What's Your Top Ten Movie Endings? (Spoiler Version)

It is well known that the ending of a movie is what establishes whether or not we would want to see a sequel if it were to be made. A lot of the time for me the ending is what sells the film to me. So this the spoiler version of my Top Ten Movie Endings post that I posted earlier today.

10. A Clockwork Orange (1971)
The ending to this film is exactly what everyone watching wanted. The films ends with him lying in a hospital bed after trying to kill himself. It's a really sad situation because although he was a bit of a trouble maker, prison failed him, science failed, him his family failed him, and society failed him, eventually leading to him attempting to take his own life. Admittedly, him being locked in a room being forced to listen to the thing that makes him sick is him getting his come up ins, but, no matter what, he is a like able character and at the end when we see that the process has been reversed (his attempt at suicide broke the barriers) and his mind goes back to being the sick/twisted punk that we all love.

9. Back to the Future Part 2 (1989)
The ending to this movie is great, half of us were expecting it to end similarly to the first film, but when the DeLorean is struck by lightning and is seemingly destroyed, audiences were baffled, we weren't expecting it. And then there comes the iconic scene, when the mail man arrives out of nowhere with a letter, and we find out that the Doc is still alive and living in 1885, the wild west (omg sequel!). The best bit has to be the 1950s Doc's reaction to finding Marty still in the 50s after he just sent him back to 1985. It's a brilliant movie, with a brilliant ending. I also like how the trailer for 'Back to the Future Part 3' was at the end of the movie.

8. Batman Begins (2005)
After an epic final battle for Gotham, Batman and Gordan meet on the rooftop to 'discuss the current situation'. Batman wants no thanks for what he has done, he is not in this for personal gain, he is a hero through and through. This is a really simple ending that got Batman fans extremely excited, the sight of the legendary Joker card (instant sequel!). Instantly fans are thinking. who's going to play the Joker? Who could possibly be better than Jack Nicholson? How will he fit into Nolan's realistic world? It was simple and brilliant.

7. Terminator 2 (1991)
Another classic movie, I love the ending to this movie, it's another simple one, after a great final battle, a nice little shoot out and hand to hand combat ending with the inevitable demise of the villain. What makes it great is that we've became attached to Schwarzenegger's character and were generally saddened when he revealed that he needs to be destroyed. Then there's the really simplistic part that sticks, when he's being lowered into the furnace and his face is submerged, his wrist and hand being the only thing left, and his hand forms the shape of the thumbs up. It's great, it's simple and it doesn't set up for a sequel. No sequel was in mind in this final scene, yes two sequels were made (sadly) but it wasn't intended for setting up for anything, it just finished the story of that film in a memorable way.

6. The Thing (1982)
John Carpenter is one for the forerunners in horror, he has great vision and knows get to put that image on the big screen. The film ends with the creature being 'destroyed', well we assume it has, because he leaves the ending as open as a book, there are two survivors trapped in the middle of know where, one of them hasn't been seen in a while, is he infected? What happens next? Carpenter leaves with so many questions unanswered. It is classic science fiction and horror.

5. Planet of the Apes (1968)
Possibly one of my favourite movies of all time, and that's probably because it's all about humanity and where we heading to. This film was made during the height of Cold War fear, the fear of nuclear war, so this movie takes advantage of that and basically says "this is what will happen is we launch the nukes". The ending is great because it's the realization for Taylor that he isn't on a foreign planet, he is on Earth, and has been all along. This becomes clear when we see the Statue of Liberty (or what remains of it) on the shoreline. Mankind destroyed itself. It's another iconic moment in cinema, and stupidly, the image of the destroyed Statue of Liberty is on the front of the DVD boxset (kind of ruins the story a bit)!

4. Pulp Fiction (1994)
This is one of those films where you either love it or you hate. Me, I love it. One of the best ensembles of cast members there has ever been and the ending is priceless. After a Mexican standoff style situation in the diner, with some amazing examples of acting, including John Travolta and Samuel L Jackson, we see them walk away from what many would class as a hopeless situation, without even firing a shot. So they get to walk away and have their happy ending, even if they do look like idiot in their attire. Of course, due to the chopped up chronology of this movie, we know the buffoonish Vincent Vega's (Travolta) gets shot coming out of the toilet (by Bruce Willis' character) of another job. So before the final scene we know he's going to die in the near future, but we still relish in the happy ending for these two characters coming out of the diner.

3. One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest (1971)
We knew it was going to happen from the beginning, Jack Nicholson's character pushes it too far and he ends up being lobotomized. It's a really sad moment because I personally had become really attached to his character and I generally wanted him to be released, but inevitably science felt they need to destroy the part of the brain that made him him, which was what got him into trouble in the first place. Then comes the sadder part, when he returns to join his fellow patients, the Chief thinks he's alright and wants to go ahead with the escape plan, upon realizing what has happened, he smothers him with his pillow, not wanting him to live as a shadow of his former self, a vegetable. He then goes on to rip the water fountain from the ground (something the others had joked about doing earlier in the film), throw it through the window, and escape. So it's a really sad ending, with a little hint of a nice ending in there too.

2. The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
"No Luke, I, am your father", what more do I need to say? It is yet another example of an iconic scene in the history of cinema. Everybody knows that line. Although it does raise some questions about Luke and Leia's kiss earlier in the film, but it opens up a whole new world for the sequel. This iconic scene is backed up by Han Solo being frozen in carbonate and kidnapped by the Bounty Hunter to be taken to Jabba's palace. Straight away we have two powerful plot lines, one to save their friend from a life of captivity, and the other a quest to find out if his father isn't beyond saving (and also the fate of the universe is at stake in the galactic war between the Empire and the Rebellions final confrontation of the films series).

1. Tim Burton's Planet of the Apes (2001)
Here we are, my favourite ending to a movie ever. Now personally I do not like this movie, it is a poor attempt by Tim Burton to re-in vision a classic movie. Burton himself actually classes this movie as his biggest regret. At least the make-up was impressive. However, the ending is amazing! Wahlberg's character returns to Earth through the wormhole he originally came through, assuming that all is well when he returns to Earth, we were expecting something to happen, but I don't think anyone was prepared for this. He arrives back in modern 21st Century America, but the world is still run by apes. Apes driving cars, flying helicopters, working as police. We see First World War memorials dedicated to apes that had given their lives and the most shocking of all, is the Lincoln Memorial, which is now a statue of Thade, the villain we'd just been watching. Somehow he is now an iconic figure in history. It laves is as open as it could be to a sequel, with literally an unlimited supply of possible story lines. Multiple critics have interpreted this ending in different ways, many don't know what to say about it. It was a big shock, an amazing way to end an otherwise, very disappointing movie. It's a shame it didn't do better, because the whole cast was ready and willing to begin a sequel, although I didn't like the movie very much, I would have jumped at an opportunity to see a sequel.

There we have it. my Top Ten Movie Endings, the spoiler version. I would really like to see your opinions and your Top Tens. Comment on here, or on Facebook or twitter.

Also I wouldn't mind hearing any ideas you may have for future polls. They can be as obscure as you want, as long as it's movie related (endless possibilities).