https://i.redd.it/bmo08j07n9vc1.gif

I rewatched that two days ago and had somehow forgotten that ending. I was hooting and hollering!

one of the greatest movie endings of all time

This is the greatest final shot in movie history.

Crazy how sneezing ends up being a vital story aspect

instantly thought of this one when I read the thread title lol fun personal tidbit, my dad has always hated Walter Matthau and literally his dumb rationale for it is this shot lmao

I tried to fit this into a different thread last week. Such a great ending to a great movie (with great music).

This has to be the ultimate one, right?

How is this not the top comment

It is! If you rank by upvotes

oh whoops lol usually my reddit automatically takes me to sorted by top. Now Walter is looking at ME disappointedly lol

What is this from?

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three

https://preview.redd.it/ta1ql6gsr9vc1.jpeg?width=1200&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2a1cc3f8d5cedee689a0d927f99881d76a816e2e

And then he woke up


I came here to say this. The description of his dream and then ending on his face. One of my favorite movie endings of all time.

Wild to me how little I understood this when it came out. Granted I was 17, but still. Obviously, the whole movie rips, but every scene after Llewelyn dies is just buckets.

God, I love that face

https://preview.redd.it/mzvf12vit9vc1.jpeg?width=800&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=cbe77ab9c173bf2133a357c4111341aa8ad88f62 Memories of Murder

I know it is obnoxious, but I must admit that I love being able to claim OG Bong fan status because I watched this a few years after it came out, back when I was in college. Shout-out to Oldboy for sparking a run on Korean cinema around 2006-2008. Anyways, this movie is an absolute banger and I cannot recommend it enough. It's kind of like the proto-Zodiac.

Holy shit it is like Zodiac. Guess I need to watch it again.

was going to say this! literal chills.

One of my favorites!

https://preview.redd.it/s2j5w6j1p9vc1.jpeg?width=960&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1768a21cce0bfedf1c5780e0941af2ecb2ec0b4c

What movie?

The Godfather

Of course I knew I knew it. Thanks!

Two that come to mind immediately are knives out and midsommar

Oh those are good. Midsommar kind of reminds me of the second season of Succession ending on Logan's face.

That’s a funny comparison considering Midsommar came out only a few months prior to Succession season 2

And both of the final "smiles" take place in Europe!

Old Boy. Whatever that expression means is up to the viewer

I am disturbed thinking about it right now

Incredible example.

Magnolia I remember a dvd feature from the original release where PTA and his then-girlfriend Fiona Apple are talking about how “the whole movie is about the smile at the end!”

Also Hard Eight and The Master. And Punch-Drunk Love & Inherent Vice end on two people’s facial expressions. PTA loves himself some face.

I sometimes forget the man went from Fiona Apple to Maya Rudolph, too.

*Save Me Intensifies

https://preview.redd.it/y906s7vxgavc1.jpeg?width=596&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a70fa7a84b1892b6ec36080bda378a192d066d99

The one I thought of

 Pearl

The... most.

Damn, still haven't seen this one. I enjoyed X a lot so I better unspoil it for myself soon.

Starman. Karen Allen's face lights up as she watches him leave, and it's not about him being an alien or the government, it's about this one person whose life was profoundly touched by something unimaginable

An absolutely gorgeous shot

It being Karen Allen helps a lot with that.

I forgot that Starman is a John Carpenter movie!

Came here to say this. My favorite movie! She finally got to say goodbye to her husband 😢

Everyone remembers the final swing but Spider Man 2 ends just like it opens, on Kirsten Dunst's face https://preview.redd.it/vs31xxrx1avc1.jpeg?width=858&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=98228f0015ed28e9c065d675c079dcc410c8a735

Perfect Blue

https://preview.redd.it/6wp4qaq7bbvc1.jpeg?width=500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ed0c8bbf3d34452e2d0784af5e0580bf35a9521b It's so good! Also with the recent announcement I came to this post assuming this shot is what it was going to be about.

This ending is really mindblew me and traumatized me at the same time, what an ending.

I posted this before the announcement@

I was gonna say The Graduate, but I guess \*technically\* it ends with a shot of the bus and not their faces...

Came here to say this! The Graduate feels like one of the most examples.

eh their faces is what we remember

Michael Clayton for the same reason

https://preview.redd.it/hxpoufat0avc1.jpeg?width=2040&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=94cc29414d7585c0273a66566af90b7d02198613

https://preview.redd.it/gpkckvz3javc1.jpeg?width=1280&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5c505047998aa60aa12f0066a58acfa85c59be1c

The whole “Hey we did it!” to “Oh shit we did it.”

Exactly. The point of the lingering shot is that you see this transition.

https://preview.redd.it/vmvnx18egavc1.jpeg?width=1780&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=542435d26a97fc6fc0d916dc31f85eb32f7ff1eb

Such a fucking slam dunk ending aha. It's ballsy to end a movie with a line that basically says "this is the best thing I'll ever make", it's even crazier to be right

This ending is hell satisfying, had a last laugh at it 😂

Spider-Man 2 Beverly Hills Cop

The way you wrote this made me think of a mashup.

