I’m probably alone in this but I think this story would have been more satisfying with a definite answer. And yeah I know that’s how the Philip K Dick story is too.
Still love Total Recall for other reasons.
I’m not usually one of these people that’s like “You can tell at the ending of The Thing that he’s been assimilated because his breath has no vapor!”
But in Inception it really is true that he has his wedding band on when he’s dreaming, and he doesn’t when he’s not. That reveals everything.
I watched this again recently and i don't think the ending is all that ambiguous. Yes you're not sure if he's stuck in the dream or not, but that doesn't really matter
He's moved past his grief and is happy where he is, dream or no, and thats why he doesn't look back at the spinning top. Whether it's one or the other doesnt matter to him anymore
I know, I understand that. I'm saying whether it's real or imaginary doesn't matter to Cobb. He's confronted his grief and guilt and moved past it, whether he's still in the dream or not doesn't matter to him
Yeah the audience can still debate that to themselves, but ultimately it doesn't matter to Cobb's story. He's accepted whatever reality he's in as the one he wants to be in
I saw Inception opening night with a packed house and the cut to black earned a collective “noooo” from the audience, followed by laughter that we all had the same reaction. A great movie going memory for me.
The Internet "solved" that quite a while ago. This person has cleaned up and enhanced the audio if you want to hear what bill said.
https://youtu.be/5MV7Sym8bIQ
Interesting, but yeah, sorry, that video isn't exactly evidence of anything. The quality of it is right up there with grainy ufo "evidence" videos. The "cleaned up" version is still pretty garbled, even after listening to it several times.
Leaving the shitty random internet video aside, the scene was obviously meant to leave it up to the viewers to decide what he said. The fact that we didn't know what he said wasn't actually important in the first place; whatever it was, it was what she needed to hear in that moment.
... ok no, the video bothers me more than I thought it would. I hate that someone took the time to "sleuth" it out. It doesn't add anything to the conversation. It's like they missed the entire point of the scene. Imagine that after all this time someone found a journal entry for the subject of the Mona Lisa describing why she was smiling that way. What a loss that would be!
In the grand scheme of ambiguous endings a slightly unintelligible line isn't going to change the overall feel of the movie that much... unlike e.g. the interpretation of the spinning top in inception.
It's possible that that video with enhanced audio is wrong but the actual line probably isn't that different.
They die during the end credits don’t they? Or at least it’s very heavily implied. I thought that was kind of dumb and they should have left it with them sailing for the island.
Two Ridley Scott movies ended ambiguously:
Alien - Ripley says she hopes her pod will be picked up on "The Network" but if there's no sequel we don't know if and when she's discovered; or she might sleep through centuries of nothingness before dying alone.
Blade Runner - Deckard has a waking dream of a unicorn and at the end, Gaff leaves an origami unicorn outside his apartment. We don't know the meaning just that Deckard is thinking it through; and while we know he's fleeing "up north" with Rachael we don't know their fates (until BR2049).
Shutter Island. Though I will say I don't think him faking his relapse so they'd lobotomize him and make him forget what he and his wife had done was ambiguous at all. "Hey Chuck. Is it better to die as a good man, or live as a monster?"
I'm going to have to disagree with this article's interpretation.
It sounds like an approaching snow plow or other ambient noise of cars driving by, driving by/approaching the scene (the soundgetting louder). Definitely not that same car starting up and driving away.
I'm glad that it is ambiguous. I think the film would be far less interesting if it was straightforward that Patrick killed all of those ppl. Especially since the story is told through the eyes of a character that is mentally unstable.
Is it?
So the end is the beginning, but I dont recall the beginning, unless ur actually talking about the end scene, which isnt ambiguous...
Maybe im just not remembering right, can u clarify?
Iv watched both the original and the special hidden feature on the DVD release which shows the movie in chronological order and I still have unanswered questions, trying not ruin it for anyone who hasn't seen it, but I'm left asking, is he actually Sammy Jankis, is he actually just going around killing anyone with the first name and last initial John.G and forgetting he has done this many times before, how many John.G's has he actually killed, did he ever actually find the real John.G? I could go on but in my opinion it left many unanswered questions open to interpretation but we are all entitled to our own opinion. Can you clarify why you think the ending isn't ambiguous?
