Though many movies are all about the journey, the journey means nothing if the film can't stick the landing. Endings can elevate movies from being great to being classics, and they can separate great movies from those that will be remembered decades from now.
Redditors have a lot of opinions on what makes a great movie ending, and what the greatest movies endings of all time are. Whether it's a classic sci-fi movie that aligns with the general consensus, a '50s comedy with an iconic final line, or a shocking 2000s horror movie, these endings will mess with viewers' heads.
The Planet Of The Apes (1968)
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It goes without saying that the ending of The Planet of the Apes is one of the very best in cinema history. And though the big reveal of the Statue of Liberty is ruined on the DVD cover, it still holds up today. There's nothing more shocking than when George realizes that he isn't on a different planet, but has been on Earth all along.
Many Redditors are quick to mention the movie's ending, but Bob1689321 goes against the grain, hilariously mentioning that "The Simpsons killed it for me." The Redditor is referring to the episode "A Fish Called Selma," when the family goes to see The Planet of the Apes Musical.
The Matrix (1999)
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Though the same can't be said for the newly released The Matrix Resurrections, which has had an extremely polarizing reception, the original movie revolutionized action movies forever. Between Bullet Time and the philosophical narrative, there was nothing quite like it.
And LanceDanceGuy12 cites the final moment in The Matrix as one of the best parts of the movie. As Neo has fully become The One and has an innumerable amount of superpowers, he suddenly throws his fist into the air and flies towards the camera. The Redditor claims that "six-year-old me believed that man could fly," and it's one of the many times Neo proved he was a hero.
The Prestige (2006)
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The Christopher Nolan-directed The Prestige follows two magicians in the late 1800s who are competing with each other to be the best. But in typical Nolan fashion, it's a lot more complicated, and in even more typical Nolan fashion, it has a shocking twist in its closing moments.
Redditor Bob1689321 calls the ending "Pretty mind-blowing," which is putting it lightly, as it's revealed that the two magicians have more in common than anybody could have ever known. Since the film lives in the shadows of much bigger Nolan movies like Inception and the Dark Knight trilogy, The Prestige is relatively underrated.
Some Like It Hot (1959)
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Younger audiences may not have seen or heard of Some Like It Hot, but the comedy is just as funny now as it was over 60 years ago. The film follows two musicians who inadvertently become involved with the mob, and to avoid the mob's wrath, they must disguise themselves as women and join an all-female band.
User Ldyeve thinks the 1959 movie has one of the best endings. The Redditor explains that along with another great Billy Wilder-directed movie, Sunset Boulevard, "Wilder really knew how to end 'em." More than anything it has one of the best final lines of all time, as Osgood says, "nobody's perfect" when he finds out the love of his life is actually a man.
Saw (2004)
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Though the franchise might have devolved further into just being about gore and torture with each consecutive movie, the original Saw is actually a thrilling mystery movie. And though the Saw 3D plot twist was so predictable, few people saw the end of the original movie coming. ZombieJesus1987 explains that it "was such a mindf*** when I first watched it."
As the movie is mostly two men in one room talking with a few flashbacks, it was leading up to a big finish. But audiences weren't prepared for the moment when Kramer, who the two men presumed was a dead body, stands up in the middle of the room.
War For The Planet Of The Apes (2017)
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Though the movie's ending might not hold up to that of the original movie, the finale of War for the Planet of the Apes has such a great ending that satisfyingly pays of the new trilogy. Caesar dies saving his race, and Every-Add-8664 argues that the "ending is so wholesome and makes me sad. It's bittersweet to see that."
The movie doesn't end on a twist, or a cliffhanger, or a way that sets up a sequel, but it instead neatly wraps up the series. And that is so refreshing to see considering that so few movies do that these days.
The Hateful Eight (2015)
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2015's The Hateful Eight is somewhat of a leftfield movie in Quentin Tarantino's filmography, as it's so isolated and features so few characters. The movie is essentially about two men learning from each other, and becoming the best that they can be, and in such a strange way, that results in them hanging Daisy Domergue in the final scene.
User Gigazwiebel posits that the movie is "considered one of his worst all in all, but the ending really tied it together in a good way." And though it might not appeal to general audiences as Django Unchained does, some think that Hateful Eight is one of Tarantino's best.
The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
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According to IMDb, The Shawshank Redemption is the greatest movie of all time, and it has one of the biggest surprises in a movie, as it's revealed that Andy had been digging a hole for 20 years. However, it's the very final scene that Zeroheavy27 loves, when Red and Andy reunite on the beach.
The Redditor says that it "might be an unpopular opinion, but it’s so much better than the book ending." In the novella, the two ex-cons never actually reunite, and it instead ends when Red says that he hopes to see Andy again. However, director Frank Darabont wanted Shawshank to end the same way as the book, but that didn't test well with audiences.
Heat (1995)
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1995's Heat is one of the greatest cat-and-mouse chase movies of all time, as it follows Detective Hanna attempting to track down Neil McCauley, an expert bank robber. The three-hour chase movie comes down to the very final scene, which is one of the most intense shootouts ever.
Redditor BrotherOfTheOrder explains that it's Moby's "God Moving Over the Face of the Waters" that makes the ending so captivating, and that it's "such an inspired music choice that works absolutely perfectly." On top of that, the movie has one of the most memorable final shots ever, as Hanna is holding Neil's hand as he dies.
Stand By Me (1986)
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For a movie named after a song, Stand By Me is such a quietly compelling coming-of-age movie, and it speaks to everybody regardless of generation. The movie is narrated by an older version of Gordie, who is adapting his experiences into a book.
The narration ends with the line, "I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was 12. Jesus, does anyone?" and Mobius37 was utterly flawed by the quote. The Redditor mentions that "I think about that line a lot, especially the older I get." And though Stand By Me follows teenagers and is a coming-of-age film, it's more relevant to people in their 40s than it is to 12-year-olds.