, including various classics of world cinema.

Including films from Peter Jackson, Chantal Akerman, Edward Yang, Béla Tarr and Sergio Leone below.

10 full-length movies worth watching:

A brighter summer day (Edward Yang, 1991) – 3h 57m

Taiwanese filmmaker Edward Yang is known as one of the greatest modern filmmakers, creating classics such as Yi Yi, Du li shi dai And A brighter summer day before his death in 2007. His 1991 film A brighter summer day is considered one of his best, telling a coming-of-age story that exudes romance and more that follows a young boy caught in a violent conflict between two gangs.

At nearly four hours in length, the length of Yang’s film can be daunting, but once you begin to venture into his beautifully shot and gripping story, you’ll find it hard to take your attention away.

As I walked from time to time, I saw brief glimpses of beauty (Jonas Mekas, 2000) – 4h 48m

Our fourth longest film on our list is Jonas Mekas’ experimental film As I moved forward from time to time, I saw brief glimpses of beauty. A deeply intimate film, Mekas’ film is a biographical assessment of his own life, using 30 years of private film footage to construct a narrative of his own life that transcends time and space, putting the viewer in a meditative state of ‘wonder.

Beautifully composed, Mekas’ film is an odyssey of human existence, taking you on a melancholic journey, full of humor and full of adoration for the moving image.

Eureka (Shinji Aoyama, 2000) – 3h 37m

This list concerns feature films, and those of Shinji Aoyama Eureka is long, but at three hours and 37 minutes, we think this one is doable. A deeply complex and moving drama, Aoyama’s film tells the story of a group of traumatized survivors of a deadly bus hijacking who reunite and take a road trip in an attempt to overcome their fears and piece together their fragile selves. . It gets complicated, however, when it turns out that another serial killer is on the loose.

With Kôji Yakusho, who also appears in Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s classic Heal, Eureka is an atmospheric masterpiece, taking a poignant look at grief and the psychological consequences of severe trauma.

Jeanne Dielman, 23, Quai du Commerce, 1080 Brussels (Chantal Akerman, 1975) – 3h 22m

Belgian filmmaker Chantal Akerman has long been celebrated in the landscape of modern cinema, with her 1975 film Jeanne Dielman, 23, Quai du Commerce, 1080 Brussels being often considered his best. Recently named the the greatest movie of all time in a poll of Sight and soundAkerman’s three-hour, 22-minute film is a slow, steady feminist masterpiece that’s jam-packed with neat nuance.

Akerman’s film tells the story of Jeanne Dielman, played by Delphine Seyrig, a lonely widow who goes about her daily business taking care of her teenage son until an unpredictable event changes her life.

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (Extended Edition) (Peter Jackson, 2003) – 4h 12m

Everyone has a friend who tried to get them to watch the four-plus-hour cut of The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King During months. We know you may have seen the original three-hour version, but trust us, the extended version is also worth your time. The final film in Peter Jackson’s epic fantasy trilogy, The king’s return, sees Aragorn, Gandalf, Legolas and the rest of the crew take their final stand against the creatures of Mordor.

With a ton of additional scenes each delightfully adding to the lore of the fantasy series, each of Jackson’s expanded editions prove just how expertly his trilogy has been crafted, offering hours upon hours of new material crafted with just as much skill. love than the original cup. .

near death (Frederic Wiseman, 1989) – 5h 58m

Of all the movies on this list, we think this one might be the hardest sell. near death, by acclaimed American documentary filmmaker Frederick Wiseman, is a nearly six-hour film that tells the stories of patients at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, each living through some of the final moments of their lives. In addition to patients, Wiseman’s film also focuses on doctors, nurses, and doctors.

It’s by no means an easy watch, but the way Wiseman allows life in front of the lens to unfold effortlessly makes for an intense, emotional, and surprisingly enlightening film.

Once upon a time in America (Sergio Leone, 1984) – 3h 49m

Everyone’s seen Sergio Leone’s western trilogy, which stars Clint Eastwood as ‘the man with no name’, but too few moviegoers have taken the time to sit down and watch its 1984 crime classic Once upon a time in America. Starring Robert De Niro, Elizabeth McGovern, Joe Pesci, James Woods and Jennifer Connelly, the film tells the story of a former Prohibition-era mobster who returns to his hometown 35 years later, where he is forced to face the sins of his past.

Where other crime classics like to indulge in the violence of their lead characters, Leone’s film prefers to reflect on the horrors of each individual’s violent past, making it a gangster movie that feels more like a ghost story. .

Sátantango (Bela Tarr, 1994) – 7h 19m

Hungarian filmmaker Béla Tarr is the best modern director you may have never heard of, with the iconic creator helming modern classics such as the 2000s Harmonies Werckmeister and 2011 The Turin Horse. In 1994, however, he embarked on a seven-hour epic, making Sátantango, an epic drama that tells the story of the inhabitants of a ruined farmhouse who witness the return of a former colleague on the eve of a large payment due.

Although dark and slow, Tarr’s directing has a pace that makes Sátantango flow with uncorrupted life, effortlessly transporting the viewer to a monochromatic time and place with masterful visual reach and an absorbing soundscape.

Holocaust (Claude Lanzmann, 1985) – 9h 26m

The longest film on our list is also perhaps the most essential, with Claude Lanzmann’s Shoah being recognized not only as one of the best documentaries ever made, but as one of the most important films of all time. Recounting the horrific events of the Holocaust using first-hand accounts from witnesses, survivors, and even perpetrators, Holocaust is an essential historical document.

A moving documentary that rightly asks a lot of questions to its viewer, Holocaust examines and assesses the horrors of the Holocaust, wondering how such cruelty could have happened in the first place.

sorrow and pity (Marcel Ophüls, 1969) – 4h 11m

The horrors of the Second World War are of such magnitude that it is not surprising that the documentary by Marcel Ophüls sorrow and pity clocked in over four hours. Exploring the various reactions of the French people to the Nazi invasion in May 1940, Ophüls’ historical documentary provides a remarkable insight into life under occupation, questioning the viewer on how they would have reacted to a similar threat.

Undoubtedly one of the greatest WWII documentaries, sorrow and pity is essential viewing that transports viewers back to the 1940s and offers an unprecedented insight into wartime life.