In 2015, Matt Zoller Seitz started a series of essays with these words: “The following is the inaugural installment of “30 Minutes On, “a new feature at the MZS blog wherein the author spends exactly 30 minutes writing about a movie, then hits publish.” Since then, he has run this critical exercise dozens of times on old movies, new movies, blockbusters, and independent films (and sometimes expanded it to 60 Minutes). This is a collection of those essays. (Header Credit: Brianna Ashby.)





“30 Minutes on Cool Hand Luke“





“30 Minutes on Midnight Special“




“30 Minutes on Planet of the Apes“

“60 Minutes on The Dirty Dozen“


“60 Minutes on Doctor Strange“


“60 Minutes on John Wick: Chapter Two“

“30 Minutes on The Terminator“

“30 Minutes on King Kong Escapes“


“30 Minutes on Elevator to the Gallows“


“30 Minutes on Straight, No Chaser“



“30 Minutes on As Good As It Gets“

“30 Minutes on The Hudsucker Proxy“

“30 Minutes on The Greatest Showman“


“60 Minutes on The Death of Stalin“




“60 Minutes on The Hate U Give“

“30 Minutes on A Star is Born“




“30 Minutes on Bohemian Rhapsody“

“30 Minutes on The Public Enemy“


“30 Minutes on If Beale Street Could Talk“

“30 Minutes on I Knew It Was You“









“30 Minutes on The Manchurian Candidate”
30 Minutes on “The Graduate“

30 Minutes on “Body Heat“

30 Minutes on “The Thomas Crown Affair“
