The 10 Best Movie Endings of the Last 5 Years, Ranked (2024)

There is an argument to be made that there is no part of a movie more important than its ending. The conclusion is what audiences go home with, the moments that make or break the reception of a film. A good ending can recontextualize an entire story or just bring it to a delightfully satisfying close, and thankfully for movie fans, the past five years have been treated to several masterfully executed endings like that.

2019 and the 2020s have been an interesting time for films. With the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the industry, different kinds and waves of movies have come out and surprised audiences over the past few years. The most exceptional of these movies have some incredible endings, a few of which are bound to go down in history as some of the best in their genre.

There are spoilers ahead!

10 'Anora' (2024)

Directed by Sean Baker

Sean Baker's Anora is the most recent recipient of the Cannes Film Festival's coveted Palme d'Or, and deservedly so. It focuses on the titular character, a young Brooklyn sex worker who meets and impulsively marries the son of a Russian oligarch. Once the news reaches Russia, though, their fairytale romance is threatened as his parents fly to New York to have the marriage annulled.

With Anora, Baker continues his mission to masterfully blend the most hilarious comedy and the most gut-wrenching poignancy to destigmatize sex workers and dive deep into the lives of those on the fringes of society. Following a hectic two hours, however, the final twenty minutes of the movie bring the pacing to a crawl. This is by design. Baker spends these precious last moments allowing the emotional intensity of Anora's journey to sink in. She comes face to face with the first man she's met who doesn't see her as an object, who doesn't give love to her transactionally, and she can't help but break down in tears. As a viewer, it's abundantly easy to do the same, making this one of the most depressing movies of the 2020s thus far.

Anora

Release Date

October 18, 2024

Director

Sean Baker

Cast

Mikey Madison , Mark Eydelshteyn , Karren Karagulian , Yuriy Borisov , Vache Tovmasyan , Ivy Wolk , Luna Sofía Miranda , Ross Brodar , Lindsey Normington , Darya Ekamasova , Emily Weider , Alena Gurevich , Masha Zhak , Paul Weissman , Charlton Lamar , Aleksey Serebryakov , Ella Rubin , Vincent Radwinsky , Michael Sergio , Brittney Rodriguez , Sophia Carnabuci , Anton Bitter , Zoë Vnak

Runtime

139 Minutes

Writers

Sean Baker

9 'The Green Knight' (2021)

Directed by David Lowery

High fantasy at its very best and perhaps the greatest Arthurian adaptation of the 21st century, David Lowery's The Green Knight is an arthouse take on the classic story of Sir Gawain. It's an epic fantasy aventure where King Arthur's headstrong nephew embarks on a dangerous quest to confront the Green Knight, a mysterious stranger who one day arrives at the King's court and proposes a challenge: Any knight who can land a blow on him will win his green axe, but must travel to see him the following Christmas to receive an equal blow. Gawain, reckless, beheads the knight, who then picks up his head and exits the court, reminding Gawain of his promise.

The Green Knight is one of the best fantasy movies of the last five years, and that's in no small measure thanks to its powerhouse conclusion. In the last few minutes of the movie, Gawain finally reaches the Green Knight, but flees before the warrior cuts off his head. What follows is a riveting sequence chronicling Gawain becoming a reviled king before he dies in a siege. That is then revealed to have been a vision. Gawain accepts his fate and the screen cuts to black before the audience learns what happened. Ambiguous in all the best ways, this ending flawlessly caps off the film's themes of honor and chivalry, gorgeously directed by Lowery at the top of his game.

The Green Knight

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Release Date

July 29, 2021

Director

David Lowery

Cast

Dev Patel , Alicia Vikander , Joel Edgerton , Sarita Choudhury , Sean Harris , Kate Dickie

Runtime

125 minutes

Writers

David Lowery

8 'Tár' (2022)

Directed by Todd Field

Todd Field has only made three feature films, all of them several years apart (sixteen years passed between his second and third movies). Nevertheless, or perhaps especially because of that, he's a creative voice that never fails to be exciting. His latest project, Tár, may just be his best so far. It's about Lydia Tár, widely considered one of the greatest living composer-conductors, until forces out of her control start to chip away at her seemingly spotless façade.

One of the best movies of the decade so far, Tár is bolstered by a jaw-dropping performance by the legendary Cate Blanchett and one of the most complex character study screenplays in recent years. The film's cryptic, very slow-burning atmosphere is a feature, not a bug, and it all comes together in the ending. A tragicomic conclusion worthy of an epic ancient poem, the story ends with Lydia conducting a Monster Hunter concert. Though it's extremely open to interpretation (with some even theorizing that this sequence is actually a hallucination), the message at the back of the scene is clear: Tár's pretentiousness, elitism, and abuse of power have come to bite her in the rear.

