A good ending is famously hard to nail down — leave too many loose ends and you risk leaving your audience unsatisfied. Belabor the point, and it can feel overwrought.
But then there are those rare endings that leave you full of questions in the best possible way.
This October, the Watch With Us team has selected five unforgettable films that continue to fuel online debates and late-night discussions, starring actors like Leonardo DiCaprio, Jack Nicholson and more.
Check out these controversial movie finales and where to stream them on HBO Max, Hulu and other platforms.
5. ‘Birdman’ (2014)
This Alejandro G. Iñárritu film about an aging actor trying to recapture his relevance is memorable for many reasons — especially Michael Keaton’s performance as Riggan and his alter-ego, Birdman — but the final scene is what lingers most. After a failed onstage suicide attempt, Riggan jumps out the window of his hospital room.
When his daughter Sam (Emma Stone) finds the open window, she looks down, confused — then gazes upward and smiles. Did Riggan actually fly? Did she imagine it? Or did she simply find peace in his passing? We’ll never know, but it’s a fittingly surreal ending to a deeply introspective movie.
Rent Birdman on Amazon Prime Video.
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4. ‘Anatomy of a Fall’ (2024)
This French courtroom drama from Justine Triet centers on Sandra Voyter (Sandra Hüller), a novelist accused of murdering her husband. After a long, emotionally fraught trial, Sandra is acquitted — but the film’s final moments make us question whether justice was truly served.
Did she do it? Was the fall an accident? Anatomy of a Fall never tells us for sure, forcing viewers to wrestle with their own biases about guilt, truth and perception.
Stream Anatomy of a Fall on Hulu.
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3. ‘The Shining’ (1980)
Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of The Shining already plays fast and loose with Stephen King’s novel, but its ending adds an extra layer of mystery. After Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) freezes to death in the maze, the camera zooms in on a photo from 1921 showing Jack at a hotel party — decades before he ever arrived at the Overlook.
Is it a metaphor for reincarnation, madness or the hotel claiming his soul? The haunting ambiguity cements The Shining as one of the most talked-about horror films ever made.
Stream The Shining on Philo or HBO Max.
2. ‘The Graduate’ (1967)
After one of cinema’s most iconic moments — Dustin Hoffman’s Ben interrupting Elaine’s (Katharine Ross) wedding and escaping with her — The Graduate ends on an unexpectedly quiet note. The young lovers sit at the back of a bus, laughing breathlessly before their smiles fade into uneasy silence.
The camera lingers as they stare ahead, unsure of what comes next. Only time will tell if they’ve made the right decision — and if they’re actually in love or just acting out. It’s a perfect reflection of youthful rebellion giving way to reality, and a final image that’s been analyzed and referenced for decades.
Stream The Graduate on Tubi.
1. ‘Inception’ (2010)
Few endings have inspired more debate than Inception’s spinning top. Leonardo DiCaprio plays Dom Cobb, a thief who infiltrates dreams to steal secrets — and the top is his “totem,” a tool that helps him know whether he’s in a dream or reality. In the final moments, Cobb finally reunites with his children, and the camera lingers on the spinning top before cutting to black.
Does it fall? Does it keep spinning? Director Christopher Nolan has never confirmed, leaving audiences to endlessly theorize about whether Cobb is still dreaming or finally free.
Stream Inception on HBO Max.
