Comments on: Film Endings That Perplex, Surprise or Just Leave You Hanging, Part One

By: Ken Loar

Ken Loar — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 18:50:59 +0000

It's really hard for me, after having seen a movie (especially a classic), and time has allowed it to dull my memory, to remember surprise, twist ending. None have been as surprising for me as a few "recent classics". M. Night Shyamalan's "The Sixth Sense" and Bryan Singer's "THe Usual Suspects". Even Shyamalan's "The Village" tried, real hard, to provide that same level of mystery, but the experienced movie goer (myself) knowing that a twist is coming tends to be "on the lookout". Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice shame on me. My head ACTUALLY SWELLED when I figured out what was going on about 40 minutes into the movie, and before the wife.

By: Richard

Richard — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 01:13:21 +0000

One of the biggest surprise endings for me in cinema : Barbara Harris finale in "Nashville." She was a sensation and deserved at least an oscar nod. She was far better than her two co-stars who received nominations in the supporting actress catagory.

By: Richard

Richard — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 01:12:40 +0000

By: JeremyA

JeremyA — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 00:26:06 +0000

VERTIGO has a great ending… the fadeout of James Stewart standing on the ledge… literally and psychologically "on the edge"….. I've always thought that after the movie fades out, he jumps. To his death. It's the only thing he could do at this point, having been so mentally shattered — twice!Also Fritz Lang's BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT, with its 180-degree twist ending, turns around everything you have seen in a way that leaves you thinking long after the fadeout. So Dana Andrews really WAS guilty, and the whole thing was his attempt at the perfect crime. Gotta love it!

By: Peggy G.

Peggy G. — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 17:28:14 +0000

I have to say I was surprised by the ending of "Whatever Happened to Aunt Alice" starring Geraldine Page and Ruth Gordon. Since Ms. Gordon was the heroine we didn't expect anything bad to happen to her. And when it did I have to say I was very disappointed but her death scene has haunted me for years.

By: Suzanne D.

Suzanne D. — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 14:07:42 +0000

The ending to THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS always puzzled me. What do George C. Scott and Joanne Woodward see at the end? Some cosmic form of Moriarty? Death? Did I miss something? Am I a doe-doe?

By: Brad

Brad — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 12:40:18 +0000

The ending to the original The Italian Job is as abrubt as they come. A bus filled with gold as well as the thieves is teetering on the edge of a precipice. Every move seems to move the heavy gold further out, threatening to topple the whole show. Michael Caine says "I've got an idea." And that's it.

By: Gordon

Gordon — Sun, 08 Jul 2007 02:39:37 +0000

Well, you can't beat THE COWBOYS with John Wayne getting killed by Bruce Dern as a happy ending for Duke fans. But actually my favorite puzzler ending is Arthur Penn's NIGHT MOVES with Gene Hackman outliving most of the cast though he is clearly the most baffled and frustrated at the climax, going around in circles in the ocean. And there is a really crazy exploitation film called THE CANDY SNATCHERS where a kidnap victim buried underground is never rescued because all of the kidnappers come to a bad end before the victim's hiding place is revealed.

By: RHS

RHS — Sat, 07 Jul 2007 18:39:04 +0000

The ending of Reuben, Reuben (1983) doesn't necessarily leave you hanging, but Jeez...I'd also nominate the exploitation films The Northville Cemetery Massacre (1971), God's Bloody Acre (1975) and Barracuda (1978) -- the last two were directed by Harry Kerwin and starred the inimitable Wayne Crawford. I'd say the denoument to Bill Rebane's Invasion from Inner Earth (1974) is a head-scratcher, but the whole damn thing is pretty puzzling.Oh, I could go on, but I'll just stop abruptly.