Endings That Leave You Hanging...

@anniepa (27955)
United States
July 15, 2009 3:38pm CST
Have you ever watched a movie that, once you get to the ending you're saying "WTF just happened here?" to yourself? I've seen some where I didn't know any more at the end than I did in the beginning. A few examples, without giving too much away, are The Strangers, The Cradle and something like "In a Dark Place" with Leelee Sobeiski. I can't remember the exact title now. Have you seen any movies like that where they totally leave you hanging at the end and you walk away feeling kind of empty and VERY confused? Annie
3 people like this
16 responses
@worldwise1 (14885)
• United States
15 Jul 09
I agree, anniepa, that some movies(and books), do leave you at a loss. I really hate those kinds of movies that leave me with the feeling I've just wasted a couple of hours and got absolutely nothing from it. There's always the option of turning it off, but then you wonder if you just might be able to get into it if you only stay with it a bit longer. I believe the last movie I watched that left me feeling like that was Seven Pounds. It got great reviews, but somehow I just didn't get it.
2 people like this
@anniepa (27955)
• United States
16 Jul 09
I saw Seven Pounds in the movies and I liked it but it was confusing and did kind of leave you hanging at the end if I remember correctly. You're not the first person I've had say they didn't quite get that movie. Annie
@zed_k4 (17589)
• Singapore
16 Jul 09
I know what you mean.. Recently, I watched this TV series on my channel Red Thread or something. It's a 40 part mini series and I caught on and off. It's about a family business and scandals stuff like that. Lastly, on the final scene, the big organization owners, both husband and wife, jumped off the building. The husband has kept lots of secrets from the wife and she confronted him saying that she knew all about his secrets. I wanna know what are those or what's the only secret she knows and the next scene, the husband has followed through falling. I believe the wife jumps, he tries to save. The bummer part is all of these is not shown and explained.. So I get what you mean there. And as for movie-wise, Drag Me to Hell left me hanging...I so hate it. Not really hanging, but a rather disappointing end. The girl goes through all that just to die in the end and goes to 'hell' indeed.
@anniepa (27955)
• United States
16 Jul 09
OMG, they jumped and took all the secrets with them? What a bummer for sure! I don't think I've ever heard of Drag Me to Hell. Annie
1 person likes this
@zed_k4 (17589)
• Singapore
16 Jul 09
That's right.. haaa.. You can find youtube video snippets of Drag Me to Hell. Pretty good movie except for the ending. The old lady is so evil and revengeful..
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@jerzgirl (9327)
• United States
15 Jul 09
I felt that way about The Departed (which I hated, by the way) and Babel. In fact, Babel was confusing throughout. Both involved letters in one way or another that were left unexplained. Too many story lines that took place concurrently, but it was difficult to see where how they connected until the end, yet the question of the letter was left unanswered in both.
1 person likes this
@anniepa (27955)
• United States
16 Jul 09
I was just thinking about setting The Departed to record; maybe I won't bother now. I saw Babel and I also found it confusing. It was good but I was a bit surprised that it got all the Oscar nominations it did because I've seen better. Annie
@jerzgirl (9327)
• United States
16 Jul 09
The Departed was so graphically violent, I wanted to run from the theater. I don't mind violence where it's "appropriate" for the story line. But, I really don't need to see brain matter shoot out of people's heads and spray on the wall or into the water as they're kneeling. I did hate that about it. But, the story line was interesting, for the most part. The ending was a surprise, but we never knew how the letter fit it - was it the cause of the ending? Or was it something else. Babel was good, too, but it took so long to figure out how all the segments linked together and what the common thread was, that it was far less pleasurable to watch than it might have been. And, again - a letter was involved that had no explanation.
