10 Movies With the Most Sad and Depressing Endings – The Cheat Sheet

Hollywood is best known for its happy endings, but that doesnt mean that every movie concludes with the heroes riding off into the sunset. Some films manage to buck the trend, providing a downer ending that worksfor the stories theyre trying to tell.

Case in point? Moving in order from less tragic, to the most tragic, here are 10 movies with sad anddepressing endings.

The Mistis based on the Stephen King novella of the same name and revolves around a small town that becomes covered in a mist that holds otherworldly creatures. Whensurvivors become trapped in a supermarket, tensions ariseas some start to question whether they are experiencing a religious event.

The ending toThe Misthas gotten a lot of attention in recent years because of how unflinching it is even if there is sizable debate as to whether it is earned the attention. Branching off from Kings ending, which had the group of five survivorsdriving off into the mist where their fate was uncertain, director Frank Darabont (The Walking Dead) manages to cut out any ambiguity while making the ending even more bleak.

As the group of survivors travel through the mist, their spirits are crushed after they see an impossibly tall creature beforerunning out of gas. Believingthey are doomed, the group decides that death by gun is better than getting torn apart by the creatures. David Drayton (Thomas Jane) then takes the gun and shoots all four passengers, including his son, before going outside to die after running out of bullets. But just then, the army rolls through the mist along with survivors from earlier in the film the group was less than a minute away from being saved.

The satirical, meta-horror film TheCabin in the Woods, was a breath of fresh air for the horror genre when it was released in 2012. Written by Joss Whedon (The Avengers), the film found a humorous way to turn the horror genres long-running tropes into an overarching structure, in which nearly every horror film that came before it could exist in the same world.

But despite the films playful take on the genre, it didnt exactly concludein an upbeat way. When the films two protagonists escape into anunderground facility, theyimmediately release legions of imprisoned monsters, monsters thatpromptly slaughternearly everyonein the facility,including the technicians we have been following throughoutthe film.

Finally, met with a decision to save all of humanity by continuing the ritual and sacrificing themselves, the pair decide that it might be time to let the Ancient Ones monstrous, God-like forces awaken. Just like that, the film ends with a giant hand emerging from the Earth with an impending doomsday. And you also cant help but feel they were being just a little bit selfish in the grand scheme of things.

Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Backmight not be as much of a downer when you consider its the middle part of a trilogy, but theres no doubt that the film stands as one of the greatest examples of a film where the heroes lose at seemingly every turn. That reason alone is why the film is considered to have one of the best cliffhanger endings of all-time.

With Luke Skywalker separated from Han Solo, Leia, and the rest of the gang for the films middle act, things start to get exciting when its clear the characters are on their way toward a reunion, presumably totriumph over Darth Vader and the Empire. But even before Luke gets there, its clear things wont be that simple.

Han is frozen in carbonate and handed over to Boba Fett, while Luke arrives just in time to fall into Darth Vaders trap. And just when you think Luke is holding his own with Yodas training,his hand is cut off sending his lightsaber spiraling into Cloud Citys air shaft as Darth Vader gives the infamous revelation, I am your father.

The Empire Strikes Backs endingwas best described in Kevin Smiths Clerks, as Dante Hicks and Randal Graves argue whetherReturn of the Jedi or Empire Strikes Back is better. Empire had the better ending. I mean, Luke gets his hand cut off, finds out Vaders his father, Han gets frozen and taken away by Boba Fett. It ends on such a down note. I mean, thats what life is, a series of down endings. All Jedi had was a bunch of Muppets.

Often considered writer Terry Gilliams masterpiece, Brazil is a dystopian sci-fi satire that revolves around a futuristic society that is needlessly convoluted and inefficient. This is due in large part to an over-reliance on poorly-maintained machines and a bureaucratic, totalitarian government. A member of that government,Sam Lowry (Jonathan Pryce) is alow-level government employee who spots an error, and in his attempt to fix it becomes embroiled in a situation that eventually sees him hunted down as a terrorist.

