1. Stand By Me
Runtime: 88 minutes Perhaps the greatest testament to this Stephen King adaptation is that very few of you reading this probably realised Stand By Me clocks in at under 90 minutes. It feels like it the journey of those four boys lasts for hours, but that's only because your heart wants it to take that long. Unlike most of the other King books-turned-films, Stand By Me doesn't attempt to do achieve grandiosity. Despite an opening line that promises a life-changing experience (I was 12 going on 13 the first time I saw a dead human being"), we're not primed to view this boyhood tale with any extra exaltation. We're not hyped into expecting something extraordinary, which is why it satisfies so much when we're given exactly that. In turns sweet and reckless, hilarious and heartbreaking, Stand By Me is a timeless treasure. Which other great modern movies come in at under and hour and a half? Shout out any we missed down in the comments.