1 person likes this
@ZephyrSun (7381)
• United States
16 Jul 09
OMG I watched "The Strangers" what a weird movie. Oh, another good one that leaves you with that WTF is "American Psycho". "Signs" left me wanting to know more about lol
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@anniepa (27955)
• United States
16 Jul 09
I haven't seen "American Psycho" but I did see "Signs" a long time ago and I seem to remember it having a goofy ending. I can't remember what it was now, though...lol! Annie
@doormouse (4599)
15 Jul 09
blair witch project..at the end when you see the man standing in the corner of the room facing the wall,that was such a fab ending,very well thought out but on the other hand very annoying,coz you want to know what happened to make him do that
1 person likes this
• United States
15 Jul 09
Yeah, Blair Witch definitely leaves you hanging at the end. I was trying to figure out the order in which the three were killed, ha ha. It was kind of annoying, but at least it made me think.
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@anniepa (27955)
• United States
16 Jul 09
I'm probably one of about 10 people in the world who hasn't seen the Flair Witch Project. I know The Strangers was compared to it but I'm not sure how. I'll have to look for it and watch it one of these days. Annie
• United States
15 Jul 09
Oh yeah. I've seen way too many of them. The Japanese horror film Kansen (Infection) left me with more questions than answers, but I liked that. I had to do some mental work, and there was still an element of mystery.
1 person likes this
@anniepa (27955)
• United States
16 Jul 09
I like a movie that makes me think too but I also like to have the ends tied up in the end. Annie
• United States
16 Jul 09
No.I usually stop watching a film that makes me confused.I lose interest. The closest I get to that is a surprise ending of my favorite film,Usual Suspects.Everything is explained but it makes you want to see the movie over again to find the clues.
@stephcjh (38473)
• United States
16 Jul 09
I hate it when that happens. That makes a good movie a bad one for me. I want to more about what happens at the end without it being cut off short and leave me guessing. I hate it when it says to be continued also.
@di1159 (1580)
• United States
16 Jul 09
I just recently saw one on DVD called Impact. It was about a meteor that crashed into the moon and had the moon getting closer and closer to Earth and eventually going to crash into it. The ending was very abrupt and just ended with a scientist telling the President we had 39 days left. I was expecting to see the moon get nuked or something, but it ended just like that. I was getting just getting interested when it ended. Needless to say, I don't recommend it.
@Shar19 (8231)
• United States
15 Jul 09
Yes, I have seen movies like that before. Can't remember the names of them though.
1 person likes this
@anniepa (27955)
• United States
16 Jul 09
I know what you mean. I see so many movies sometimes in spurts that I tend to forget what I've seen and what I haven't. Annie
@Tayudo (115)
• Peru
16 Jul 09
yessssssssssss, i dont remember the name but it was very desapointed
• United States
16 Jul 09
Yeah! I hate that! I hate movies like that and Blair Witch is one of them. Jade is another one, too. Oh and Eyes Wide Shut hated that!
@dhowarth (113)
• United States
15 Jul 09
One that left me hanging would be The International. Its like they cut the movie in half and there should be another 2 hour movie as a sequel. They make up for it by letting you know what happens by displaying newspaper clippings during the credits. Are you kidding?? Sweet movie until the last 10 seconds. I definitely thought there was another hour left, and then it just ended without the bank getting beaten, which was the whole point of the film. Extremely counter-productive in my opinion.
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@anniepa (27955)
• United States
16 Jul 09
Gee, it sounds like a lame attempt to get viewers geared up for a sequel. Annie
• India
16 Jul 09
my all frnds
@tjades (3591)
• Jamaica
16 Jul 09
Yes I have and I end up getting so upset at those that I forget them soon after. I just figure the work of whoever is so tardy ought not to take up my memeory space. There are some though which leaves the mouth watering. They leave you to form your own conclusion. I do enjoy that at times as it allows me to stretch my imagination.
• Indonesia
16 Jul 09
I remember watching LOTR: Fellowship of The Wing and Matrix Reloaded feeling WTF, I want to know how the story ends, but of course both them finally did have an ending. I haven't seen The Strangers, I already downloaded it, can't wait to see it!