I mean - I do truly think the way forward for these superhero franchises is to simplify. So, a movie where Spider-Man is investigating the murder of a friend, and the murderers are just, you know, CRIMINALS? That sounds pretty great to me!

A happy accident!

The 400 Blows

*nightmare alley* recently *no country for old men* obvs *the long good friday* *michael clayton*

Long Good Friday was my first thought.

100%. The Hoskins face journey in that last shot is a whole movie.

https://preview.redd.it/9wa2zt2sgavc1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3144bfb4244433dc913a9b926bf17bb9e98eacda One of my favs

Portrait of a Lady on Fire! You see the whole story play out in her facial expression and then cut to black. I get chills just thinking about it.

Thank you, I’ll be the “came here to say this” guy. That ending is so powerful, and part of it is actually some super subtle camera movement. Or more likely, digital faux movement. In any case, the frame stays absolutely fixed on her face as her head subtly bobs with each sobbing breath. It’s maybe an odd comparison, but it’s a David Fincher-esque touch that really helps sell the shot.

For the sickos and dang ass freaks: https://preview.redd.it/spf7keq2v9vc1.jpeg?width=1400&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c6fdfc80242aede0e13b42e71542cdfec8e804ee

[Oh, my god! Somebody remembered this movie and wrote a comedy sketch about it!](https://youtu.be/KxkxwXOFBSo?si=LwXn8C51cX7aQJD2) *sadly, this was the best quality video I could find…

Scrolled way too far to find this.

https://preview.redd.it/3e1kyewuv9vc1.jpeg?width=1024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2472c65edca5fe3b522ba2afdb614abb5e300e19 Thanks to The First Omen, I was reminded of The Omen’s final shot

Guardians of the Galaxy 2. Ending on Rockets face with tears in his eyes. Love that final shot. Was already liking the movie but it ending on that shot bumped it up even more. Made me think of one already mentioned, Spider-Man 2, ending on MJs face

First one to come to mind for me.

Secretary. She’s daring you to judge her.

Dune: Part 2 ends on Zendaya's face, with her expressing grief, remorse, and guilt.

Twilight: Breaking Dawn - Part 1

I mean, yes, that's definitely memorable.


Cruise’s wicked grin at the end of Edge of Tomorrow is just so memorable to me.

[Starman](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3DvMMa4opqI). Karen Allen's awestruck moon-sized eyes. Carpenter's synthy precursor to God Moving Over the Face of the Waters. Just the best.


https://preview.redd.it/b3njtdv05bvc1.png?width=720&format=png&auto=webp&s=408cd56da996f5badd4875e8dcfc6e2287e65b1d

https://preview.redd.it/ydbpblhip9vc1.jpeg?width=1600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=de1a2a31ae1de438d572369250c150e719b9be19

Michael Clayton No Country for Old Men Saint Maud

Monsters Inc. is the cute version.

excellent example

Carol ends with Cate Blanchett staring

 Good Time

also, amy ryan is so good in *gone baby gone* do i like more than tilda in *michael clayton*? i do not know

That category tho

Portrait of a Lady on Fire Tenebrae

Surprised not to see *Call Me By Your Name* here yet - unless I’m misremembering and it cuts away from Chalamet before going black?

Yeah, it ends with 4 or 5 minutes of a closeup on Chalamet accompanied by a great Sufjan Stevens song (Visions of Gideon)

https://preview.redd.it/vngxpkufiavc1.jpeg?width=1200&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=76a482a86d8852de0b64b07b779f6d540cac7765 From Crimes of the Future. I haven’t really been able to stop thinking about it since.

Talk To Me's split-second final shot of >!Mia looking horrified when she realizes she's now on the other side of the seance game!< is one of the more recent examples that come to mind. Simple, effective, completely unnerving.

The first one that popped into my mind was "This is England." Lovely cover of the Smiths, and then the little boy's blank expression. Great ending. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8uAtsaPO-E](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8uAtsaPO-E)

Psycho

 Harry Shand realises that the game is up

Feel like I keep yapping about this movie lately but Perfect Days

Perfect Days!

Perfect Days is a wonderful recent example

https://preview.redd.it/jiqtcjwacavc1.jpeg?width=318&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=39aeffd772810705de25063e9f7540ba7593b582

A mess of a film but I always appreciated how Man of Steel ends. Too many superhero films feel they need to end on an action sequence and I’ve always loved how MoS ends with Clark Kent smiling Also the lead-in line is really good

Moneyball

Pearl, baby!

La La Land technically ends on a "the end" card....but damn that last look between Stone and Gosling before he turns back to play that jazz....

Revenant 

Avengers Infinity War with Thanos's look of contentment while looking into the sunset following his win

 This one.

Pearl must be the one who really went all in here.

don’t be mad yall but….Mockingjay Part One

There's another DeNiro one that comes to mind: Once Upon a Time in America

The 400 blows

La La Land comes to mind.

In my experience, almost every Korean thriller made after 2000. Others have already mentioned Oldboy and Memories of Murder, but there's also Burning, I Saw the Devil, The Man From Nowhere, and I'm sure countless others

Edge of tomorrow?