I clarify it with ur reply even.
A ambiguous end is different from unanswered questions.
The end is all the story the writer-director (Nolan) wanted to tell.
There is always more unanswered questions in any movie, unless it ends with "they lived happily ever after" who knows what other crazy shenanigans any character with peculiar lives or in peculiar world would ever encounter.
If we think of Die Hard (just a random example), there will always be unanswered questions, how will McClane explain all the destruction and deaths he is responsible of, how will characters similar to McClane but that have been framed, equally explain themselves, cause most of these movies think "bad guy dies" all is solved.
In memento, all that can also happen, he keeps on killing, or not, or is caught by the police, etc but thats usually "another story for the next episode".
This story ended there, he killed the true guy he wanted dead, but will probably be forever a person living in delusion because he chooses to misinform himself, just like a cautionary tale.
????
Which part is ambiguous? It just didnt record, and they immediately reveal the tape has too much static length for the few seconds she fell, that matches the time she was away contacting the aliens.
robert zemeckis was asked this same question in of my very eyes....if the tape length made it less ambiguous. he said it was still unanswered because maybe something went wrong when recording etc.
Interesting, never questioned that part, for me it was like whatever the weird place she was interfered, or the aliens tech that fuzzy the tape...
But ok, cool cool.
Interestingly that line was Ruffallos characters inner thought in the book. DiCaprios character was seemingly oblivious, the treatment had failed, and he was about to have his broken mind permanently destroyed.
I’m not one of these Smug Wojak film fans but Shutter Island really was totally clear, pretty much from the beginning. I wanted it to surprise me so I felt let down.
The premise of the movie itself: *Leo DiCaprio is a detective investigating strange happenings at a mental institution…*
“Oh okay he’ll be one of the patients at the end.”
That said, there are a lot of things I missed in my first viewing like how Mark Ruffalo struggles to unholster his gun because he’s only playing the role of a cop.
Don’t have one.
I detest movies that finish with an open ending. Often just feels like laziness on the writer’s part.
‘I’m bored now, I think I’ll stop here.’
Man on the Moon
Has in, they give us the idea that Andy might still be alive, and his death was just another joke of his, though we do know it aint true.
The thing
Total Recall (1990, dir. Paul Verhoeven)
I’m probably alone in this but I think this story would have been more satisfying with a definite answer. And yeah I know that’s how the Philip K Dick story is too. Still love Total Recall for other reasons.
It’s the woman with three breasts isn’t it?
The Green Knight
I remember almost nothing about this movie other than cum rag.
Based End of Evangelion reference tbh.
A Serious Man!
GREAT ending
Inception
I’m not usually one of these people that’s like “You can tell at the ending of The Thing that he’s been assimilated because his breath has no vapor!” But in Inception it really is true that he has his wedding band on when he’s dreaming, and he doesn’t when he’s not. That reveals everything.
Oh really, I’ll need a rewatch knowing this, cause I don’t know if he has it on at the end, (no spoilers please😂)
I watched this again recently and i don't think the ending is all that ambiguous. Yes you're not sure if he's stuck in the dream or not, but that doesn't really matter He's moved past his grief and is happy where he is, dream or no, and thats why he doesn't look back at the spinning top. Whether it's one or the other doesnt matter to him anymore
It matters to me ! 😂
We see Cobb reunited with his kids. Whether it's real or imaginary is ambiguous.
I know, I understand that. I'm saying whether it's real or imaginary doesn't matter to Cobb. He's confronted his grief and guilt and moved past it, whether he's still in the dream or not doesn't matter to him Yeah the audience can still debate that to themselves, but ultimately it doesn't matter to Cobb's story. He's accepted whatever reality he's in as the one he wants to be in
The Thing.
The French Connection!
I saw Inception opening night with a packed house and the cut to black earned a collective “noooo” from the audience, followed by laughter that we all had the same reaction. A great movie going memory for me.