The ending of Brazil sees Gilliams satirical themes play out to their logical conclusion. AfterSam and Jill (Kim Greist) are captured by the government, they are rescued by resistance members who destroy the Ministry and send the pair off into the sunset as they drive away from the city.

If the studio had its way, this would have been the ending, but Gilliam fought tooth and nail to make sure his original ending remained. In the directors cut, the film cuts back to the Ministry to reveal that Sam is still strapped to a chair the happy ending has all been a product of Sams imagination.

One of the creepiest films ever made, Rosemarys Baby isnot only a horror classic, but one of the greatest films ever made. Directed by Roman Polanski and starring Mia Farrow and John Cassavetes, Rosemarys Baby tells the story of a couple who moves into a Manhattan apartment building where Rosemary (Farrow) begins to suspect that her eccentric neighbors and husband have entered into a occult pact for her unborn child.

At the end of the film, Rosemary finds herself waking up in her apartment andis told that her baby has died during birth. But soon after, she cant help but noticewhat sounds like a baby crying and discovers a secret door that leads to her neighbors apartment. There she discoversa congregationof people, including her husband and neighbors, gathered around her son. However, this is no ordinary son; it is the spawn of Satan. And after responding in horror,she moves toward her child and begins to rock the cradle slowly, with a smile.

The Coen brothers No Country for Old Men is one of the clearest examples of a modern classic. Starring Josh Brolin, Javier Bardem, and Tommy Lee Jones as three very different characters on a collision course revolving around a missing bag of $2 million.No Country for Old Menis one of the Coen brothers most successful films to date, earninga slew of Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Supporting Actor (Bardem).

Butone aspect of the film that was discussed heavily following its release, was the ending. Llewelyn Moss (Brolin), who feels very much like the main protagonist of the film, is killed off screen no less with about 20 minutes left of the film. From there, Ed Tom Bell (Jones) takes up the majority of the films narrative thrust while antagonist, Anton Chigurh(Bardem) escapes withthe $2million, despite getting into a major car wreck. We are then left with a scene of a retired Ed Tom relating to his wife a dream that echoesthe theme of the book: This is no country for old men.

The death of Llewelyn aside, the ending is incredibly somberin that it shows a man who no longer feels capable of fighting back against evil a man who essentially gives up. This is made evident by a scene in which Ed Tom becomes aware he has cornered Chigurh in a motel, but decides against confronting him. From that moment, what follows is basically a story where our hero has decided to give up against the villain, considering himselfoutmatched against what the future is bringing.Its an ending that you dont see very often, but fits perfectly within the themes outlined in the film.

A modern classic of the psychological-thriller genre, Se7en inspired an entire genre of dark, sinister crime-thrillers. But nothing has matched the grim world portrayed in Se7en, where crime and urban decay has enveloped an entire city in grime.

While the film is oftenremembered for its gruesome murder scenes related to the seven deadly sins, ithas gained much more notoriety for its unbelievably bleak ending.After the serial killer, John Doe (Kevin Spacey) turns himself in, his defense lawyer tells Detective Somerset (Morgan Freeman) and Mills (Brad Pitt) that Doewill either lead them to the last two bodies and confess to the crimes or plead insanity. Believing that theres no harm in going along with it now that the killer is in custody, they escort him to the desert.

With the three of them alone in the desert (with police backup of course), the detectivesnerves are rattled when a deliverytruck drops off a box and inside the box, Somerset discovers the head of Mills wife, Tracy. As Doe attempts to get Somerset to shoot him for the sin of envy, then becoming the deadly sin of wrath, Somerset tries his best to talk Mills down. But its no good.

Whats in the box? Whats in the box? Mills says over and over again. Finally, once Doe reveals that Tracy was pregnant, something Mills wasnt aware of, its simply too much he shoots Doe, completing the murderers design.

