A happy ending is always a good thing… right? Kind of. Almost.Much of the time, it will feel earned, with characters going through some kind of ordeal to the point where you’re rooting for things to end well for them. That’s how it should be, and for most movies that end up being satisfying in the traditional sense, that’s how it is. How things are in life is a whole other story, of course, as are more tragic stories, where the upsetting/unhappy ending feels appropriate.
But then there are also cases where a movie ends happily, only it feels hollow somehow. Perhaps the whole film was a narrative mess, ending included. It could be that an uplifting ending feels contrived, too sudden, or insincere. There could be adreaded deus ex machinainvolved. Some of the following movies were good up until their ending, while others didn’t really work throughout. They’re all linked, in the end, byhaving generally happy endings that, in one way or another, didn’t feel well-earned.
10’Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker' (2019)
Director: J.J. Abrams
Any chance to critiqueStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalkerought to be taken, because it was a largely unsatisfying mess, not really pleasing those who liked the previousStar Warsfilmswhile also failing to course-correct the entire series, if that’s what it was even trying to do. The writing was on the wall,though; perhaps even on the poster.
It never really had a chance to be satisfying when the main conflict of the film was introduced so abruptly, and explained so lazily. It all built to a confrontation with a previously defeated villain, the people you’d expect to die died, and wheneverThe Rise of Skywalkerhad a chance to do something surprising, it backtracked or reversed. It all culminates with Rey claiming the Skywalker name, and it just all feels so insincere and off, like no one was particularly confident in ending this nine-film saga.
Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker
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9’Grease' (1978)
Director: Randal Kleiser
Perhapsit’s still even a good musical, even if you don’t find the ending funny or self-aware, but it can leave a bit of a sour taste, when watched another way. Or, any ill feelings created bySandy’s sudden and kind of saddening transformation might well be forgotten when that car takes off into the sky, which makes the ending toGreasea wild one on a whole other level.
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8’The Legend of the Titanic' (1999)
Directors: Kim Jun Ok, Orlando Corradi
Everyone’s familiar withJames Cameron’sTitanic, with far fewer people being aware of the animated movies made a short while after that epic film’s release,presumably to capitalize on its success. The decision to do this on two separate occasions (with one of those movies getting a relatively Titanic-free sequel) by two different creative teams was baffling, considering the real-life event concerning the Titanic was tragic and not kid-friendly.
ButThe Legend of the Titanickeeps the whole thing G-rated, with everyone on the ship getting saved by a giant octopus that can magically change size, becoming big enough to hold the ship together after it hits the iceberg, allowing successful evacuations.Sure, it’s a film with talking mice and musical numbers, so it’s fair to say the whole thing’s baffling, with the ending adding to such bafflement, too.
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7’Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny' (2023)
Director: James Mangold
When it comes to the Indiana Jones series,theSteven Spielberg-directed onesreign supreme (yes, even that fourth one, at least compared to the fifth). Clearly,The Last Crusadewould’ve been the most effective way to end things, wrapping up what could’ve been a largely consistent trilogy, butKingdom of the Crystal Skull, as a series conclusion, could’ve been a serviceable – or at least appropriate – one.
But thenIndiana Jones and the Dial of Destinycame in like a wrecking ball (picture that boulder at the start ofRaiders of the Lost Ark, suspended in the air) and just felt so flat, glum, and empty. Indy’s hardships happened between movies, with things throughout the film feeling overly convenient to get him to a technically good place by the end of it, but it just doesn’t ring true.It’s a happy ending on paper, but something about it doesn’t feel happy. It’s best just pretending this fifth movie doesn’t exist, honestly.
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
6’The Apple' (1980)
Director: Menahem Golan
Even those familiar withtrashy and/or B-grade 1980s moviesmight be surprised at how aggressiveThe Appleis when it comes to exhibiting such qualities. It’s one of the wildest and strangest musicals ever made, taking place in the futuristic world of 1994, and following various singers who are trying to make names for themselves within a dystopian world (of sorts) where music is seemingly everything.
