Following on from his existing predilection for long running times, Martin Scorsese’s next film will be – brace yourselves – three and a half hours long. That’s longer than both Lord of the Rings: Return of the King and The Godfather: Part II.
Reportedly taking 106 days to film – the longest shooting schedule of Scorsese’s career – this film seems to be enormous in all facets of its creation, with a high budget ($200m) and over three hundred scenes, as well as a high amount of refusals from Joe Pesci to come out of retirement to star in the film (reportedly fifty refusals before he finally relented).
I’m guilty for finding it difficult to commit to long films, often setting my Letterboxd watchlist to sort by: shortest first when deciding what to watch; I had to have two loo breaks during Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, and got serious back-ache afterwards. The acceptability of long films has long been debated, though: some are put off (raises hand sheepishly), whereas others rejoice at being able to experience more of their favourite actors and directors. The length will surely hinder the theatrical release, though, with perhaps more sensible people opting to wait to watch it on Netflix, with the platform’s handy pausing abilities.
I’m sorry, but NO MOVIE needs to be 3.5 hours long.
— Lauren Huff (@_LaurenHuff) August 28, 2019
The Irishman is 3.5 HOURS LONG?! Lord have mercy! I’m gonna do it for De Niro and De Niro only. Thank God for Netflix. I will be at the house
— Tom Hanks’ spades partner (@ieshadaboya) August 28, 2019
People complaining about The Irishman being 3.5 hours long have clearly never binge-watched a show. 3.5 hours is nothing when the story is compelling. pic.twitter.com/2fT6YRleFC
— Kreidy Giantsbane (@kreidy_b) August 28, 2019
Whether a fan of long run times or not, the hype for The Irishman has definitely reached fever pitch. Check out what we thought of the trailer here.
After its world premiere at the New York Film Festival on 27th September, The Irishman will be released in cinemas on 1st November and Netflix on 27th November.
Words by Steph Green