Ten Great Endings
What follows are ten unforgettable endings from ten great films. These are not necessarily the ten best endings in film history (that would take a considerable amount of time to put together), but ten endings that could certainly make an argument for that list. These are all incredible films that have affected me deeply - films of timeless beauty that will continue to inspire film-lovers for decades to come.
10. Arsenal (Alexander Dovzhenko, 1928)
This harrowing silent film about the oppression of the Ukrainians during World War I is a piercing look at the horrors of war and the triumph of revolution. After Timosh (Semyon Svashenko) leads his fellow Ukrainians on a fight for freedom, he’s finally cornered by a few opposing soldiers. They fire their guns at him again and again and again, but he doesn’t fall or seem to be even hurt. In their confusion and terror, the soldiers wonder what armor or protection Timosh is wearing under his clothes. In a brilliant act of defiance, Timosh rips open his shirt to reveal nothing but skin. It’s one of the most powerful symbolic endings I’ve seen, concluding the entire thematic arc of the story with one striking image.
9. Angel Face (Otto Preminger, 1952)
I hate to spoil the ending for anyone who hasn’t seen this classic film-noir by the great Otto Preminger, but here I go. The film stars Robert Mitchum as an ambulance driver who gets caught in the dangerous web of femme-fatale Jean Simmons. And just when Mitchum thinks his troubles are over, he makes the fatal error of hopping in her car for one last drive. Instead of letting him go, she puts the car in reverse and drives off the edge of a cliff into oblivion. The End. The best noir never end well.
8. Harakiri (Masaki Kobayashi, 1962)
Tatsuya Nakadai rebels against samurai code in order to exact vengeance for the death of his son-in-law in Kobayashi’s masterful drama. The ending is one of the most incredible showdowns put to film, as Nakadai slices his way through a feudal house before reaching a samurai statue dressed in heavy armor. With his last breath of fury, he picks up the statue and throws it to the floor. It’s a riveting, brutal, emotionally invigorating conclusion to one of the finest Japanese films ever made.
7. The Seventh Seal (Ingmar Bergman, 1957)
I don’t think I really need to describe the ending to The Seventh Seal. It’s one of the famous sequences in film history with one of those great, unforgettable images. It’s an image that sums up everything mesmerizing and haunting about Bergman’s career.
6. The Parallax View (Alan J. Pakula, 1974)
The shock ending to end all shock endings. This film is arguably the best conspiracy thriller ever made, and the ending is one of those sequences that leaves you shaken and disturbed. I love how my friend describes it: “Running....white light....running.....white light....BLAM!” The tension is almost too much to bear by the end of the film, and when the inevitable finally happens, it’s absolutely horrifying. Ahhh, the 70s.
5. The Swimmer (Frank Perry, 1968)
The ending of The Swimmer is one of those emotional finishes that leave you in tears as the credits roll. The emotion is earned though. Burt Lancaster gives an exceptional performance as Ned Merril. His journey ends when he reaches his old house - the brutal truth is revealed as he desperately bangs on the door....you start crying. Never fails.
4. High and Low (Akira Kurosawa, 1963)
Toshiro Mifune confronts the kidnapper (Tsutomu Yamazaki) right before his execution in Kurosawa’s masterpiece thriller, High and Low. At first the kidnapper expresses no regret for his crimes. He expresses no fear of death or anything even remotely troubled or frightened. But as their conversation comes to an end and he’s to be taken away and killed - he breaks. Yamazaki’s emotional outburst is one of the most chilling moments I’ve seen. Amazing performance for the amount of screen-time he’s given.
3. City Lights (Charles Chaplin, 1931)
The Tramp (Chaplin) spends all of his effort and money to help a blind girl (Virginia Cherrill) heal her eyes in the hilarious and moving City Lights. After his various troubles and experiences, the Tramp does indeed succeed in helping the girl he loves. When she finally regains her sight and lays eyes on Chaplin, his reaction is one of the most priceless moments you can find in movies. It’s a genuinely emotional feel-good ending that feels pure and sweet in a way that can never be duplicated. Beautiful film.
2. L’Eclisse (Michelangelo Antonioni, 1962)
The most ambitious and unusual ending I can think of is certainly not for everyone, but it’s an ending that has lingered with me ever since my first viewing. Maybe it’s abrupt or anticlimactic, and maybe you can make an argument that it’s pretentious. Whatever. I disagree. Monica Vitti and Alain Delon have a specific meeting spot as their romance develops throughout the film. They are to meet at this spot at the end of the film, but neither of them show up. Instead of telling us what happened, Antonioni lingers on the emptiness of the location, then cuts together a series of images that perfectly convey the alienation, loneliness, and emotional distance of the story. It’s eerie, ambiguous, and unlike anything put to film before or after it.
1. Paths of Glory (Stanley Kubrick, 1957)
So 2001: A Space Odyssey may have the most iconic ending of all time, but for me, there’s nothing quite like the emotional power of the final sequence in Paths of Glory. It’s amazing how well this ending works on its own. You don’t have to watch the entire film to feel the emotion of this sequence. Whenever someone criticizes Kubrick for being too cold and vague, it means they haven’t seen this film (or Barry Lyndon for that matter). Paths of Glory is arguably the best war film ever made. The long tracking shots in the trenches, the vicious political commentary, the magnificent Kirk Douglas performance....it’s too good. The ending is the very definition of classic. A bunch of soldiers are hanging out and drinking at a tavern before they’re called back to the frontlines. The soldiers are rowdy, restless, looking for any sort of entertaining distraction. A young German girl (Christiane Kubrick) is brought on stage and sings a folk song in tears. Something happens to the men. They suddenly change from loud and wild to quiet and still. They begin to cry and then collectively hum the song as she continues to sing. This is, hands down, the most emotional sequence I know of. Stunning.
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