Dissecting Closing Shots In Movies

A great movie ending can send you walking out into the theater lobby with so much energy and excitement that it can be contagious. One of the ways I know it’s great is that the last shot sticks in my mind.

When you’re writing or directing, so much focus is spent on the first ten pages of a story that you can burn out or lose focus on that last little bit. But I’m here to tell you that leaving people with a lasting image is just as important.

Today, I want to look at some of the best closing shots of all time and see what you can learn from them as filmmakers.

Let’s dive in.

Closing Shots in Movies 

What I loved about the above video is that it goes through 100 closing shots in movies, and each time the image changes, I was filled with the feeling I had when I watched the specific film for the first time.

These images are proof of how powerful this visual medium is and how we as storytellers need to think about what’s happening on screen and how we want the audience to feel as the storey fades to black.

I find that a lot of these shots capture the theme of the movie. For instance, The Shawshank Redemption ends with two men hugging on a beach in Mexico, showing us freedom and the beauty of life.

Gone Girl ends with an ominous staring of a woman lying on a man’s chest. It used to mean love, but now it means fear.

And in Psycho, out last show shows a killer with no remorse, smiling at us.

What other closing movie shots are in the video?

Here’s a list:

• The Lobster (2015)
• Cure (1997)
• 25th Hour (2002)
• Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)
• Donnie Darko (2001)
• Back to the Future (1985)
• Moneyball (2011)
• The Sound of Music (1965)
• Casablanca (1942)
• The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
• Groundhog Day (1993)
• Happy Gilmore (1996)
• The Longest Yard (2005)
• Mr. Deeds (2002)
• 50 First Dates (2004)
• Nothing To Lose (1997)
• Superbad (2007)
• Children of Men (2006)
• Up (2009)
• The Invitation (2015)
• Planet of The Apes (1968)
• The Thing (1982)
• Casino Royale (2006)
• Black Swan (2010)
• Oppenheimer (2023)
• Boy A (2007)
• Shame (2011)
• Oldboy (2003)
• The Godfather (1972)
• Submarine (2010)
• Prisoners (2013)
• Knives Out (2019)
• La La Land (2016)
• The Graduate (1967)
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)
• Call Me by Your Name (2017)
• Once Upon a Time in America (1984)
• Parasite (2019)
• The 400 Blows (1959)
• La Haine (1995)
• The Great Train Robbery (1903)
• Goodfellas (1990)
• 1984 (1984)
• Possession (1981)
• American Psycho (2000)
• Pearl (2022)
• Midsommar (2019)
• Funny Games (1997)
• Psycho (1960)
• Magnolia (1999)
• Moonlight (2016)
• This Is England (2006)
• Memories of Murder (2003)
• Gone Girl (2014)
• Inglourious Basterds (2009)
• In Bruges (2008)
• The Searchers (1956)
• Aftersun (2022)
• Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010)
• The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
• Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)
• I Saw the Devil (2010)
• Naked (1993)
• Inception (2010)
• Dr. Strangelove (1964)
• Before Sunset (2004)
• Fight Club (1999)
• Stalker (1979)
• Rocky (1976)
• Star Wars (1977)
• The Matrix (1999)
• Superman (1978)
• Smokin’ Aces (2006)
• Return of the Jedi (1983)
• 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
• The Wicker Man (1973)
• The Godfather Part II (1974)
• Fallen Angels (1995)
• Seven Samurai (1954)
• Requiem for a Dream (2000)
• The Witch (2015)
• The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
• Dark Water (2002)
• The Shining (1980)
• The Usual Suspects (1995)

What Can Filmmakers Learn From All This?

The main takeaway here is that your final shot has to say something to the world. Filmmaking and storytelling are about telling the audience what you believe and leaving them with a lasting impression to talk about.

Just like I mentioned in the opening, you want people rushing into the lobby to talk about what they’ve seen and you want them feeling the emotions you felt creating it when they remember those last shots.

So storyboard, brainstorm, and see what you can come up with in the future.

Let me know what you think in the comments.