Keep It Rolling
There’s something undeniably magical about a long take—the kind of shot that stretches time, space, and stamina. Unlike traditional editing, which cuts away to hide complexity, the long take embraces it, showing off a filmmaker’s technical prowess and creative ambition all at once.
From fluid camera choreography to elaborate stunts, here are the films that nailed the art of the long take.
The Shining
Stanley Kubrick revolutionized tracking shots with The Shining, largely thanks to his pioneering use of the Steadicam. Danny’s tricycle tour of the Overlook Hotel is a masterclass in suspense. As the camera glides silently behind him, you feel dread creeping in with every turn of the wheels. It’s quiet. Too quiet.
The Shining | 4K Trailer | Warner Bros. Entertainment, Warner Bros. Entertainment
Touch Of Evil
Orson Welles opens Touch of Evil with a legendary three-and-a-half-minute tracking shot that follows a ticking time bomb across a border town. It’s a suspenseful dance of motion, shadow, and timing. Everything had to be perfect. If anyone flubbed—even the goat in the background—it was back to square one. And this was in 1958. Madness.
Children Of Men
Alfonso Cuarón’s dystopia is practically a love letter to long takes. The most iconic? A six-minute car ambush that morphs into absolute chaos. Bullets fly, characters pass, and the camera never blinks. You feel trapped in the car with them, and the sense of immersion is off the charts. The film’s later battle sequence is even longer, but the car scene is pure cinematic wizardry.
The Player
Robert Altman starts The Player with a cheeky eight-minute take that’s as much about flexing as it is about storytelling. The camera weaves through a bustling Hollywood lot, eavesdropping on deals, gossip, and studio politics—all while characters casually reference other long takes. It’s meta, it’s fun, and it’s so Altman.
Boogie Nights
Paul Thomas Anderson channels Scorsese and Altman in his nightclub tracking shot. The camera snakes through a disco-drenched party, introducing key characters in a seamless, energetic flow. It's like a drug-fueled conga line of dysfunction. The timing had to be exact, or that entire dolly shot was toast.
Boogie Nights | Modern Trailer | Max, HBO Max
Hard Boiled
John Woo’s Hard Boiled contains a legendary hospital shootout that goes on for nearly three minutes without a single cut. Chow Yun-fat reloads, shoots, reloads again, and ends more henchmen than should exist in any one building. It’s beautifully chaotic, all ballistic gunfire and broken glass. And yes—it’s one single take.
Hard Boiled - Trailer (HD), Tue Nguyen
Atonement
Joe Wright’s five-minute tracking shot on Dunkirk beach is not just technically jaw-dropping—it’s emotionally devastating. Men stagger past executions, horses are put down, and choirs sing mournfully among the wreckage. It’s all a single, continuous glide through despair. Cinematographer Seamus McGarvey orchestrated it like a symphony of sorrow.
Atonement (2007) Official Trailer HD, MovieReviewEK
Strange Days
Kathryn Bigelow's cyberpunk noir opens with a POV heist filmed as if it’s happening in real time. The camera becomes the character, jumping rooftops and stumbling through chaos. The result? An electrifying, first-person experience that makes you feel like you’re wearing the headset too.
Rope
Alfred Hitchcock’s Rope is the original long-take experiment. He attempted to make the entire film look like one continuous shot by cleverly hiding cuts behind dark clothing and furniture. It’s a theatrical stunt—both literally and stylistically—and a bold swing in 1948. Gimmick? Maybe. But it works.
Rope (1948) Official Trailer #1 - Alfred Hitchcock Movie, Rotten Tomatoes Classic Trailers
The Protector
Tony Jaa’s four-minute fight up a winding staircase is like watching a human hurricane. He punches, kicks, and throws people through windows, glass panels, and stair rails—all while the camera follows without a single cut. No wires. No CGI. Just raw, punishing choreography.
Tony Jaa - The Protector Bone Breaking Scene, Stringer's Stuff
Extraction
Netflix’s Extraction goes full tilt with a simulated 12-minute long take involving car chases, hand-to-hand combat, and rooftop jumps. Chris Hemsworth punches and shoots his way through a city as the camera flips, spins, and glides like a bloodthirsty drone. It’s digital stitching, sure—but the ambition? Impressive.