Very little inThe Applemakes sense, but thenthe ending takes the cake, as far as most nonsensical stuff goes. There’s a possibly spiritual savior of the heroes right at the end who’s not established beforehand, and takes them away from the evils of the world, possibly even to heaven. It’s kind of up in the air, but it’s laughable how abruptly it all happens, increasing the sense that this whole movie is some kind of practical joke played on the audience.
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5’Arthur' (1981)
Director: Steve Gordon
The central conflict throughoutArthurrevolves around the titular character being torn between two options. He’s been born into a wealthy family and stands to inherit a huge fortune, but he’s fallen in love with someone those in his family don’t approve of, given her own lack of wealth. As such, his right to inherit all those millions of dollars is at risk, should he continue to pursue true love.
The problem isn’t so much that he gets both the money and the girl in the end; that is somewhat unsatisfying, but could feel earned if Arthur changed credibly throughout the film. But no, he’s annoying, selfish, and very immature throughout (it’s funny at first, but gets old), and then there’s no real sacrifice to be made;no heartwarming message or learning to reject obscene wealth.He gets the money, and he stays in love. It feels so hollow.
Arthur is a 30-year-old child who will inherit $750 million if he complies with his family’s demands and marries the woman of their choosing.
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4’Jurassic World Dominion' (2022)
Director: Colin Trevorrow
There’s a messiness toJurassic World Dominionthat feels sad to think about, given how much stupid fun the movie could’ve been. The preceding film hadn’t been great, but it had ended with the implication that dinosaurs were about to take over the world. You could do pretty much anything with that kind of set-up, plus the film was set to have the three main characters from the originalJurassic Park(played bySam Neill,Laura Dern, andJeff Goldblum) return in prominent roles.
But thenJurassic World Dominiondoes almost nothing with the premise, outside one stupid and kind of fun chase sequence with added dinosaurs. It wastes its legacy characters, doesn’t offer anything surprising,and then it all wraps up kind of convenientlywithout the sense that any kind of massive obstacle’s been overcome. Like other unsatisfying endings, the audience is kind of told things are okay, but it’s hard to feel like things are okay.
Jurassic World Dominion
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3’Signs' (2002)
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Signsshows how a movie can still be fairly well-liked overall, even if it doesn’t quite stick the landing. This is a low-key alien invasion movie with an offbeat tone, as has become increasingly common (and divisive) for mostM. Night Shyamalanfilms made after say, the year 2000.It has a distinct style,the performances are generally good (and suitably offbeat), and there’s at least one genuinely scary scene that everyone seems to remember.
But then, yes, the ending comes around, and it essentially boils down to the aliens being defeated because water is their weakness, even though they came to a planet where there’s much more water than land. Additionally, that whole “swing away” thing is perhaps a little too corny, even for a movie likeSigns, making the entire thing something that ends far weaker than how it started.
2’The Matrix Resurrections' (2021)
Director: Lana Wachowski
The divisiveThe Matrix Revolutionsdid at least have some finality, even if it came in the form of a bittersweet ending. Doing some resurrecting inResurrectionssort of worked and made a point; again, on a subtextual or meta level.But then the new hardships to overcome are kind of underwhelming, and dealt with remarkably swiftly. It’s all a bit too perfect, but the artificiality might be the point. It works on one level, but adds to a lack of satisfaction with the entire film when viewed on another level.
The Matrix Resurrections
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1’Justice League' (2017)
Director: Zack Snyder
ThoughZack SnyderandJoss Whedonhadhelmed good superhero movies before 2017, the theatrical version ofJustice League, released that year, was an absolute mess. It’s harder to blame Snyder, because he did leave the project and later released asuperior (and much longer) director’s cut in 2021. Whedon may have contributed to the movie’s failure, but it might not have been his decision to keep the runtime to exactly two hours; at least that feels like it could’ve been a studio direction.
Whatever the case,Justice League(2017)rushed through the formation of the titular squad, the resurrection of Superman, and the eventual defeat of Steppenwolf, everything playing out without much satisfaction. It’s a movie that barrels forward too fast and feels too empty, feeling extra lackluster considering A) the 2021 director’s cut told the story more effectively, and B) the whole DC Extended Universe is being reworked/rebooted with the DC Universe.
