It should go without saying, some spoilers and all that ensue:
10. The Godfather (1972)
An awful lot happens in the first 170 minutes of Coppola's master opus, and yet it couldn't have been blessed with a more concise, thoughtful, and appropriate conclusion. Having denied the truth of his occupation to his wife, Michael has his hands kissed by his new caporegimes – in essence, his new family – as the door closes on Kay, shutting her out of his life, a perfect expression of uncertainty and fear frozen on her face.
9. Shane (1953)
As a textbook specimen of the ultraspecific “travelling angel” subgenre, it's easy to guess from the opening of George Stevens' exquisite Western, which presents Shane riding into view over the mountainous horizon, that his exit will mirror his entrance accordingly. While riding off into the sunest may now be considered one of Hollywood's biggest cliches, this is one classic melodrama in which it really hits emotional paydirt, especially with young Joey calling after him, “Shane! Come back!”
8. Toy Story 3 (2010)
Is the sentimental capper of Pixar's lovable Toy Story trilogy too young to be considered one of the best movie endings ever? Not as far as I'm concerned. Chalk some of it up to nostalgia if you will, but anyone who grew up with these characters will be hard-pressed to fight back tears when Andy and his playthings bravely part company so another child's life can be enriched. For now, I'm content to believe that rumours about a fourth Toy Story are indeed just rumours. This cadence is simply too perfect to mar with a followup.
7. City Lights (1930)
Genius pantomimist Charlie Chaplin is superb, as always, at tickling our funny bone as the loveable Tramp in City Lights, partaking in hilarious misadventures of all kinds in an attempt to woo the blind flower girl. But the film's most lasting impression comes at the very end, laying the pathos on thick when the girl, her vision now restored, realizes for the first time that all along her admirer and saviour was a penniless tramp and not a generous millionaire. “Yes, I see now.”
6. The Italian Job (1969)
The deliciously ironic finish of this very British caper (by far more delightful and quirky than the raucous American remake) is a literal cliffhanger! Having successfully made off with a ton of gold in what must be one of cinema's longest car chases, Michael Caine and his band of thieves are left in a rather precarious position; trapped on one side of a bus, their collective weight just barely balancing that of the loot on the other side and keeping them all from tumbling down the mountain.
5. The Thing (1982)
This chiller of a thriller of an enigma of a finale to John Carpenter's career-topping horror flick (sorry, Halloween fans) is a brilliant extension of the paranoia around which the film is built. Only MacReady and Childs are left after blowing apart their Antarctic research lab in search of the damn Thing, but are they rid of it? Is one of them infected? If so, which one? Maybe they really did kill it, but even so, that won't matter to either of them. They're frozen in a staredown of suspicion. You just know they're both doomed.
4. Casablanca (1942)
Here's one great ending that nobody, especially all those hopeless romantics out there (guilty), could justify leaving off such a list. Rick lets Ilsa go, Ilsa looks at him tearfully (shot through a heavily Vaselined lens), gets on the plane, and flies out of his life forever. But at least he can take consolation in the start of a beautiful friendship. I defy anyone to find five minutes in any film packed with more quotable dialogue than the final moments of Casablanca.
3. The Usual Suspects (1995)
Who is Keyser Soze? The elaborate design of Christopher McQuarrie's screenplay has us guessing all the way through the film, misdirecting us from the answer that's staring us in the face the whole time. Much credit for the impact of the final twist, coming just moments after a smart decoy twist, is owed to Kevin Spacey's Oscar-winning performance as Virgil, which gives a lot back upon repeat viewings. To my mind, The Sixth Sense has got nothing on this satisfying surprise.
2. E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
In any other movie, a closing movement as blatantly heartstring-tugging as this would be bathetic and soupy. But Spielberg's earned this ending by diligently communicating the relationship of dependence between E.T. and Elliot throughout the body of the film with sincerity and genuine emotion. The tear-jerking goodbye comes coated in the elating power of John Williams' score, the final fifteen of minutes of which Spielberg himself considers to be virtually operatic.
1. The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
A more cathartic denouement to a story I cannot recall. Originally, Frank Darabonte was going to leave us with Red's wistful narration, “I hope”. It certainly would have had poignancy going for it, but after watching the friendship between him and Andy slowly grow over the course of twenty years in spite of their challenging circumstances, you really do wanna see a happy ending. He made a good move in throwing in this last minute vignette which sees Red meeting Andy on the beach, both of them finally free men. Sometimes, just sometimes, making concessions for audience appeal is not necessarily a bad thing.
