A shocking plot twist in a movie often catches audiences off guard. However, if fans take a closer look, they’ll notice brilliant moments of foreshadowing that gave away the surprise. Indeed, a great filmmaker adds in little hints that reveal the shocking moment without audiences noticing. Of course, fans only catch these clues when re-watching the movie multiple times.
In some cases, the director will frame a scene that subtly indicates the characters’ shocking death. Other times, a character reveals the twist with a simple line of dialogue. These are all clever little clues that the audience often misses.
Interstellar
Interstellar revolves around Matthew McConaughey’s Cooper and a group of astronauts that travel into a wormhole hoping to find a new home for humans. At the start of the movie, Cooper’s daughter Murphy notices strange occurrences around her bookcase. She’s sure there’s a ghost in the room.
Of course, the big twist reveals that Cooper travels to another dimension and uses the bookcase to talk to Murphy throughout time. However, the movie brilliantly foreshadows the twist with the first piece of dialogue. After Cooper startles Murphy, she says to her father, “I thought you were my ghost.” In the end, Cooper turned out to be the ghost behind the bookcase after all.
Fight Club
Fight Club follows the disillusioned Narrator, played by Edward Norton, who forms a fight club with soap salesman Tyler Durden, played by Brad Pitt. Of course, the iconic plot twist reveals that the Narrator and Tyler are one person. The memorable twist shocked audiences and critics who didn’t see the ending coming. However, the movie drops several subtle yet clever hints about this turn.
Before the Narrator meets Tyler, the audience sees rapid flashes of Tyler at the hospital, the group meeting, and on the street. Later, the Narrator beats himself up to blackmail his boss. During the fight, he mentions thinking of his first fight with Tyler. Of course, in both cases, the Narrator is fighting with himself. The simple line foreshadows that Tyler is just a figment of his imagination.
Skyfall
At the end of Skyfall, former MI6 agent Raoul Silva shockingly kills M. The death caught many fans off guard since Judi Dench portrayed M since 1995, surprising fans and breaking their hearts. Of course, Skyfall features several hidden references and clues throughout the movie about this death.
In fact, it drops a significant hint in the opening credits that foreshadows M’s death. During the iconic opening montage, the camera zooms in on a tombstone after Dench’s name appears on the screen. The subtle moment is a striking clue that the movie would kill off Dench’s character.
The Departed
Despite The Departed celebrating its 15th anniversary in 2021, fans are still finding hidden clues that are easy to miss. The Departed features several shocking deaths, but each one includes a slight hint. Director Martin Scorsese cleverly uses an “X” to indicate that a character’s death is imminent.
Both Colin Sullivan and Billy Costigan appear in scenes where an “X” is noticeable. For instance, Sullivan passes by graffiti on the street with a giant “X” spray-painted in the background. Furthermore, moments before Costigan’s death, he stands in an elevator with two pieces of tape forming an “X” behind his head. Of course, Scorsese’s technique is so subtle that fans need to re-watch the movie multiple times to find all the clues.
The Prestige
In The Prestige, Alfred Borden and Robert Angier wanted to create the greatest illusion, “The Transported Man.” The ending reveals two major mind-bending plot twists. First, Alfred has a twin brother Freddy, and they’ve been living one life. Second, Angier’s been creating clones of himself and killing them off. However, the movie brilliantly foreshadows the twists with the birdcage trick.
The trick involves killing a bird and then using a second one to make it appear alive. Early in the movie, a young boy figures out the trick and asks about the bird’s brother. The line hints that Alfred has a twin. Alfred and Freddy are similar to the birds as one escapes free while the other dies in jail. In addition, the trick also foreshadows Angier killing his clone to frame Borden.
The Shawshank Redemption
The Shawshank Redemption features a daring prison escape and earth-shattering plot twist. For starters, Tim Robbins’ and Morgan Freeman’s characters often got away with some wild plans, like how Andy Dufresne spent years using a rock hammer to tunnel his way out of Shawshank State Prison.
At one point, the warden passes Andy’s cell. He picks up Andy’s bible and notes, “Salvation lies within.” Of course, Andy agrees because he hid the rock hammer in the bible. Indeed, salvation literally lies within the bible. The throwaway line makes perfect sense once the warden opens the bible to find the rock hammer’s hiding place. The incredible twist and foreshadowing helped turn the movie into one of the greatest of all time.
Shutter Island
In Shutter Island, Deputy Marshal Teddy Daniels and his partner Chuck investigate a missing person’s case at a mental health hospital on the titular island. The movie’s shocking twist reveals that Teddy is a patient at the facility, and Chuck is one of his doctors. A very subtle clue foreshadows the plot twist at the start of the movie.
Early in the movie, Chuck struggled to remove his gun from the holster as they enter the hospital. Of course, the reason he struggles is that he doesn’t have experience using a firearm. The subtle moment hints that they’re not U.S. Marshals and really a patient and doctor.
Seven
Seven follows Detectives David Mills and William Somerset tracking a serial killer, John Doe. Of course, the film also features one of the most shocking plot twists, as Doe has a box delivered to Mills containing his wife Tracy’s head. The horrifying moment elevated Seven to a whole new level. It also caught audiences off guard who didn’t see the ending coming.
However, there are several things fans don’t know about the making of Seven. For instance, director David Fincher foreshadowed the twist in the way he shot Tracy’s character. Indeed, he often filmed her from the neck up, which hints at her gruesome beheading. In addition, the shots of Tracy’s head take place right before discussing John Doe’s next victim.
Get Out
Get Out revolves around Daniel Kaluuya’s Chris Washington meeting his girlfriend Rose’s family for the first time. However, it turns out that the antagonists kidnap Black victims and take possession of their bodies. Indeed, even Rose’s grandmother possesses the creepy housekeeper Georgina.
Of course, Get Out features classic horror easter eggs that reveal the twist. Early in the movie, Rose’s father notes his mother loved the kitchen, “so we keep a piece of her in there.” Right after the line, the camera reveals Georgina standing in the middle of the kitchen. The incredible scene and dialogue foreshadow the plot. It also hints at Georgian’s possession.
Psycho
In Psycho, Marion Crane overhears Norman Bates having several intense arguments with his mother, Norma. Of course, the shocking twist reveals that his mother’s been dead for months, but Norman preserved her body. In fact, he continued to dress her remains and argue with her. The plot twist was so shocking it had audiences jumping out of their seats and running for the exit.
However, a scene between Norman and Marion reveals the twist midway through the movie. Norman points to the taxidermy birds on his wall and states his mother is as “harmless as those stuffed birds.” Indeed, Norman maintained his mother’s body like the birds on the wall. The subtle line foretells the shocking moment Norma’s rotting corpse appears on the screen.
