Film commentary & review

TOP MOVIE ENDINGS

David over at DVXUSER posted an article on the TOP 20 MOVIE ENDINGS as listed by the TIMES ONLINE and after a review I’m wondering how certain films are missing and why some films are even being breathed.

A Best Ending must just leave you jaw dropped and wanting more. You’re thinking about it for hours,, even days after you saw it. The kind of ending where you can’t tell your friends, you just gotta tell them to go see it.

Like most lists, they will always create a stir. Alas, here are Cineobscure’s Top Movie Endings in no particular order. Some of these You Tubes aren’t available due to some exec at a studio not realizing it is free publicity for the film.

Now onto my personal favorites !

Se7en

This thriller portrays the exploits of a deranged serial-killer. His twisted agenda involves choosing seven victims who represent egregious examples of transgressions of each of the Seven Deadly Sins. He then views himself as akin to the Sword of God, handing out horrific punishment to these sinners. Two cops, an experienced veteran of the streets who is about to retire and the ambitious young homicide detective hired to replace him, team up to capture the perpetrator of these gruesome killings. Unfortunately, they too become ensnared in his diabolical plan….

Her head. Her head is in the box. What the ………. I would have done the same thing as Mills. Shocking, twisted, scary, plausible. Her head is in the box.

Planet of the Apes

Taylor and two other astronauts come out of deep hibernation to find that their ship has crashed. Escaping with little more than clothes they find that they have landed on a planet where men are pre-lingual and uncivilized while apes have learned speech and technology. Taylor is captured and taken to the city of the apes after damaging his throat so that he is silent and cannot communicate with the apes.

It’s earth. He is on earth and is now the new Adam. Way ahead of its time.

The Sixth Sense

Child psychologist Malcom Crowe is one night visited by an ex-patient named Vincent, angry, enraged. He wounds Crowe, then kills himself. A few months later, Crowe is visited by a 9-year old boy named Cole. He sees dead people who do not know they are dead. Because of this, he is called a freak in school. Crowe, at first thinks he is seeing things, but after spending a lot of time with Cole (much to his wife’s dismay), he discovers Cole may be seeing dead people after all…

Realizing he is dead when he does is superb. What an incredible film and what a killer ending.

The Road Warrior

If there is one franchise on the planet that is dying for a sequel, this may be it.

A former police officer is now a lone wanderer, travelling through a devastated Australia after a nuclear war looking for the now-priceless fuel of petrol. He lives to survive and is none too pleased when he finds himself the only hope of a small group of honest people running a remote oil refinery. He must protect them from the bike gang that is terrorising them whilst transporting their entire fuel supply to safety.

When you first see sand pouring out of the wrecked rig you just get it. You feel the pain, you feel Max’s realization that he’s just been used. And then he just laughs at it all. The end dolly pull of Max is one of my favorite shots ever in film.

and MAD MAX

and BEYOND THUNDERDOME

Can you tell I am in love with the Mad Max films and their endings ? What is it about Max just being screwed each and every time ? The best line in the franchise is Tina Turner’s exchange at the end of Thunderdome; as she and her cronies approach and once again banged up Max “Ain’t we a pair raggedy man ?” (she laughs and they walk away) “Goodbye Warrior!”

I sort of made that up from my memory but you get the idea.

The Empire Strikes Back

The story of Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia and the others didn’t end with the destruction of the Death Star – it continues in THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK. Imperial forces have since driven the Rebels to hide on the ice world Hoth. But even on such an icy, backwater world, they cannot escape the wicked Darth Vader’s eye for long, and he devastates the Rebel base in an assault with the horrible AT-AT walkers. Luke flees to Dagobah to begin Jedi Knight training with Yoda, while Han Solo, Chewbacca, Princess Leia and C-3PO run the blockade of Imperial Star Destroyers in the Millenium Falcon. The Imperials pursue them across the galaxy and eventually catch up with them at Bespin. Now Darth Vader plans to use them as bait to lure Luke Skywalker to him, and turns Han Solo over to Boba Fett as a prize to be delivered to crime lord Jabba the Hutt. Luke learns a terrible family secret after losing a swordfight with Vader. Will he – and the others – escape the Empire’s clutches?

Maybe better than the original and definitely better than any other film is the broken down meddled franchise. Han is frozen, Vader is Luke’s father’ this film was too much as a wee 11 year old.

The Silence of the Lambs

Clarice Starling, a young intelligent FBI trainee, has been sent to the Batlimore state hospital for the Criminally insane to interview an inmate Dr. Hannibal-the cannibal- Lecter. A Brilliant renowned psychiatrist turned infamous Psychopathic Serial killer. She must match wits with Lecter -who has the darkest of all minds- and trust him to give her clues in the search for “Buffalo Bill”. a nick name for a loose,unknown, unstoppable Pyschopathic Serial killer…

Whereas we wanted John Doe from Se7en to be executed, is it too much to admit, we wanted Hannibal to escape ? The most likable serial killer ever. You could almost hang out with this guy and share a drink.

