Indiana Jones and the Blockbuster Sized Running Time

Posted by Nathan Deen (nathan@filmschoolrejects.com) on April 16, 2008

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

According to Jeff Wells at Hollywood-Elsewhere, arguably the most anticipated movie of the summer, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, has had its first screening and the reports are that it runs a whopping, summer-sized 140+ minutes. The film is expected to be shown “internally” once more before it makes its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival May 14-25.

Why is it that it seems like every summer blockbuster feels that it has to have a lengthy running time? Recent examples include the 139 minute Spider-man 3, the 160 minute Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, and the 145 minute Transformers. They all have one thing in common: none of those movies were great.

Also, the previous Indiana Jones movies were shorter. Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Temple of Doom were brisk and both ran under two hours. The Last Crusade was just a few minutes over. Is there too much story going on here like there was in Spider-man 3 or too much nonsensical action like in Transformers? Or is there a lot of both like Pirates of the Caribbean 3? You may be anxious as hell to see the new Indiana Jones adventure, but the question is, are you less or more anxious to see a 140+ minute movie?


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  • Well Batman Begins came in over 150 mins. Granted, that was an origin story but this is kind of an origin story as well, if we're to believe LaBeouf is taking over the series.

    Besides, it's Speilberg! Name one movie he directed within the last 15 years that clocked in under 2 hours. Munich, Private Ryan, Schindler's, Catch Me If You Can, Minority Report--all bloated.
  • rich
    LeBouf taking over???No one can fit the fedora like HF can!
  • I'm ok with the running time. A movie is only as long as it feels, plenty of great movies clock in at over 2 hours and feel like 1hr45min.
  • Batman Begins was 140 not 150+. It also appears this 140 minute runtime is speculation based on John Williams saying the film is seven reels @ 20 mins apiece. There are other reports that put the runtime at 123, which could be seven reels, wih the seventh being on the short side. So, this 140 is nothing more than speculation.

    As for The Dark Knight, reports have that one clocking in at 165 mins.

    The big question is who really cares about length, so long as the movie is good?
  • If it's good, I don't care how long the bloody movie is. Just release it already!
  • dashRENDAAR
    Personally I love long run times on films, because one, it shows quality, and also it gives a film time to tell the story. Instead of whipping through it to quickly. I was hoping this would be at least 130 Min. long. I saw that it was possibly 123 Min. long as well, and to be honest was a little dissapointed. "Last Crusade" was 126 Min. long, and I feel since it took them 19 years to do another one, that it should at least be a bigger story than the series' longest one so far.
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