TÁR

Release Date

October 7, 2022

Director

Todd Field

Cast

Cate Blanchett , Noemie Merlant , Nina Hoss , Sophie Kauer , Julian Glover

Runtime

2 hr 38 min

Watch on Starz

7 'The Substance' (2024)

Directed by Coralie Fargeat

One of the most daring, creative, and potently grotesque body horror movies of the 21st century, The Substance is an intrepid horror comedy that pushes all kinds of buttons with glee. It's about fading celebrity Elisabeth Sparkle, who takes a black-market drug that temporarily creates a younger, better version of herself called Sue. Things soon start taking a turn toward the sinister and bloody — very, very bloody.

The film's nearly 2-and-a-half-hour runtime flies right by, partly thanks to Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley's explosive performances, and partly thanks to what's easily one of the best endings of the past decade. Having eliminated Elisabeth, Sue's body starts to deteriorate. Against the supplier's indication, she tries to use The Substance on herself, which turns her into a monstrous hybrid of her and Elisabeth. What follows is a hilariously grotesque and gory sequence of events that brings the movie's themes of self-destruction and the effects of Hollywood's female beauty standards to a flawless close.

The Substance

Release Date

September 20, 2024

Director

Coralie Fargeat

Cast

Demi Moore , Margaret Qualley , Dennis Quaid , Gore Abrams , Hugo Diego Garcia , Olivier Raynal , Tiffany Hofstetter , Tom Morton , Jiselle Burkhalter , Axel Baille , Oscar Lesage , Matthew Géczy , Philip Schurer

Runtime

140 Minutes

Writers

Coralie Fargeat

Studio(s)

Working Title Films , A Good Story

6 'Parasite' (2019)

Directed by Bong Joon Ho

The first-ever foreign film that's won a Best Picture Academy Award, the masterful South Korean thriller dramedy Parasite is about greed and class frictions threatening the newly-formed symbiotic relationship between the wealthy Park family and the destitute Kim clan. Director Bong Joon Ho juggles genres like an undisputed pro in one of the most intense films of what was perhaps the best year for cinema in the 2010s.

It may be pretty recent, but Parasite can already be counted among the terrific international films that every cinephile should watch at least once. The showstopping third act is full of suspense, murder, betrayal, and dark twists of irony that cement the film's narrative as an absolutely unforgettable one. Parasite's messages on class conflict and wealth disparity may not be particularly subtle, but the ending ensures that they pack one hell of a wallop.

Parasite

Where to Watch

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Release Date

May 8, 2019

Director

Bong Joon-ho

Cast

Seo Joon Park , Kang-ho Song , Seon-gyun Lee , Yeo-Jeong Jo , Woo-sik Choi , Hye-jin Jang

Runtime

132 minutes

Writers

Bong Joon-ho , Jin Won Han

5 'Past Lives' (2023)

Directed by Celine Song

Celine Song's Past Lives may seem like a romantic drama on the surface, but if one looks deep down enough, it becomes clear that it's really not. In it, deeply-connected childhood friends Nora and Hae Sung drift apart after her family moves to Canada. Twenty years later, they are reunited for one fateful week in New York City, Nora now married, as they confront notions of love and destiny. Rather than a love story, it's a raw, tear-inducing examination of the very reality and nature of love itself.

It's incredible that Past Lives is a directing debut, as Song directs with such heart and pathos that one might think she's been at it for decades. Tender yet poignant, sweet yet mercilessly realistic, the movie's ending sees Hae Sung and Nora exchange longing looks before Hae Sung goes back to Korea, thinking about past and future lives where they might have ended up together. But that's not life. It's not an idealized fairy tale of fateful reconnections, but rather a reality where soulmates — if they do exist — can very much be pulled in different paths by life. It's a deeply sad ending, but ultimately, also a beautifully life-affirming one.

Past Lives

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See Also

https://www.hulu.com/series/second-chance-stage-73d6f452-b0ee-48e0-a923-65d2235f3e51

*Availability in US

Release Date

June 23, 2023

Director

Celine Song

Cast

Greta Lee , John Magaro , Teo Yoo , Moon Seung-ah

Runtime

106 minutes

Writers

Celine Song

4 'Oppenheimer' (2023)

Directed by Christopher Nolan

Not since his early days had Christopher Nolan been as good as he is in Oppenheimer. The writer-director's latest outing is an exploration of the psyche of the man behind the creation of the atomic bomb, J. Robert Oppenheimer. The story chronicles his path through World War II and the Cold War, in a profoundly intimate character study that, like one can expect from any Nolan film at this point, does away with any sort of straightforward structure or chronology.

Despite its 3-hour runtime and its R rating (typically, though not always, not a great aid to a film's box office numbers), Oppenheimer was a smash hit, proving that Nolan's name is more than enough to pull people into theaters. The film ends with a flashback of a conversation between Oppenheimer and Albert Einstein. Oppenheimer, mortified, ponders whether his creation has sealed the fate of the world, certainly not in a good way. Nolan ends with a shot of Earth being destroyed by a nuclear apocalypse, one of the rare instances of the director using CGI in the movie — which gives it even more of a punch. Oppenheimer feels terrifyingly timely, and its brutal ending really drives that point home.