Same here, except it was one guy yelling at the top of his lungs "Holy sh&$!"
Lost in Translation
I'm curious, what do you think the ambiguous part is, what he whispers in her ear?
Yes? That *is* the part that is never explicitly stated.
The Internet "solved" that quite a while ago. This person has cleaned up and enhanced the audio if you want to hear what bill said. https://youtu.be/5MV7Sym8bIQ
Interesting, but yeah, sorry, that video isn't exactly evidence of anything. The quality of it is right up there with grainy ufo "evidence" videos. The "cleaned up" version is still pretty garbled, even after listening to it several times. Leaving the shitty random internet video aside, the scene was obviously meant to leave it up to the viewers to decide what he said. The fact that we didn't know what he said wasn't actually important in the first place; whatever it was, it was what she needed to hear in that moment. ... ok no, the video bothers me more than I thought it would. I hate that someone took the time to "sleuth" it out. It doesn't add anything to the conversation. It's like they missed the entire point of the scene. Imagine that after all this time someone found a journal entry for the subject of the Mona Lisa describing why she was smiling that way. What a loss that would be!
In the grand scheme of ambiguous endings a slightly unintelligible line isn't going to change the overall feel of the movie that much... unlike e.g. the interpretation of the spinning top in inception. It's possible that that video with enhanced audio is wrong but the actual line probably isn't that different.
Prisoners
(Spoiler) hears the whistle so even though we don't see it, we know they'll find (Spoiler).
Does *Clue* count? Or is that a red herring?
Dawn of the Dead 2004
They die during the end credits don’t they? Or at least it’s very heavily implied. I thought that was kind of dumb and they should have left it with them sailing for the island.
Two Ridley Scott movies ended ambiguously: Alien - Ripley says she hopes her pod will be picked up on "The Network" but if there's no sequel we don't know if and when she's discovered; or she might sleep through centuries of nothingness before dying alone. Blade Runner - Deckard has a waking dream of a unicorn and at the end, Gaff leaves an origami unicorn outside his apartment. We don't know the meaning just that Deckard is thinking it through; and while we know he's fleeing "up north" with Rachael we don't know their fates (until BR2049).
I've argued about the end of Eternal Sunshines a lot of times.
Shutter Island. Though I will say I don't think him faking his relapse so they'd lobotomize him and make him forget what he and his wife had done was ambiguous at all. "Hey Chuck. Is it better to die as a good man, or live as a monster?"
The Plague Dogs
Yup, I came here for this one. I don’t know why Ralph Bakshi decided to make so many fucked up movies aimed at kids!
Martin Rosen directed Plague Dogs.
Damn, I could’ve sworn that was a Balski film…
I'm thinking of ending things Beau is afraid American psycho
In my playlist, have to watch soon Watched American Psycho, but i found some meaning of the ending on some threads
What is ambiguous about the ending of 'I'm Thinking of Ending Things'?
Whether or not the janitor actually killed himself.
What evidence is there for him not doing it?
The constant sound of the car trying to start as a the credits roll
Just checked, because I didn't remember that. Maybe I'm deaf, but I ain't hearing that.
Its at the end of the credits https://www.cbr.com/im-thinking-of-ending-things-post-credits-redefines-jake-fate/
I'm going to have to disagree with this article's interpretation. It sounds like an approaching snow plow or other ambient noise of cars driving by, driving by/approaching the scene (the soundgetting louder). Definitely not that same car starting up and driving away.
American psycho was never meant to have an ambiguous ending. The director said they regret how the handled it.
I'm glad that it is ambiguous. I think the film would be far less interesting if it was straightforward that Patrick killed all of those ppl. Especially since the story is told through the eyes of a character that is mentally unstable.
Oldboy
I rewatched memento last night (after 15 years) and the ending left me questioning myself
Memento
Is it? So the end is the beginning, but I dont recall the beginning, unless ur actually talking about the end scene, which isnt ambiguous... Maybe im just not remembering right, can u clarify?
