Horror movies are thriving in 2022, with exciting releases such as Men, X, and the upcoming Nope. While it's difficult to deliver original terrifying stories these days, satisfyingly concluding them is even harder. That's because it isn't easy to tell what makes the ending of a horror movie good, as they could end in a pessimist tone or show the good guys prospering over evil. It depends on how effective they are.
In the most memorable cases, the horror lingers even after the credits roll: whether the characters met a horrifying fate or managed to survive after a bloody night, what matters is that the terror affected them and the viewers in an unforgettable, yet chilling way. These are movies that nailed right at their very last scene.
Kill List (2011)
Kill List follows a hitman, who nearly a year after a mission gone wrong, accepts a new assignment with the promise of a big payoff for three killings. What initially seemed to be an easy task soon unravels as something way sinister, luring the killer into the center of a terrifying cult.
Kill List is a shocking psychological thriller filled with intense sequences and brutal scenes, but it's the movie ending scene that offers the ultimate gut punch. As the hitman finds himself surrounded by the cultists, he is confronted by one masked and cloaked figure and they both engage in a violent knife fight. The hitman triumphs, only to discover the cloaked figure was his wife with their son strapped to her back. The killer's expression of horror lingers in the viewer's mind even as the credits begin to roll.
I Am A Ghost (2012)
I Am A Ghost is the perfect example of a low-budget film that knows how to play with its limitations. With an estimated cost of USD10.000, the film tells the story of Emily, a troubled spirit that haunts her own house every day with no idea why she can't leave. One day she is contacted by a clairvoyant who wants Emily to acknowledge her reality and find the light that will guide her to the "next place".
The whole final 15 minutes are a trip into total madness as Emily confronts the horrifying truth about herself, but the very ending is what stands out, as her reality falls apart and the house begins to give place to overwhelming darkness, revealing that Emily's "next place" is far from being something good.
Drag Me To Hell (2009)
Typical of Sam Raimi's style, Drag Me To Hell is one of his best movies and that kind of horror film that doesn't take itself too seriously. Christine is a loan officer who evicts an old lady from her home and finds herself the recipient of a supernatural curse.
Alternating between horror and comedy, the movie follows Christine as she desperately tries to save her soul from the evil forces that intend to get ahold of her. While Drag Me To Hell doesn't offer any easy solutions, it's a last-minute screw-up that dooms Christine completely: preparing for a relieving road trip after all the trouble she's been through, her boyfriend reveals the button that Christine intended to use to break the curse. As she realizes with shock what this means, demonic hands emerge from the ground and drag her to hell. It's like they say, never count your chickens before they hatch.
The Wicker Man (1973)
An impressive directorial debut, The Wicker Man is on everyone's list when it comes to the effective ending. That's because everything presented during the movie's running time leads up to the very last scene.
In the film, policeman Neil Howie is called to an island village in search of a missing girl whom the locals claim never existed, witnessing strange rituals taking place. In a memorable case of the bad guys getting the upper hand, Howie learns that the village planned to sacrifice him to their gods from the beginning. The policeman is forced inside a giant wicker man that is eventually set ablaze, as the sun sets on the horizon.
Noroi: The Curse (2005)
Noroi: The Curse is a slow-burn found footage type of horror movie, following a documentary filmmaker, Kobayashi, as he explores isolated paranormal incidents that seem to be connected to the legend of an ancient demon for his new film "The Curse". Right from the start, the movie let the viewers know that Kobayashi's life turned upside down after he finished "The Curse": his house burnt down, his wife was found dead in the ruins and he mysteriously disappeared. The movie follows his investigation and what he found out.
Noroi's final moments reveal the events that led to the destruction of Kobayashi's house: a chilling scene with horrors beyond belief. Even though what happened it's known since the beginning, witnessing it is extremely shocking.
Rosemary's Baby (1968)
Rosemary Baby is the best example to summarize what is the horror genre. In this film, the viewer is constantly apprehensive about the direction the narrative will take, as evil overwhelms the protagonist's life to a point of no return. In this scenario, the only way to go is a slippery slope into the unknown.
After moving to an ornate apartment with her husband, Rosemary is drawn into an evil plot by her peculiar neighbors: to give birth to Satan's son. In the final scene, Rosemary is horrified by her child's eyes, confronting the coven of neighbors before giving in to her maternal instincts. The decision to not show the hideous baby is incredible, as it leaves the final punch to the spectator's imagination.
The Blair Witch Project (1999)
The Blair Witch Project is one great example of a low-budget movie that struck gold at the box office, being also a modern classic that popularized the found footage trope in horror movies. It counts with only two cameras to tell the story of three student filmmakers that disappeared in the woods while trying to document the story of a local witch.
After creating an intense atmosphere of fear and distrust, the camera drives the viewers into the heart of darkness, where the three students find their horrifying fate. The one moment where the camera captures Mike standing in a corner is extremely unsettling alone.
Don't Look Now (1973)
Don't Look Now is the kind of movie that focuses on a puzzling, anxiety-inducing build-up for a magnificent payoff at the end. Laura and John, grieved by the terrible loss of their daughter, travel to Venice for work and cross paths with two mysterious sisters that claim to have a message from the afterlife to the couple.
In the unforgettable final sequence, John chases a figure in red that looks like his deceased daughter and corners her, but he instead finds a hideous female dwarf that murders him. It turns out that everything John has been witnessing in the past years, including the death of his daughter, was a presage of his death
The Mist (2007)
Kind of a controversial take, but both the people that hate the movie and the die-hard fans can agree on one thing: The Mist's final scene's gotta be one of the most upsetting moments in movie history. After a mysterious mist envelops their hometown, a group of survivors must do what they can to evade the bloodthirsty creatures that inhabit the fog.
Eventually realizing there's no way out, the group decides to end their lives to avoid suffering. With only four remaining bullets, the protagonist shoots the four survivors, including his son, and leaves the car to be taken by the creatures, only to find the mist suddenly dissipating and the US Army restoring order. Love it or hate it, Stephen King himself declared that the distressing movie ending was way better than the one he wrote.
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
Few scenes managed to transmit the horror of being chased by a serial killer in such an intense, realistic way as The Texas Chainsaw Massacre's final sequence. Throughout the movie, a group of friends faces a horrifying fate after crossing paths with Leatherface and his cannibal family, and only one of them manages to survive.
After a clumsy escape, the final girl rushes desperately to the road with Leatherface and his maniac brother on her heels. The final shot of Leatherface hysterically flailing his chainsaw in anger is a beautifully haunting ending for a disturbing slasher masterpiece.