Directors Your favorite movie "endings" / "conclusion" scenes (1 Viewer)

For me it would probably have to be HEAT.

The scene at the end where Deniro and Pacino hold each others hand knowing they were similar in alot of ways and no hard feelings, along with the music is just great. The shot where you see them right before the credits role, is top notch.

There are so many great ones.

A couple of my favs that come to mind immediately:

Touch of Evil
Maybe the best last 10 minutes of any film to me. The dialog, direction, and cinematography are all incredible. It makes for a very powerful conclusion to a corrupt cop's life.

Trainspotting
Renton walking in an ending that bookends with the opening. It is both an upbeat finish without betraying the rest of the film. I also think this film has one of the best credit sequences ever.


Oh, just thought of another true classic ending. I won't give out any spoilers, but Chinatown has a fantastically dramatic and poignant ending.

A "Golden Oldie" and a more modern classic

"Casablanca" (to quote Billy Crystal in "When Harry Met Sally") has the best ending of all time. The amazing airport sequence as Rick sends Elsa to safety, then the fade as Rick and Inspector Reneau stroll away together into the fog. "Louis, this looks like the beginning of a beautiful friendship"

For a modern classic, the original "Planet of the Apes" has a concluding image that has since been borrowed and reused but yet to be improved upon.

Being There. "Life is only a state of mind."

A few others:

City Lights ("Yes, I can see now.")
8 1/2
Yellow Submarine

Monster's Inc. - When Sully walks through the reconstructed door, the look on his face is perfect. Especially considering he only exists in a computer.

Se7en had a great (if depressing ending). Ednded at the right time, and Morgan Freeman's voice-over put the icing on it.

If it's done properly, Return of the King should give a new meaning to emotional ending.

Three Colors Red: abrupt, but perfect.

Almost Famous (either version, but Untitled is the better thanks to the extended set-up): the ending is the perfect payoff to where we've been. First William lived Russell's world, now Russell gets to see William's.

Usual Suspects... don't want to say anymore (lest I ruin it for those who have not seen it), but needless to say, my jaw was on the floor...

Traffic - Kids baseball game with yellow filter and music by Brian Eno. The music was also used in the temp track; Cliff Martinez, who scored the rest of the movie, said in the isolated score/commentary that that he couldn't do any better, so he left Eno's music in.

I loved the endings to Arlington Road and The Game .

Usual Suspects was great, Se7en also.

Battlefield Earth (only because it ended)

Damn, Chris stole my first choice. (Seven)

Here's an odd one:

Ruthless People - I've always loved the way they ended this movie!

Star Wars Episode 2 Attack of the Clones - The music...the images...The Clone War beginning...thats what SW is all about!

The Sixth Sense
In my opinion, there’s something emotionally perfect and beautiful about the last five or so minutes of The Sixth Sense. And I’m not just talking about the big twist. Just witness the beauty of the very last image before credits. Those five seconds of the wedding tape puts a lump in my throat every time I watch it.

Here's a few more (some are already mentioned):

Psycho
"She wouldn't even harm a fly." + Freaky smile + mother skull = Chills down my spine each and every time

Fight Club
"You met me at a very strange time in my life." You don't say

Monsters INC.
What Alex said.

The Usual Suspects
"And like that, he's gone."

Withnail & I
An absolutely hilarious film, with a perfect downbeat ending.

Memento
"Do I lie to myself to be happy?"

Raiders of the lost Ark
The Ark lost forever in some unknown warehouse. John Williams' score makes it even better.

Alien
"...last survivor of the Nostromo...signing off"

Back to the Future Part II
Sue me, but I love it
The whole is Doc dead thing in the rain, to recieving the letter, just has this deligthful mysterious tone to it. Heck, even the BTTF 3 preview fits right in

Monty Python’s Life of Brian
"Always look on the bright side of life"

The Empire Strikes Back
Name one other movie leaving the audience on such a cliffhanger, for three years. Perfectly captures the spirit of Star Wars, with the starfleet heading into the unknown, and John Williams' brilliant score to boot.

Trainspotting
Seth said it perfectly well

Notorious , the closing scene where Devlin(Grant) returns to Sebastian's(Rains) mansion to rescue Alicia(Bergman) .

A.I. - in my opinion, this IS the right ending to the film, and, at the very least, has provoked interesting discussions as to its intent and meaning.

The Shawshank Redemption
I felt such satisfaction at that ending where the two meet on the beach

I definitely agree on Trainspotting, Fight Club, and ESB. Also...surprised it hasn't been mentioned yet, LOTR: The Fellowship of the Ring as well as The Two Towers. I'm also fond of Boogie Nights and Magnolia.

The Godfather Part II

Where the saga should've ended. Watching the last five minutes, we can only wonder what might've been for poor Michael. Plus it's got one of the most chilling final images in motion picture history.

Not necessarily my "favorite" movie ending, but a classic:

On a motor boat speeding off together , . . . .

(after much "back-and-forth")

Daphne (Jerry (Jack Lemmon) in drag) (pulls off wig in frustration): "I'm a man!"

Osgood Fielding III (Joe E. Brown) (still smiling): "Nobody's perfect."


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