The most impactful final lines in popular movies summarize the story, promise more adventures, or make for a thrilling finale. They imply that the main characters will continue to undertake dangerous missions, or that they have a promising future ahead of them. On the other hand, a less optimistic final line is usually intended to sum up a movie’s dark but important commentary.
Ultimately, the best last lines of movies maximize on their chance to leave the audience with something when they leave the theater. Maybe they will feel empowered, or contemplative, or simply entertained. An artfully written line that reflects the movie’s themes and effecively conveys them to the audience will have the biggest impact.
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10 “All Right, Mr. DeMille, I’m Ready For My Close-Up.”
Sunset Blvd. (1950)
Sunset Blvd. is primarily about the faded actress Norma Desmond who cannot let go of her dream of making a comeback. Her long-suffering butler writes her “fan mail” so she can continue to believe this. After screenwriter Joe Gillis informs her of this and the harsh reality that her career is over, Norma shoots him. In Sunset Blvd.’s ending, the police and press have overrun Norma’s mansion, but she believes that they are there for a film shoot. Her famous haunting final line, stating that she’s “ready for [her] close-up,” rounds out the movie’s cynical depiction of Hollywood and its forgotten stars.
9 “And In That Moment, I Swear We Are Infinite.”
The Perks Of Being A Wallflower (2012)
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Based on the novel by Stephen Chbosky, The Perks of Being a Wallflower tells the story of Charlie Kelmeckis, a high school freshman with a troubled past and history of mental health issues whose friendship with two seniors comes to define his first year of high school in surprising and dramatic ways. Logan Lerman stars as Charlies, alongside Emma Watson and Ezra Miller.
- Release Date
- September 20, 2012
- Director
- Stephen Chbosky
- Cast
- Emma Watson , logan lerman , Ezra Miller , Paul Rudd , Nina Dobrev
- Runtime
- 105minutes
The Perks of Being a Wallflower is about a group of outcast high school students dealing with love and life and helping each other heal. After a heartbreaking reveal, the final scene shows the protagonist Charlie standing up in the back of a truck while his best friends Sam and Patrick drive them along a highway. Charlie narrates the empowering feeling that they “are infinite.” The moment is supposed to reflect how Charlie is able to live with his trauma, and the viewer will hopefully walk away believing they can also cope with the hardest parts of their life.
8 “I Think This Is The Beginning Of A Beautiful Friendship.”
Casablanca (1942)
Casablanca
Set in Morocco against the backdrop of the Second World War, Casablanca stars Humphrey Bogart as Rick Blaine, a nightclub owner whose past comes back to haunt him when an old lover comes to ask for his help in smuggling her and her current husband out of the Nazi-occupied city. Ingrid Bergman stars alongside Bogart as Ilsa, with a further cast that includes Paul Henreid, Claude Rains, and Dooley Wilson.
- Release Date
- November 26, 1942
- Director
- Michael Curtiz
- Cast
- Humphrey Bogart , Ingrid Bergman , Paul Henreid , Claude Rains , Conrad Veidt , Sydney Greenstreet
- Runtime
- 102 minutes
Casablanca’s ending implies that the movie is about more than a love triangle. Rick Blaine convinces his former girlfriend Isla Lund to go to America with her husband Victor Laszlo. Rick then shoots and kills the Nazi Major Strasser to enable the couple’s escape.
However, the French police officer Captain Louis Renault, who tipped Strasser off about Laszlo’s escape, lets Rick go after killing Strasser and suggests that they join the Free French in Brazzaville. Rick famously responds that he believes it is “the beginning of a beautiful friendship.” It is a moving scene that tells the audience these two characters will continue to help people after having their outlook changed by the events of the movie.
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7 “Where We’re Going, We Don’t Need Roads!”
Back To The Future (1985)
Back to the Future
Marty McFly, a 17-year-old high school student, is accidentally sent 30 years into the past in a time-traveling DeLorean invented by his close friend, the maverick scientist Doc Brown. In 1955, he meets his parents when they were his age, and must step in to make sure they wind up together before he gets back to 1985.
- Release Date
- July 3, 1985
- Director
- Robert Zemeckis
- Cast
- Claudia Wells , Christopher Lloyd , James Tolkan , Thomas F. Wilson , Michael J. Fox , Wendie Jo Sperber , Crispin Glover , Marc McClure , Lea Thompson
- Runtime
- 116 minutes
Back to the Future is supposed to be a comedic adventure about the exciting possibility of time travel, with no mistakes that cannot be fixed. The first movie focuses solely on Marty trying to get back to his own time from the past. Therefore, it seems like Marty will never have the chance to see the chance to see the future. That is until Doc pulls up to the McFly family’s house and frantically says that they have to go “back to the future,” for a reprise of the famous title drop.
While Back to the Future’s ending was not written with a sequel confirmed, Doc’s statement that they “don’t need roads” where they are going is as much of a promise that they are going to the future as anything. Marty and Doc instantly became beloved characters for their wacky adventures and hilarious dynamic. This ending assures the audience that they can continue to imagine them that way, even if they never see it.
6 “Yeah.”
John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum (2019)
John Wick gruffly saying “Yeah” is one of the recurring staples of the franchise, but it is especially effective as the last line of John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum. The only John Wick movie with a subtitle, which means “prepare for war,” John is asserting that he will prepare to continue fighting in the sequel. This is despite having just been shot several times and fallen off a roof. The resilience of the main character is also a pillar of the franchise; this line lets the audience know that they will continue to be astounded by how much he can withstand.
5 “This Is Ripley, Last Survivor Of The Nostromo, Signing Off.”
