10 Great Horror Movies Over 2 Hours Long
Even though these films are as long as hell, viewers can't get enough.
Evil Dead, Halloween and A Nightmare on Elm Street are among the most influential horrors ever made. But each of these films have another thing in common: they all clock in at around 90 minutes.
Although movies can vary tremendously in length, horror films have a tendency to be quite short. Classics like Frankenstein and Dracula were only 70 minutes. Many monster flicks from the 1940s and '50s were barely an hour long. Despite the fact the genre has changed dramatically over the years, more recent films like Cabin in the Woods, Don't Breathe or A Quiet Place still manage to keep the running time down to an hour-and-a-half.
Because most of these movies have an overly simplistic plot, it feels sensible to keep it brief. Slashers, sci-fi or zombie flicks tends to drag if they go over the two-hour mark (here's looking at you, Army of the Dead).
But there are some solid horrors that manage to hold the viewers' attention and keep the scares coming despite being over 120 minutes. Even though these films could've been a slog, they kept us at the edge of our seat for the entire runtime.
10. I Saw The Devil
In I Saw the Devil, a serial killer murders a pregnant woman, compelling her fiance, who happens to be a government agent, to hunt him down. Despite its straightforward premise, this Korean masterpiece is anything but formulaic. Without giving anything away, the film feels like its wrapping up within the first hour, giving the viewer little idea of where the story is going. Every time you think you have I Saw the Devil figured out, it goes in a completely different direction, which keeps the viewer utterly engaged despite the film's length.
But it's not just the plot that is exceptional. The violence is brutally inventive to the point where you can't tell whether to gasp in horror or in awe. Some of the cinematography is so astounding, you will probably say, "How the hell did they do that?" on at least one occasion.
However, the film's greatest strength is the charismatic performance of Choi Min-sik, best-known for playing the lead role in Oldboy. The way he switches from playing the killer as carefree and charming one moment and a deranged psychopath the next is so effortless, it's like the character is played by two different actors.