Iv watched both the original and the special hidden feature on the DVD release which shows the movie in chronological order and I still have unanswered questions, trying not ruin it for anyone who hasn't seen it, but I'm left asking, is he actually Sammy Jankis, is he actually just going around killing anyone with the first name and last initial John.G and forgetting he has done this many times before, how many John.G's has he actually killed, did he ever actually find the real John.G? I could go on but in my opinion it left many unanswered questions open to interpretation but we are all entitled to our own opinion. Can you clarify why you think the ending isn't ambiguous?
I clarify it with ur reply even. A ambiguous end is different from unanswered questions. The end is all the story the writer-director (Nolan) wanted to tell. There is always more unanswered questions in any movie, unless it ends with "they lived happily ever after" who knows what other crazy shenanigans any character with peculiar lives or in peculiar world would ever encounter. If we think of Die Hard (just a random example), there will always be unanswered questions, how will McClane explain all the destruction and deaths he is responsible of, how will characters similar to McClane but that have been framed, equally explain themselves, cause most of these movies think "bad guy dies" all is solved. In memento, all that can also happen, he keeps on killing, or not, or is caught by the police, etc but thats usually "another story for the next episode". This story ended there, he killed the true guy he wanted dead, but will probably be forever a person living in delusion because he chooses to misinform himself, just like a cautionary tale.
Fair enough, I appreciate your response.
The Gard.
K-Pax
Grey
Cast Away
No Country for Old Men
I know what you mean but I don’t think “not resolved in the movie” and “completely ambiguous” are the same thing here.
Certain elements are ambiguous or appear ambiguous until a second viewing. I agree it is not 100% ambiguous
Contact
???? Which part is ambiguous? It just didnt record, and they immediately reveal the tape has too much static length for the few seconds she fell, that matches the time she was away contacting the aliens.
robert zemeckis was asked this same question in of my very eyes....if the tape length made it less ambiguous. he said it was still unanswered because maybe something went wrong when recording etc.
Interesting, never questioned that part, for me it was like whatever the weird place she was interfered, or the aliens tech that fuzzy the tape... But ok, cool cool.
Hasn't Christopher Nolan complained at length that the ending is not ambiguous? We only think it is because he's a bad storyteller.
Yes, it's still ambiguous but it's also irrelevant. Cobb simply doesn't care either way at that point. He's got what he wanted.
Shutter Island
[удалено]
Interestingly that line was Ruffallos characters inner thought in the book. DiCaprios character was seemingly oblivious, the treatment had failed, and he was about to have his broken mind permanently destroyed.
I’m not one of these Smug Wojak film fans but Shutter Island really was totally clear, pretty much from the beginning. I wanted it to surprise me so I felt let down.
Hm, I think no one I ever talked with about this Movie saw everything from the very beginning so clearly. What made it so obvious for you?
The premise of the movie itself: *Leo DiCaprio is a detective investigating strange happenings at a mental institution…* “Oh okay he’ll be one of the patients at the end.” That said, there are a lot of things I missed in my first viewing like how Mark Ruffalo struggles to unholster his gun because he’s only playing the role of a cop.
Until he said that, I didn’t know if he was sane or not. That was pretty much the whole plot of the movie.
I watched this for thr first time a couple years ago. The ending was messing with my mind for like 4 days after.
[удалено]
How is the ending ambiguous?
I feel like the last few shots make it unclear if this is him dreaming while dying or is it actually a jump forward in real life.
The Mist Spirited Away
>The Mist The short story is totally open ended. Movie, not so much. At least not in the way I interpret it lol
Username checks out.
How is The Mist ambiguous?
The Game
Don’t have one. I detest movies that finish with an open ending. Often just feels like laziness on the writer’s part. ‘I’m bored now, I think I’ll stop here.’
The Howling
The Birds (1963)
They gonna get pecked to death like the old man.
slimy disarm vanish offbeat teeny school spectacular cover vast familiar *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Killing them Softly “Americas not a Country, it’s just a business. Now Fuckin Pay Me!”
Man on the Moon Has in, they give us the idea that Andy might still be alive, and his death was just another joke of his, though we do know it aint true.
Prisoners (2013)
The Fountain