Alien (1979)
alien
Alien is a sci-fi horror film released in 1979, set in a retro-future setting aboard a spaceship known as the Nostromo. En route to return to earth, the crew of the Nostromo investigates a distress signal from a derelict spaceship. When the investigation leads to a strange alien discovery, the crew’s lives are jeopardized as the new, unknown life form hunts them relentlessly.
- Release Date
- June 22, 1979
- Director
- Ridley Scott
- Cast
- Sigourney Weaver , Ian Holm , John Hurt , Veronica Cartwright , Harry Dean Stanton , Tom Skerritt , Yaphet Kotto
- Runtime
- 117 minutes
Ellen Ripley demonstrates that she is one of the most determined and clever characters in science fiction when she is able to survive the Xenopmorph killing off everyone else aboard the spaceship the Nostromo. In Alien’s ending, Ripley finally kills the alien before recording an entry log stating that she is the only survivor before going into stasis. Her chilling final line says it all: The movie is a horror set in space where the main characters are killed off one by one. The quote also cements Ripley as a now iconic character.
4 “Bring Me That Horizon.”
Pirates Of The Caribbean: The Curse Of The Black Pearl (2003)
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
The Curse of the Black Pearl is the film that kickstarted the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, a series of supernatural swashbuckling adventures. In 1720, blacksmith Will Turner teams up with eccentric pirate “Captain” Jack Sparrow to save his love, the governor’s daughter Elizabeth Swann, from Jack’s former pirate allies, who are now undead.
- Release Date
- July 9, 2003
- Director
- Gore Verbinski
- Cast
- Orlando Bloom , Jack Davenport , Geoffrey Rush , Johnny Depp , Keira Knightley
- Runtime
- 143 minutes
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl was a surprise smash hit, revolving around Johnny Depp’s Captain Jack Sparrow, a character who is after adventure for the sake of it. The movie’s ending doesn’t necessarily confirm that there will be a sequel, but it leaves open the possibility for more adventure. The “bring me that horizon line,” improvised by Depp, is awe-inspiring and reflective of the entire movie. It is technically followed up by Jack humming some lines from “A Pirate’s Life for Me,” for one last Easter Egg from the ride which inspired the movie.
3 “Well, Nobody’s Perfect.”
Some Like It Hot (1959)
Some Like It Hot
Some Like It Hot is a comedy crime film starring Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, and Jack Lemmon. Directed by Billy Wilder, Some Like it Hot is set in Prohibition-era Chicago and centers on two musicians named Joe and Jerry who go on the run and disguise themselves as women after witnessing a mob hit.
- Release Date
- March 15, 1959
- Director
- Billy Wilder
- Cast
- Marilyn Monroe , Tony Curtis , Jack Lemmon , George Raft , Pat O’Brien , Joe E. Brown
- Runtime
- 121 Minutes
Some Like it Hot follows two musicians who dress as women and go on the run after witnessing a murder. It is noted for being ahead of its time for its depiction of gender and sexuality. No moment in the movie captures this better than the last line. Jerry reveals that he is a man to his admirer Osgood, who wants to marry his female persona Daphne. Osgood casually responds, “Well, nobody’s perfect.” This is regarded as an impactful cinematic moment because of how Osgood regards Jerry’s gender as a non-issue.
2 “Ernest Hemingway Once Wrote, ‘The World Is A Fine Place And Worth Fighting For.’ I Agree With The Second Part.”
Se7en (1995)
Se7en
David Fincher’s crime thriller Se7en follows the seasoned Detective William Somerset after he is assigned a new partner, the young and idealistic David Mills (Brad Pitt). The two find themselves investigating a deranged killer staging murders inspired by each of the seven deadly sins. On the hunt for the twisted John Doe (Kevin Spacey) before he can kill again, the two detectives soon discover that they’re much deeper into the case than they realized.
- Release Date
- September 22, 1995
- Director
- David Fincher
- Cast
- Brad Pitt , gwyneth paltrow , John C. McGinley , Morgan Freeman , Kevin Spacey
- Runtime
- 127 minutes
Se7en’s ending is still one of the most shocking movie finales in history. Detectives Somerset and Mills spend the movie tracking down the serial killer known only as John Doe, whose murders each represent one of the seven deadly sins. In the movie’s final scene, the final part of Doe’s Machiavellian plan is revealed, and Mills symbolically becomes the final sin.
Somerset then decides not to retire after all, quoting Hemingway to explain that he will continue to fight for people’s safety. Se7en is by no means a happy movie, implying throughout that the world is a brutal place. However, the final line is almost uplifting.
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1 “I Am Iron Man”
Iron Man (2008)
Iron Man
Iron Man is the first film in the long-running Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise. Robert Downey Jr. stars as Tony Stark, who becomes Iron Man after he is kidnapped and discovers terrorists are using weapons developed by Stark Industries. Gwyneth Paltrow stars as Tony’s love interest Pepper Potts alongside Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan and Jeff Bridges as the villainous Obadiah Stane.
- Release Date
- May 2, 2008
- Director
- Jon Favreau
- Cast
- Robert Downey Jr. , Jeff Bridges , gwyneth paltrow , Terrence Howard , Leslie Bibb , Shaun Toub , Clark Gregg , Paul Bettany
- Runtime
- 126 minutes
It is hard to believe that Robert Downey Jr. improvised the “I am Iron Man” line when it is now so strongly associated with the character. The famous line also reflects Tony Stark’s character development during the first Iron Man movie. After seeing the damage his weapons are causing, he shuts down his company’s weapons production and goes on to become Iron Man. The first movie sets Tony on a path to becoming who he needs to be for the rest of the MCU. It is a line that uniquely becomes more impactful with every rewatch.
