20 Movies That Only Work Because They Ended at the Exact Right Time
When it comes to plotting out a screenplay, timing is everything. That’s why so many prequels are dumb and terrible — if anything worth seeing happened before the movie started, it would have been part of the movie in the first place. We don’t care what happened before James Bond became James Bond. We drop in on him already having the skills to out-jet-ski the bad guy because those skills are what’s fun to watch.
The same can be said for what happens after a movie, too. The screenwriter ended it at exactly the moment of resolution because the reality of what happened even a few minutes later is infinitely less satisfying. That’s why user Wazula42 asked r/AskReddit, “What movie endings would be ruined if the camera kept filming for an extra 30 seconds?”
The Breakfast Club
The Prince of Egypt
The Thing
Seeking a Friend for the End of the World
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
The Lobster
Thelma & Louise
Elephant
Whiplash
Birdman
Die Hard
Independence Day
Dead Poets Society
Edge of Tomorrow
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
2001: A Space Odyssey
Fight Club
Snowpiercer
Memento
The Dark Knight
