If You Only Have 3 Hours This Weekend: The Best Movies Worth Your Time
Let’s be honest, finding the time to watch a film – or do anything, for that matter – is not always straightforward.
As Ian Malcolm once famously said, “Life uh… finds a way”. He may well have been talking about evolution and dinosaurs, but you can just as easily apply that sentiment to the fact that life simply has a knack of getting in the way and spoiling your plans.
However, it’s important to put time aside to enrich your mind and absorb some culture every now and again. If you’re a really devoted cinephile, you might even carve out a few hours each weekend to dive into a film you’ve never seen before.
While it’s always nice to find a film that’s under two hours for a quick fix, there are some movies that you have to spend a little more time with. To that end, here are ten movies that will take you closer to three hours to watch, but are totally worthy of the extra commitment.
In my opinion, there has never been a greater filmmaker than Stanley Kubrick. He mastered pretty much every genre, and all his movies are absolutely essential viewing if you want to see the best of the best. The only problem is, he loves a long film. The likes of Eyes Wide Shut, Spartacus, and 2001: A Space Odyssey will all take you at least two hours and 40 minutes to watch, but it’s Barry Lyndon that’s his longest, clocking in at three hours and five minutes.
If you’re wondering whether this period drama about a rags-to-riches scoundrel is really worth three hours of your time on a weekend, I can personally vouch for this as the experience I’m recommending to you is exactly how I watched Barry Lyndon. I laid on my sofa on a Sunday morning and allowed myself to get lost in the sumptuous visuals and impeccable production design at the heart of this sprawling and oddly entertaining story. You’ll need to rent this film on a service like Apple TV, but you’ll get your money’s worth and then some.
A far more recent flick, and an Oscar-winner, no less, Oppenheimer is another lengthy recollection of one man’s extraordinary life – though this man is far more real, and far more influential on the course of human history. It’s not surprising that it takes exactly three hours to cover the tale of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the father of the atomic bomb, with so much to delve into. But, Christopher Nolan crafts the story – with a lot of help from his incredible editor, Jennifer Lame – in such a way that this never feels like a chore to watch at all.
With Cillian Murphy, Robert Downey Jr. and Emily Blunt all performing at the very top of their game, it’s so easy to become engrossed by Oppenheimer. When you throw in Ludwig Göransson’s scintillating score and Hoyte van Hoytema’s breathtaking cinematography – which perfectly blends colour and black and white imagery – you just know you’re experiencing a modern masterpiece. The fact you can buy this for just £3.99 on Sky Store is ridiculous. An absolute bargain!
Very few films are able to make me cry, but The Green Mile manages it every single time I watch it. This Stephen King adaptation is a wonderful mix of a gripping and heartfelt prison drama and a fantastical fairytale. It’s got a really charming feel to it at times, but when it takes dark turns, it really is an emotional ride – perfect if you’re in need of a cathartic release this weekend.
It says a lot about the experience of watching The Green Mile that I had no idea it was three hours and nine minutes long until I was assembling this list – it truly never feels anywhere near that long. The story is obviously a brilliant one, as most King stories are, and the direction of the great Frank Darabont combined with a spellbinding performance from Tom Hanks just makes this movie float by and leave a lasting mark on your soul. Check it out on Netflix now, and get the tissues ready.
I must say, I’ve not watched much when it comes to Bollywood pictures, but if the rest of them are anything like RRR, then I’m definitely missing out. This movie is absolutely crazy, in the best possible way. It’s a period piece, taking us back to the 1920s and laying out an expansive story of friendship, revenge, and love across the space of three hours and seven minutes.
RRR is another you’ll find on Netflix, which is great news as that makes it really easy to access. Don’t be put off by the idea of subtitles, either; this film is underpinned by stylish action set-pieces and vibrant production design, making it a really visual story that’s easy to follow. With so much going on, you’ll never find yourself checking the time on this one.
Depending on which version of Amadeus you choose, you’re looking to spend either two hours and 40 minutes or bang-on three hours with this movie, and either way, you’re in for a treat. Directed with verve and flair by the legendary Milos Forman, this film really does have it all: incredible music, sharp humour, beautiful production design, a riveting story, and two powerhouse performances at its core.
