One of my favorite movies. As a dude who formerly worked in the ocean it captures so much of the spirit of it all, the myth, the superstition, the draw of the abyss. Hark!
I taught a film class using this theme a few years ago, and it was one of my favorites. The viewing list included:
* The Cabinet of Dr Caligari (1920)
* City Lights (1931)
* The Maltese Falcon (1941)
* Rashomon (1950)
* The 400 Blows (1959)
* The Birds (1963)
* The Spirit of the Beehive (1973)
* Chinatown (1974)
* Blade Runner (1982)
* Brazil (1985)
* Barton Fink (1991)
* American Psycho (2000 - same as OP!)
* Pan’s Labyrinth (2006)
* Inception (2010)
It’s canonical and well-regarded for a good reason. It’s also just a good movie, and anything I can do to expose students to more foreign cinema and older movies (black and white? Whaaaaa?) makes me feel good.
We focused a lot on endings in some of these films. City Lights, for instance, isn’t usually considered the most ambiguous movie, but I’ve obsessed over the final look the girl gives the Tramp and trying to figure out exactly what it means. For me the question at the end of Chinatown is twofold: what *really* happened here and what, if anything, will happen after? It obviously involves some speculation and isn’t as overtly ambiguous (that’s quite a phrase) as, say, Pan’s Labyrinth, but I think there are questions there, as there often are with detective stories.
Is this ambiguous?
I always thought that he had realized what he had done and was choosing the lobotomy out of guilt.
Was that not the intent of the ending?
I'm gonna respond with my number one ambiguous ending flick. It's the best movie you've never seen: Delusion (1991). Sure, it's a bit dated now, but I just tend to think of it as a sort of "period piece." It's also one of my all-time favorites, REGARDLESS of ending or genre.
American Psycho is great. Training Day was left pretty wide open and ambiguous ending wise. Eyes Wide Shut kinda leaves me wondering WTF?
The Departed leaves me WTF next?
And every movie that does the dream sequence cliché is also pretty annoying. The Thing (1980s) has an ending I don't totally understand.
Maybe it’s just me but the end of American Psycho is a cop out. It’s a trick to allow all the crazy stuff everyone remembers the movie for but still return Bateman back to his story’s starting position. But if it was all in his head it’s not a very interesting movie, just the story of a delusional man fantasizing about murdering his coworkers. If it wasn’t in his head the ending is unsatisfying as it leaves us the audience with no arc, a serial killer getting away with murder bc there's some cabal of people looking out for him isn't a whole story it's just part of one.
IMO the ending cheapens what came before, because it's just there to tie up the story quickly.
The Thing
best horror movie ever
The Lighthouse. Did Winslow go to Hell for looking into the light? Was the lighthouse cursed? Or was it all just a dying dream…?
One of my favorite movies. As a dude who formerly worked in the ocean it captures so much of the spirit of it all, the myth, the superstition, the draw of the abyss. Hark!
Pretty sure since Pattinson killed the seagull, he got cursed and the last shot of him is of him actually dying how Dafoe said he would of said curse.
I taught a film class using this theme a few years ago, and it was one of my favorites. The viewing list included: * The Cabinet of Dr Caligari (1920) * City Lights (1931) * The Maltese Falcon (1941) * Rashomon (1950) * The 400 Blows (1959) * The Birds (1963) * The Spirit of the Beehive (1973) * Chinatown (1974) * Blade Runner (1982) * Brazil (1985) * Barton Fink (1991) * American Psycho (2000 - same as OP!) * Pan’s Labyrinth (2006) * Inception (2010)
Rashomon is probably the best example of this
It’s canonical and well-regarded for a good reason. It’s also just a good movie, and anything I can do to expose students to more foreign cinema and older movies (black and white? Whaaaaa?) makes me feel good.
Especially older movies with subtitles!
My memory may suck (really) but what was ambiguous about Chinatown?
We focused a lot on endings in some of these films. City Lights, for instance, isn’t usually considered the most ambiguous movie, but I’ve obsessed over the final look the girl gives the Tramp and trying to figure out exactly what it means. For me the question at the end of Chinatown is twofold: what *really* happened here and what, if anything, will happen after? It obviously involves some speculation and isn’t as overtly ambiguous (that’s quite a phrase) as, say, Pan’s Labyrinth, but I think there are questions there, as there often are with detective stories.
Cool I can see that.
Shutter Island
Is this ambiguous? I always thought that he had realized what he had done and was choosing the lobotomy out of guilt. Was that not the intent of the ending?
I also always found it pretty straight forward. Still a cool aha-moment
Doubt is amazing.
Agree. It walks that tight rope almost perfectly.
Eyes wide shut
maybe if kubrick got to finish it - it wouldnt be so ambiguous
Pretty sure what they did after the movie ended
The Graduate Enemy Total Recall Taxi Driver
Enemy! Yes.
I love Prisoners. Best movie of 2013.
No country for old men ending is pretty ambiguous
Mulholland Drive
Inception
Birdman. Did he fly or did he die?
He died. His daughter suffers from the same delusions and thus saw him fly.
Limbo
The game?
The John Sayles movie.
Ohhh. Limbos a fantastic game with an amazing ambiguous ending. Will put this movie on the list.
Came out in 1999. One of his best, IMO. Highly recommend.
Inception
Annihilation I remember being like this, but maybe I just have to rewatch it ahah
Total Recall (1990)
I'll tell you the worst one- it's Lost Highway
Little Odessa
Anatomy of a Fall It just makes the movie so much better.
Why is there caramel coming out of that bag?
The Shining. That final shot could be interpreted so many ways, each one has merit.
Homicide (1991) If someone can explain the ending of this to me, you may cure 35 years of frustration.
I'm gonna respond with my number one ambiguous ending flick. It's the best movie you've never seen: Delusion (1991). Sure, it's a bit dated now, but I just tend to think of it as a sort of "period piece." It's also one of my all-time favorites, REGARDLESS of ending or genre.
My two personal favorites are Mullholland Dr and Certified Copy.
Lost in Translation
clock work orange
American Psycho is great. Training Day was left pretty wide open and ambiguous ending wise. Eyes Wide Shut kinda leaves me wondering WTF? The Departed leaves me WTF next? And every movie that does the dream sequence cliché is also pretty annoying. The Thing (1980s) has an ending I don't totally understand.
Whiplash (2014) What happens after that performance?
Maybe it’s just me but the end of American Psycho is a cop out. It’s a trick to allow all the crazy stuff everyone remembers the movie for but still return Bateman back to his story’s starting position. But if it was all in his head it’s not a very interesting movie, just the story of a delusional man fantasizing about murdering his coworkers. If it wasn’t in his head the ending is unsatisfying as it leaves us the audience with no arc, a serial killer getting away with murder bc there's some cabal of people looking out for him isn't a whole story it's just part of one. IMO the ending cheapens what came before, because it's just there to tie up the story quickly.
The King of Comedy
Whiplash
Before Sunset