Oppenheimer

Where to Watch

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Release Date

July 21, 2023

Director

Christopher Nolan

Cast

Cillian Murphy , Matt Damon , Robert Downey Jr. , Emily Blunt , Alden Ehrenreich , Scott Grimes , Jason Clarke , Tony Goldwyn

Runtime

180 minutes

Writers

Kai Bird , Christopher Nolan , Martin J. Sherwin

Studio

Universal Pictures

3 'Everything Everywhere All At Once' (2022)

Directed by Daniel Scheinert and Daniel Kwan

Indie sci-fi comedies have never been as fun, emotional, or monumentally existential as Everything Everywhere All At Once, one of the few movies of the past 5 years that are genuinely perfect throughout. It's about Evelyn, a middle-aged Chinese immigrant who's confronted with the adventure of a thousand lifetimes when she learns that only she, by tapping into the lives that she could have led in other universes, can save reality from complete annihilation.

Massively ambitious in its scale, visuals, story, and deeply philosophical themes, Everything Everywhere culminates in a third act so big that it by all means should crumble under the weight of how much it has going on. And yet, it doesn't. Evelyn and her daughter Joy reconcile, saving the day through the power of a mother's love and a daughter's forgiveness. In the final scene, Evelyn can still hear every single reality in her head at the same time, but she's learned to find peace in all the noise and pay her taxes alongside her loving husband with a smile on her face.

Everything Everywhere All at Once

Where to Watch

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*Availability in US

Release Date

March 25, 2022

Director

Daniel Kwan , Daniel Scheinert

Cast

Jenny Slate , Ke Huy Quan , Stephanie Hsu , Harry Shum Jr. , jamie lee curtis , James Hong , Michelle Yeoh

Runtime

132 minutes

Writers

Daniel Scheinert , Daniel Kwan

Studio

2 'Challengers' (2024)

Directed by Luca Guadagnino

Oscar Wilde famously said that "everything in the world is about sex, except sex. Sex is about power." Luca Guadagnino put a playful twist on that quote with Challengers, which proposes that everything in the world is about tennis, except tennis. Tennis is about sex. It's a steamy sports drama where Tashi, a former tennis prodigy, has become the coach of her husband, Art, and turned him into a champion. To overcome a losing streak, Art will have to face off against his former best friend and Tashi's ex-boyfriend, Patrick.

Under the film's seductive surface lies an incredibly complex and layered study of human relationships and the power structures inherent to romantic love, making this perhaps the best sports romance movie of the 21st century. The ending, with some of the most intrepid direction of any film of the 2020s — including shots from under the court and from the POV of the ball — sees Art and Patrick's match come to its explosive climax (pun very much intended). The music, the visuals, and Zendaya, Mike Faist, and Josh O'Connor's majestic performances make this third act so intensely great that it's easy to forget to breathe while watching it.

Challengers

Where to Watch

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*Availability in US

Release Date

April 26, 2024

Director

Luca Guadagnino

Cast

Zendaya , Mike Faist , Josh O'Connor , Darnell Appling , Bryan Doo , Shane T Harris , Nada Despotovich , Joan Mcshane , Chris Fowler , Mary Joe Fernández , A.J. Lister , Connor Aulson , Doria Bramante , Christine Dye , James Sylva , Kenneth A. Osherow , Kevin Collins , Burgess Byrd , Jason Tong , Hudson Rivera , Noah Eisenberg , Emma Davis , Naheem Garcia , Alex Bancila , Jake Jensen , Konrad Ryba , Hailey Gates , Andrew Rogers , Beverly Kristenson Helton , Brad Gilbert , Sam Xu , Caleb Schneider

Runtime

131 Minutes

Writers

Justin Kuritzkes

Studio(s)

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer , Pascal Pictures

1 'Aftersun' (2022)

Directed by Charlotte Wells

The past five years have shown that small-scale, deeply intimate stories can be just as massively powerful as big high-budget epics, and no film in this period of time has done so quite as successfully as Aftersun. It centers on Sophie and Calum, a daughter and father on an idyllic holiday in Turkey. Years after that trip, Sophie reflects on the joy and melancholy of that short period of time — which, Wells subtly suggests in the film's ending, might have been the last time she saw her father before his suicide.

The fact that the movie is loosely based on a trip Wells actually took with her father in her childhood makes it all-the-more touching and personal, and it's likely what allowed her to make the ending so devastatingly depressing. Subtle and very open for interpretation, but clear enough that melancholy washes over the viewer as they watch Sophie and Calum dance to a potently sad rendition of Queen and David Bowie's "Under Pressure", this conclusion is bound to leave no dry eye in the house. Despite its comparatively small scale, this ending has an unbelievably strong emotional effect, which is what makes it the best movie ending of the past half decade.

Aftersun

Where to Watch

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*Availability in US

Release Date

October 21, 2022

Director

Charlotte Wells

Cast

Paul Mescal , Frankie Corio , Celia Rowlson-Hall , Sally Messham

Runtime

96 minutes

Writers

Charlotte Wells

KEEP READING:The Most Unforgettable Movie Endings

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