It focuses on the rivalry between the great Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and his nemesis, Antonio Salieri, with a story told through a very playful and vivacious lens. It says it all that this film won a whopping eight Oscars back in 1986, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Lead Actor, plus a bunch of technical awards. You simply must find it on Now TV Cinema, and tick off one of the genuine all-time greats from your watchlist.
It’s not often that I would say a superhero movie is a must-watch for everyone, not least of all one that clocks in at two hours and 56 minutes, but The Batman is in a different league to other films of its ilk. In fact, it’s not really a superhero movie at all – it’s a gritty, visceral crime thriller that just so happens to feature the most iconic comic book character of all time.
Matt Reeves creates a living, breathing version of Gotham City that is grimy yet so rich and feels like a real playground for the Caped Crusader’s array of villains. It’s like stepping into a graphic novel, but you really don’t need to know much about Batman to enjoy this film. With a noir style, a pulsating score, and blistering action, this is simply a movie that any appreciators of great art will relish. You can rent The Batman on Rakuten for £3.49 – not a bad price to be transported to the home of the Dark Knight.
Interestingly, Zodiac has a pretty similar feel to The Batman, with grainy visuals and a dark, brooding detective case at the heart of the action. This David Fincher flick is more brutal and bleak than its superhero counterpart, though. It’s based on the real-life story of the Zodiac Killer, one of the most prolific and mysterious serial killers in US history – and one who has still not been identified to this day.
At two hours and 37 minutes, this is the joint-shortest film on this list, but it’s still a big undertaking to dive into this story and this world. Not only will it eat up your time, but watching a film like Zodiac extracts a heavy toll on your spirit and your mind, too – though, I would argue, it’s good to be challenged by movies sometimes. If you’re a fan of true crime, this is absolutely essential viewing. You can rent Zodiac on Prime Video for £3.49 right now.
Michael Mann’s The Insider also runs at two hours and 37 minutes, though I would say this is another film where I didn’t really feel the runtime at all. I watched this for the first time just last year, and was utterly transfixed from start to finish. Indeed, I’ve come to realise recently that one of my favourite types of films is exactly this: a taut, tense thriller that doesn’t necessarily feature any physical action, but has lots of dialogue-driven drama that gives the story a high-stakes feel (see also Michael Clayton, Erin Brockovich, and All the President’s Men).
You can find The Insider on Disney Plus, and I cannot recommend it enough. If you’re someone who enjoys a story underpinned by themes of corruption and morality, which leans on and thrives because of a powerful performance, then you have to see what Russell Crowe is doing here – it’s phenomenal work from him and from Mann in the director’s chair, and those two and a half hours will fly by as you get sucked into this shocking true story.
Honestly, there are very few genuinely perfect movies out there, but I would say The Sound of Music is one of them. As a musical, it succeeds, and then some, delivering some truly iconic songs that are performed delightfully by Julie Andrews and her co-stars. But, beyond that and the eye-catching visuals, this Robert Wise production packs so much heart, drama, and social commentary into its two hour 54 minute runtime that it’s impossible not to be glued to the screen.
This one is also on Disney Plus, and it’s definitely the kind of film that it would be a sin to ignore. The Sound of Music is timeless. My grandmother loves it, as does my mum, and now so do I, and I’ll certainly be making sure my kids give it the time of day when they’re old enough to appreciate it, too. I can think of few better ways to spend a Sunday afternoon on the sofa than by watching this glorious picture.
Technically, making time for The Good, The Bad and the Ugly will actually require you to plan for two other films first, with A Fistful of Dollars and For a Few Dollars More both preceding this magnificent trilogy closer. It’s not absolutely essential that you watch them first, but it definitely helps to set the scene for Clint Eastwood’s mysterious hero, and they’re also just very good anyway, so you might as well watch them.
The third installment is two hours and 41 minutes (with an extended version that’ll run to one minute shy of three hours), but hey, Westerns are supposed to be long, right? It’s excellently paced, anyway, so you never find yourself wishing away the minutes – if anything, you’re left wanting more by the time the film reaches its iconic, exhilarating finale. Head over to MGM+ for some rootin’ tootin’ cowboy action this weekend and enjoy a genuine classic.