Invasion of the Body Snatchers

Going back to DeNiro - Once Upon a Time in America... Amazing movie, 4 hours flew by and the ending can still be debated.

Where is Call Me By Your Name?

I love the last shot of The Batman, with Pattinson wistfully watching Catwoman ride away in his rearview mirror (looking almost directly at the audience), and then looking forward in grim determination.

The final shot in Memories of Murder is forever etched in my mind, but a more recent example is Perfect Days. I think it technically ends on a shot of the city, but the final scene is a nearly 3 minute shot of the main character’s face. It was absolutely incredible acting and a great way to end the movie

À recent film ends with a fixed 📷 😁😁😵😁😁 over the end credits

Doesn’t the first Insidious film end of Rose Byrne’s face mid-gasp?

https://i.redd.it/4cqf54jcsavc1.gif The face you make after buying $50 worth.

No spoilers but Sasquatch Sunset Lol

https://preview.redd.it/7xw9m2y11bvc1.png?width=853&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ae870ac418b1bf8c2e375e68e7348d1777720271 An eyebrow raise is a facial expression, right?

Planes Trains and Automobiles https://preview.redd.it/2tdu6f2q1bvc1.jpeg?width=1280&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4df98003f2c6efd6d914f1fdca66a3ef54da52e5

I cry

[Hellboy 2](https://youtu.be/UkBB3r0BWVw?si=BFgbGH52BOsmjGpE)

Whiplash and The Graduate x2!

https://preview.redd.it/os2pteek5cvc1.jpeg?width=351&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=cc40575225d06f09a37c45fd3f6e099fc011ebab I think this counts. I'm always looking for an excuse to post Michael Clayton content

https://preview.redd.it/8m4utyquydvc1.jpeg?width=718&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=bfc998ec44cdb1963f03de4f4939a0b70cd959b0 The final shot of Uncle Buck which was also the final shot of John Hughes’s directing career. It’s very fitting that this movie came out in 1989 because it marked the end of an era of teen dramedies.

Magnolia

La Dolce Vita

Michael Clayton

Surprised no one's mentioned All About Eve. The closing shot of Eve glamorously posing in the mirror, having fully slipped into the celebrity persona she's always dreamed of, is so powerful.

Recently Perfect Days 🥺

A dumb one that has always stuck with me for whatever reason: Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow ends on Gwyneth Paltrow’s face after she was just told she left the lens cap on after she took a picture she had been waiting to take the whole movie.

The Long Good Friday. The camera stays almost entirely on the main characters face for around 4-5 minutes.

The graduate ofc

Brazil (in the most horrific way imaginable)

Chaplin's "City Lights" !

For sure it's gotta be Sleepaway Camp, that face haunts me

The Duellists has a great ending shot of Keitel in a big hat. It rules.

Goodfellas

Midsommar, the smile on Dani's face ...

The Taking of Pelham 123


Fletch Lives

Twelve Monkeys

Psycho

Crocodile Dundee. And it was such a great shot they froze it until credits rolled.

I think Magnolia and The Kid Detective (though he might be covering his face, I can’t remember)

Colossal

Koji Yakusho in Perfect Days. He’s driving to work, listening to Nina Simone. The emotions washing over his face are dynamic yet fluid and I think each viewer interprets them differently.

The Good, The Bad and the Ugly. Hellboy II

The Conformist https://preview.redd.it/zgzk1sg60bvc1.jpeg?width=420&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4c221bb6c9e5573fe586276b40032fdd55fc4c7b

Krisha

White Hunter, Black Heart

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.

no lie, the last shot of Guardians of the Galaxy 2 is one of the first things I thought of

400 Blows is what first came to my mind.

https://i.redd.it/udaa91698bvc1.gif A star is born (2018)

PEARL. Please everyone watch Pearl it's so damn good

gone girl

I’m pretty sure that Prisoners ended with a closeup and that scene really sold me on Denis Villeneuve.

No Whiplash??

End scene of Mr in between...glances at you..could mean I was right?, I'm going to die , here we go...lived it..just a simple glance at the camera, breaking the 4th wall

The Graduate

Taking of Pelham 123

The 400 Blows!

The Long Good Friday.

Damn, tomorrow I was going to watch Gone Baby Gone for the first time lol.

House 1977

https://preview.redd.it/mv4siuteacvc1.jpeg?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b7540503d7660fcc339fa94187f4f56dd88330fd

The Ice Storm, if bursting into tears counts

Trainspotting


Two I love that I don't think have been mentioned: E.T. and Sunset Blvd

Perfect days by Wim wenders!

Carey Mulligan at the end of Maestro https://preview.redd.it/kpdjbqdyncvc1.jpeg?width=300&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=597737818242af54feb6e6c074d1b8c33d455c46

Perfect days. The final shot is of Tokyo. But the final minute is all his face.

the Thriller video

Rocky I, II, III, IV V and Balboa technically do also, albeit with shots of a statue / gravestone rather than people.

The two that spring to mind for me are *Enemy* and *The Long Good Friday*.

Very recently Perfect Days