Alfred Hitchcocks Vertigonotably received mixed reviews upon release, before becoming widely consideredthe greatest film of his career in the decades following. Based on the novel,Dentre les mortsbyBoileau-Narcejac, Vertigo tells the story of a former police detective, John Scottie Ferguson (James Stewart), who is forced into retirement following theonset of acrophobia. Heis then hired as a private investigator to investigate Madeleine a woman who appears to be possessedby the spirit of a dead relative.

The ending of Vertigois maddeningly tragic, which may be the reason the film took several decades to be considered one of Hitchcocks best. After Scottiewitnesses what he believes isMadeleines suicide, he is sent into amentaltailspin and eventually becomes obsessed with a woman named Judy Barton, who seems to strongly resembleMadeleine. After a flashback reveals that Judy and Madeleine are one and the same, Scottie soon realizes that he has been had when he notices Judy wearing a necklacerelated to the deception.

The revelation pushes Scottie to bring Judy to the Mission San Juan Bautista, the location of the supposed suicide. As Scottie walksher to the top of the bell tower, overcoming his acrophobia in the process, Judy finally confesses that it was part of a plot, but that she truly loves him and is sorry. As they embrace, a ghostly figure appears from the stairs causing Judy to stumble backward and fall to her death the exact same way as was set up earlier. The ghostly figure, now revealed to be a nun, begins ringing the mission bell as Scottie looks down in horror. If he thought the death of Madeleine was rough, the death of Judy is boundto be that much worse.

Forgetthe 2013 Spike Lee version of Oldboythe original 2003 Korean version directed by Park Chan-wook is a masterpiece in auteur filmmaking. Based on the manga of the same name, Oldboytells the story of Oh Dae-suand his 15 year imprisonment and subsequent release. Once hes set free, Oh Dae-su goes on a manic, bloodthirsty quest for vengeanceto discover why he was imprisoned and whos responsible.

The ending of Oldboy is the stuff of legends, and is not for the faint of heart. After tracking down his captor and discovering what it was that landed him in a private prison for 15years, Oh Dae-su quickly finds that he is still the victim of his games. In the ensuing confrontation, his captor reveals that the woman Oh Dae-su has entered into a sexual relationship with, Mi-do, is actually his daughter. Worse yet, the information is also revealed toMi-do.

Oh Dae-sus senseof control is thoroughly shattered and he begs his captor to not reveal the information, going as far as to cut out his own tongue. Later, Oh Dae-su hypnotizes himself in order to forget the information, and when he embraces Mi-do its not entirely clear whether it has worked. And even if it has, ignorance isnt necessarily bliss in this case.

One of the greatest films ever made, Roman Polanskis Chinatown is a neo-noirstarring Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway. The film was inspired by the California Water Wars at the beginning of the 20th century. JakeGittes (Nicholson) is a private investigator who gets roped into a case that eventually snowballs into something far beyond his control. He finds out the hard way that hes incapable of standing up to the evil that Noah Cross (John Huston) represents.

After Gittes makes plans for Evelyn (Dunaway) and her daughter, Katherines, escape to Mexico, he then confronts Cross who quickly forces him to lead them to the pair in Chinatown. Once they arrive, the police are already waiting and detain Gittesas Cross approaches Katherine his daughter of incest with Evelyn. But Evelyn shoots Cross in the arm and takes off down the road in her car as the police open fire, killing her. Then, Cross takes Katherine and leads her away as Gittes looks on helplessly. Forget it, Jake, they tell him. Its Chinatown.

One of the most tragic endings in all of cinema, Gittess attempts at fulfilling the usual role of the victorious private eye are dashed in all respects. The police are unwilling to hear out the conspiracy he has discovered, his love interest has been killed, and the villain has succeeded inretrieving Katherineand fulfilling his plans. Instead, Gittes is left knowing that not only has he lost every battle waged, but he is powerless to fight back against the enormous evil that exists in the world.

Additional reporting by Michelle Regalado.

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10 Movies With the Most Sad and Depressing Endings - The Cheat Sheet