So satisfying…
Every beginning and ending should be satisfying, but I will compromise if only the latter delivers. That’s more than enough for me as a viewer, but not quite acceptable for me as the writer. Movie endings are worth consideration, keeping in mind, it’s all relative and subjective. There are movies that start slow and clunky, pick up steam in the second act, and end on such a cohesive, sensible, and satiating note, the viewer doesn’t regret the two hours spent glued to their seat in the theater (less likely) or transfixed to the screen of their laptop. (Sadly, the latter is more likely the way movies are being devoured these days. Devoured is probably not the apt description. Committing to watching a whole movie is akin to menu sampling. Flicks are picked over like deviled eggs at a tired family buffet before the viewer moves to the next streaming service subscription they share with an ex or generous family member. Sadly, even a well crafted movie is hard pressed to hold anybody’s complete attention.)
Audrey Hepburn was the queen of the satisfying ending. Very few thespians brought the film to a memorable close quite the same way that eternal and ethereal fan favorite did. The surprise that we saw in her shiny eyes before she embraces the suave and debonair Cary Grant in Charade, the way she showed no recognition to protect the forbidden love she felt for Gregory Peck and the camaraderie she shared with Eddie Albert at the end of Roman Holiday are just two examples of how she made going to the movies worthwhile. Her films are as timeless today as they were when they were made because of how they ended. My favorite example of how she delivered had to be in the ending of Love In The Afternoon with Gary Cooper. Their parting at the train station was so sorrowful in the way she walks alongside him in an extended, reluctant goodbye as the train picks up the pace. Her gait turns to a jog as she tries to resign herself to losing the love of her life (oddly cast, albeit Gary Cooper was a brilliant actor) until he realizes she is the best thing he will ever enjoy in his life. He uses his hulking frame to position himself outside of the train car before sweeping the unsuspecting and confused Arianne (Hepburn’s character) into his arms and onto the train to enjoy the rest of their lives in wedded bliss.
More modern examples of the satisfying movie endings includes 1994’s Four Weddings and A Funeral. It takes the only character who doesn’t speak (he’s deaf and mute) to volunteer to raise his hand in objection when the priest asks if any of the guests have just cause for why these two should not be joined in holy matrimony, which gives way to a reconciliation in the rain for our two principals. The 90s also introduced the English speaking world to Antonio Banderas in The Mambo Kings. Ironically, he didn’t speak English properly when he landed the role, so he learned his lines by sounding out the syllables. His character so destroyed by losing his own true love dies tragically, but the audience is almost relieved that he is put out of his misery, freeing his brother, Armand Assante, to live the life he desired in America. Lars and The Real Girl, in my opinion, is the preeminent movie when it comes to the topic of grief. So nuanced the performances, so heartfelt the writing, it’s no wonder I was left in tears when the “character” Bianca’s death brought a rebirth to Lars’ life. It reminds me how I cried alongside Kate Winslet’s character, Marianne, as she wept in the rain at the loss of Willoughby in Sense and Sensibility and how the ending mirrored his anguish as he watched her marry another from a distance while on horseback.
The ending of The Bourne Trilogy saw the principal character, Jason Bourne, finally able to walk away from his life as a spy and the last movie in The Iron Man series allowed the viewer to feel the full arc and journey of the reluctant superhero known as Tony Stark.
More recent movies with endings that felt thoughtful, well written, and perfectly conceived? Poor Things, Killers of The Flower Moon, Barbie, and Oppenheimer are shining examples of excellent executions from start to finish.
All things sadly come to an end, but those scripts that have been thoughtfully crafted have the ability to linger as the best memories do. I often say as humans we are made up mostly of water and memories and the ones that I cherish from a good movie not only inspires my own writing, but it provides a template for how I encourage others when crafting the most satisfying and compelling of script endings. Many times I encourage my students to write their stories backwards. Start with picturing the perfect ending for your characters first, I suggest, so that every scene preceding the ending supports that goal. And many times, for both my students and myself, we are successful applying this approach.