Rocky

Rocky Balboa is a struggling boxer trying to make the big time. Working in a meat factory in Philadelphia for a pittance, he also earns extra cash as a debt collector. When heavyweight champion Apollo Creed visits Philadelphia, his managers want to set up an exhibition match between Creed and a struggling boxer, touting the fight as a chance for a “nobody” to become a “somebody”. The match is supposed to be easily won by Creed, but someone forgot to tell Rocky, who sees this as his only shot at the big time.

When Rocky yells out Adrienne, goose bumps take over.

MGM sucks. They just are relentless with their material being posted online; but it’s free advertising, wake up. Incidentally, Rocky Balboa (part 6) is awesome, awesome, awesome.

The Godfather

The story begins as “Don” Vito Corleone, the head of a New York Mafia “family”, oversees his daughter’s wedding. His beloved son Michael has just come home from the war, but does not intend to become part of his father’s business. Through Michael’s life the nature of the family business becomes clear. The business of the family is just like the head of the family, kind and benevolent to those who give respect, but given to ruthless violence whenever anything stands against the good of the family. Don Vito lives his life in the way of the old country, but times are changing and some don’t want to follow the old ways and look out for community and “family”. An up and coming rival of the Corleone family wants to start selling drugs in New York, and needs the Don’s influence to further his plan. The clash of the Don’s fading old world values and the new ways will demand a terrible price, especially from Michael, all for the sake of the family.

Michael becomes the new Godfather and tells Kate to never ask about the family business again. They don’t make men like this anymore.










Night of the Living Dead

One of my goals is to make a horror film that lives forever; a classic that defines and reshapes a genre.

Chaos descends upon the world as the brains of the recently deceased become inexplicably reanimated, causing the dead to rise and feed on human flesh. Speculation rests on a radiation-covered NASA satellite returning from Venus, but it only remains a speculation. Anyone who dies during the crisis of causes unrelated to brain trauma will return as a flesh-eating zombie, including anyone who has been bitten by a zombie. The only way to destroy the zombies is to destroy the brain. As the catastrophe unfolds, a young woman visiting her father’s grave takes refuge in a nearby farmhouse, where she is met by a man who protects her and barricades them inside. They both later discover people hiding in the basement, and they each attempt to cope with the situation. Their only hope rests on getting some gasoline from a nearby pump into a truck that is running on empty, but this requires braving the hordes of ravenous walking corpses outside. When they finally put their plans into action, panic and personal tensions only add to the terror as they try to survive.

Ben survives the ordeal only to be shot by the rednecks. Classic.

Scarface

A remake of Hawks masterpiece from Brian De Palma (a god).

When Fidel Castro opens the harbor at Mariel, Cuba, he sends 125,000 Cuban refugees to reunite with their relatives in the United States. Among all the refugees, there is one who wants it all, his name is Tony Montana. Tony and his friend Manny when they arrive in the United States and start in small time jobs, soon they are hired by Omar Suarez to pay money to a group of Colombians. When the deal goes wrong, Tony and Manny leave with the money and succeed in their job. Soon Tony meets with drug kingpin Frank Lopez and falls for his boss’s girl Elvira. Pretty soon Tony will know that those who want it all, do not last forever and that is the price of power. The world will know Montana by one name….SCARFACE.

“Say hello to my litle friend !”

Rudy

If you have not invested the time to watch possibly the greatest sports film ever made, do it now. The end scene leaves chills and electricity in your body. The feel good type.

Rudy grew up in a steel mill town where most people ended up working, but wanted to play football at Notre Dame instead. There were only a couple of problems. His grades were a little low, his athletic skills were poor, and he was only half the size of the other players. But he had the drive and the spirit of 5 people and has set his sights upon joining the team.

When Rudy not only gets in the game, he sacks the QB. Yes !

Psycho

Phoenix office worker Marion Crane is fed up with the way life has treated her. She has to meet her lover Sam in lunch breaks and they cannot get married because Sam has to give most of his money away in alimony. One Friday Marion is trusted to bank $40,000 by her employer. Seeing the opportunity to take the money and start a new life, Marion leaves town and heads towards Sam’s California store. Tired after the long drive and caught in a storm, she gets off the main highway and pulls into The Bates Motel. The motel is managed by a quiet young man called Norman who seems to be dominated by his mother.

I haven’t seen Hitch’s masterpiece on any list, but who can deny that realizing Norman Bates mother is a dead corpse and he’s been dressing in drag ? One of the great films ever and an ending that simple rules. The following link is a fan made music video; kind of fun.

© 2008 Cineobscure.