Top 10 Most Underrated Movie Endings

Top 10 Underrated Endings in Movies

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the Top 10 Underrated Endings in Movies.

For this list, we’ll be looking at those movies that aren’t necessarily known for their great endings but that nevertheless wrapped up perfectly, and left us with that indescribably special feeling at the end where all we could say was ‘wow.’

Do you think we’ve missed some underrated movie endings on this list? Let us know down below in the comments. And of course, as always, beware of spoilers ahead.

#10: Storm’s Coming

“A Serious Man” (2009)

Part indie dramedy, part biblical allegory based on the story of Job, the Coen Brothers’ “A Serious Man” is a seriously hard movie to pin down and fully understand. And much of the film’s enigmatic power comes from its ending. After pummeling Larry Gopnik with bad news throughout the entire runtime of the movie, the ending offers little in the way of closure or reconciliation. With a tornado heading his way, and upon receiving bad news from his doctor, Larry, like the rest of us, can’t seem to make sense of what it all means, and what it was all for. Not all endings are Hollywood endings, and leave it to the Coen’s to illustrate that point better than anyone.

#9: Faint Whistle

“Prisoners” (2013)

Here’s another film whose ending is steeped in uncertainty, and whose story is all the more satisfying because of it. Not all endings are happy and life rarely ties itself in a neat little bow for our sake. The broody, twisty film “Prisoners” from director Denis Villeneuve is a perfect testament to the murkiness of life, reminding us that closure is hard to come by and that it doesn’t immediately offer us a break from our pain. In the film’s final moments, we hold our breath and hope that Keller Dover’s whistle can be heard. It’s a nearly silent ending, save for the faint whistle, and as such, it can be overlooked as nothing too spectacular. But when done right, the understated, non-ending works wonders.

#8: “Bittersweet Symphony”

“Cruel Intentions” (1999)

Ah, the sweet sounds of justice, which in this case are expressed in the melodic orchestral notes of The Verve’s “Bittersweet Symphony.” How do you end a movie about ruined lives? By ruining even more lives. In “Cruel Intentions,” a high school melodrama based on the French book, Les Liaisons Dangereuses (Dangerous Liaisons) from the late 1700s, lives are ruined in spectacular fashion. What brings this film together so well is that for most of the runtime, our dual villains of Sebastian and Kathryn seem to be getting away with it. But their monopoly on cruelty and winning sexiness runs dry in the film’s final moments, leading to a montage-style cascade of bad outcomes for them. Justice is a dish best served to catchy music.

#7: What’s Really Going On?

“Annihilation” (2018)

On the heels of “Ex Machina,” writer/director Alex Garland brought us “Annihilation,” and that’s an apt title for this movie, because plain and simple, its ending annihilated everything we thought we knew up until that point. Is Kane a clone? Has Lena been annihilated by the alien force known as the Shimmer? Listen, if you know what’s going on here, let us know in the comments, but until then, we’ll just praise this sci-fi flick as a story that leaves us with more questions than answers, because sometimes, that’s a good thing.

#6: Family Dinner

“A History of Violence” (2005)

This David Cronenberg movie is a rollercoaster ride from beginning to end. What starts off as a relatively quiet, rural-set story quickly escalates into a shoot-em-up mobster movie and despite the tonal stretch, it all works to great effect. The brilliant acting from the small, star-studded cast certainly helps, but it’s the movie’s understated ending that really pushes it over the top. In the film’s final moments, after a series of grisly murders - most of them committed in self-defense - the family, led by the evasive and mysterious patriarch played by Aragorn - we mean, Viggo Mortensen - sit down to a Norman Rockwell-style dinner where on the surface everything seems calm and idyllic. Of course, the scene belies the rocky family dynamics lurking just underneath the surface.

#5: Life in Reels

“Cinema Paradiso” (1988)

Understated endings never really get the credit they deserved, and that’s especially true of our next pick. “Cinema Paradiso” is a beautiful retrospective film about the power of nostalgia and the magic of movies. And the ending is so utterly sad and yet hopeful that it quite honestly can’t be fully expressed in words. As the now-famous director Salvatore watches the reel of formerly-censored romantic scenes, made and left to him by his old friend, now deceased, Alfredo, tears stream from his eyes and he finally makes peace with his tumultuous past. The scene is at once nothing special, and yet a perfect homage to the power of films and their ability to touch us on a deep, human level.

#4: Gran Finale

“Gran Torino” (2008)

As far as we’re concerned, this whole film is underrated. Clint Eastwood was in his late 70s when he made this, and it’s as sharp, poignant, and engrossing as any of his best work. The sacrificial ending fits so seamlessly into the story’s narrative that it’s hard to imagine the movie ending any other way. And Clint’s transformation from racist curmudgeon to sympathetic hero makes for one of the more interesting character arcs in recent film history. After watching “Gran Torino,” it’s hard to imagine how the movie, and specifically the ending, could have been any better.

#3: Test Complete

“Ex Machina” (2014)

This movie’s ending shocked the pants off us when we first saw it. Not only does it bring together so many elements perfectly; from Nathan’s hubris, to Caleb’s naivety, to Ava’s desire to live and be just another human, it does so in a brief, highly effective way. From the cheeky glance that Ava gives to Caleb as she essentially leaves him to die in that fishbowl of a room, to her disappearance in the sea of people at the very last moment of the film, there’s something so poetic and understated about Alex Garland’s quiet masterpiece that it just sticks with you long after the credits roll.

#2: Zachry’s Story

“Cloud Atlas” (2012)

The more things change, the more they stay the same. “Cloud Atlas” is a particularly hard movie to end, mainly because there are so many storylines that need to come together in a way that doesn’t feel rushed or forced. Just ending the movie on a semi-coherent note is a pretty massive feat in itself, but the interlocked plots come together in such a tightly wound, inextricable knot that it’s a pretty amazing magic trick to watch. So much of the film centers around our need to tell stories and keep certain ideas and legends alive, despite our father’s best wishes, and despite government backlash. That’s why ending the movie by recounting yet another story makes so much sense. Complex doesn’t have to mean complicated.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

Explosive Ending, “Ready or Not” (2019)
Because It’s Not Always About the Understated Ending

Ingrid Goes Viral, “Ingrid Goes West” (2017)
Because Even Narcissistic Sociopaths Need a Happy Ending Sometimes

#1: The Eyes of God

“Crimes and Misdemeanors” (1989)

It’s one thing to have a down ending in a movie, and tragedies have been around at least since Ancient Greek times, but what separates the ending of “Crimes and Misdemeanors” from most other movies is that it’s played off as totally upbeat. As Judah Rosenthal, played by Martin Landau, realizes that he’s succeeded in getting away with murder, we the audience are still waiting for him to face the moral reckoning and crisis of conscience that he in all likelihood deserves. But Woody Allen being Woody Allen doesn’t give us some great, moralizing spiel in the end, and chooses instead to let his main character walk away scot-free, without a guilty thought in his head. That takes… well you know what.