Ask Pappy #1: A movie doesn’t have to be short to be good, it just has to respect your time.

Reader Letter:

Is it just me, or are movies getting way too long? I feel like every time I sit down to watch something, I’m committing to a full shift. Even comedies feel like marathons. Am I just getting impatient, or did filmmakers forget how to end a story on time? — Gary M.

Well now, that’s a fine question — and one I’ve been asking myself somewhere around the two-hour mark of every blockbuster since 2018.

Kid, I remember when you could tell a whole story, fall in love, watch a spaceship explode, and still make it home before the butter got cold. These days, you sit down for a “simple” superhero flick, and by the time the credits roll, your knees forgot how to bend and your soda’s gone flat.

Now, don’t get me wrong — I’m not one of those “back in my day” fossils who thinks movies should all fit on a VHS tape. Some stories need time to breathe. The Godfather, Seven Samurai, Titanic — those reels earn their minutes. But half these new pictures? They stretch a ten-minute scene into twenty just to prove they can spell “auteur.” It’s like watching a soufflé rise… for three hours… only for it to collapse in the last ten minutes.

The truth is, pacing ain’t just editing — it’s empathy. It’s knowing when your audience’s hearts are full and their bladders are empty. Somewhere along the line, too many filmmakers forgot that. They started chasing “epic” instead of “effective.” I call it the “runtime arms race.”

You see, every generations got its cinematic sin. Back in the ’90s, it was too many montages. The 2000s? Shaky cam. Now? Excess. Everyone’s afraid of cutting the good stuff — except half of it ain’t that good.

And before you go blamin’ yourself, no, it’s not just you getting older. Time really does move slower when you ain’t caught up in the magic. A tight film feels like ten minutes; a bloated one feels like detention.

But here’s the kicker — sometimes, long or short, a film hits just right because it’s honest. Because someone, somewhere behind that camera, still cared about rhythm, still cared about the heartbeat between cuts. You can forgive length when there’s soul.

So next time you’re watching a movie that feels like it’s dragging its feet, don’t feel bad for checking your watch. Just remember: maybe your patience didn’t shrink — your standards grew.

And if you ask me, that’s something to be proud of.

Stay kind, stay curious, and don’t spill the butter on your way out.— Pappy Hull, The Popcorn Philosopher