Extraction | Official Trailer | Screenplay by JOE RUSSO Directed by SAM HARGRAVE | Netflix, Netflix
Angamaly Diaries
This Indian drama saves its wildest trick for last: an 11-minute climax shot in a bustling market. A handheld camera darts through chaos—fire, fruit stands, screaming vendors—without pause. It’s a masterpiece of indie ingenuity that puts many big-budget films to shame.
Angamaly Diaries Official Trailer || Film by Lijo Jose Pellissery, Friday Film House
The Secret In Their Eyes
This Oscar-winning Argentine film features a soccer stadium chase that spans the field, locker rooms, and stands—all in one unbroken shot. The camera swoops from a god’s-eye view into the fray, diving like a bird of prey before landing in the action. It’s part thriller, part technical showcase.
The Passenger
Michelangelo Antonioni ends The Passenger with a shot so audacious it’s almost spiritual. The camera glides out a window, across a dusty courtyard, then back into the room—all while crucial events unfold off-screen. It’s mysterious, slow, and strangely hypnotic. You’re not watching a scene; you’re watching time pass.
The Passenger - Trailer - (1975) - HQ, ryy79
The Sacrifice
Andrei Tarkovsky closes The Sacrifice with a long take that feels like watching a painting dissolve in slow motion. Flames engulf a house while the camera silently observes. There’s no score. Just wind and crackling wood. It’s haunting, poetic, and somehow feels longer than time itself.
The Sacrifice – Andrei Tarkovsky – Re-Release Trailer, Kino Lorber
Paths Of Glory
Kubrick strikes again with Paths of Glory, where a tracking shot through WWI trenches captures the dread and futility of war. The camera follows Kirk Douglas as he trudges past muddy, terrified men. You feel the claustrophobia, the tension, the inevitable doom. No explosions necessary.
PATHS OF GLORY (1957) | Official Trailer | MGM, Amazon MGM Studios
The Revenant
Alejandro G. Iñárritu doesn’t just love long takes—he weaponizes them. The opening bear attack scene may take the show, but it’s the prolonged battle sequences, all shot with flowing, handheld intensity, that really stun. The camera becomes a ghost drifting through carnage.
The Revenant | Official Trailer [HD] | 20th Century FOX, 20th Century Studios
Snake Eyes
Brian De Palma’s Snake Eyes kicks off with a 12-minute faux single take that follows Nicolas Cage through a stadium as he uncovers a conspiracy. It’s flashy, kinetic, and a little over-the-top—just like Cage himself. But hey, when it works, it works.
Brian De Palma Snake Eyes 1998, Pyguru
Spectre
Sam Mendes opens Spectre with a Day of the Dead parade in Mexico City, captured in a four-minute unbroken shot that starts in a hotel room and ends on a rooftop gunfight. It’s elegant, moody, and Bond at his most cinematic. Bonus points for Daniel Craig’s swagger.
Spectre, by Sam Mendes (2015) - Opening credits (with Daniel Craig), Jerome Labbe
Goodfellas
No list of long takes is complete without Goodfellas. Martin Scorsese’s Copacabana tracking shot is the stuff of legend. As Henry Hill (Ray Liotta) leads his co-star through the back entrance of the club, the camera glides with them, each beat punctuated by Then He Kissed Me. It’s cool. It’s cocky. It’s cinematic history.
Goodfellas (1990) Official Trailer #1 - Martin Scorsese Movie, Rotten Tomatoes Classic Trailers
Inception
Christopher Nolan’s Inception is known for its cerebral plot, but it also flexes cinematic muscle with its spinning hallway fight. As Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) battles assassins in a dream where gravity keeps shifting, the camera tumbles with them, creating a stunningly fluid, disorienting effect. What makes this long take so brilliant is that it’s not CGI—it’s all wire work and a rotating hallway set.
Inception (2010) Official Trailer #1 - Christopher Nolan Movie HD, Rotten Tomatoes Classic Trailers
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