I’d say that most people watch movies expecting closure at the end. A “happily ever after,” a “the end,” some sense that things are resolved. However, several well-liked movies never reach that point, and instead, leave the fates of the characters shrouded in ambiguity. This method, though, can lead to arguments amongst the film’s viewers.

In this article, I will discuss a few of my favorite movies that have ambiguous endings. Some of you may disagree and argue that these endings are concrete, while others may agree with me. After you finish reading, I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!

I normally don’t write articles with spoilers, but since we’re talking about ambiguity in endings, there are obviously going to be a few spoilers. If you are a film buff, you’ve probably seen the following movies. If you haven’t seen them…consider yourself warned. I will go into detail about The Thing, Inception, and The Shining, so please skip any films you haven’t seen.

Note: This article contains spoilers of the following movies. Read at your own risk.

The Thing (1982)

When I wrote my article about horror movies, I mentioned this movie and haven’t stopped thinking about it ever since. I revisited a lot of clips from the movie on YouTube, and one of these clips was the ending. I had almost completely forgotten how ambiguous it was.

This movie is about a group of researchers in Antarctica who come across a shape-shifting alien who can take over the bodies of those with whom it comes in contact. There is a theme of paranoia throughout the movie about who is and is not human. Those who are taken over by “The Thing” try to kill those who are still human.

At the end of the movie, Mac (Kurt Russell) blows up the entire camp, believing he has killed The Thing once and for all. Suddenly, Childs (Keith David) shows up saying he was lost in the storm and could not find the camp until he saw the flames. They are initially cautious of each other, but then they agree that they are too apathetic to find out whether or not the other is real. They just sit and wait it out, and the movie ends there.

There are several possibilities for the outcome:

1. Childs is The Thing.
2. Childs is still human and his story is true.
3. Whatever the possibility, Mac and Childs freeze to death.
4. One kills the other.
5. One or both of them are rescued.

John Carpenter, the film’s director, finally spoke of the ending long after its release. I won’t go into what he stated, because it can ruin whatever story the viewer has chosen to believe. I have my theory of the ending and it’s one that makes the most sense to me. Whatever the outcome, the viewer can be right in his or her way.

Inception (2010)

I knew I needed to pay close attention to this movie. A movie about dreams within dreams, and the strict rules the characters have to follow to achieve their goals, would require a lot of concentration.

The film is about a group of thieves who steal ideas from others for personal and financial gain. Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) is the head of the secret group of thieves who possess the technology for “subconscious stealing.” Most of the movie has him and his crew going deep into the subconscious of Robert Fischer (Cillian Murphy), only to plant an idea in his mind, rather than taking anything from it.

The mission is a success and Cobb goes home. He has been away for quite a while since he was on the run from the authorities, who believe he murdered his wife Mal (Marion Cotillard). Once he’s home, he takes out his top, which he keeps with him for assurance. He spins it, then gets distracted by the sight of his kids, who embrace him. While they are all happy to be reunited, the camera pans over to the still-spinning top. It begins to topple over, but the camera cuts to black before we see whether it recovers.

The viewer wonders if Cobb is still dreaming or not. Yet another case where the viewer can truly make up their mind about what happens. I know I’ve had discussions with those who have seen the movie, and their theories differed from mine. I reminded them that the top spinning without toppling over only happens in the dream sequences. My wife is insistent that it fell, and Cobb got his happily ever after. While we didn’t see the top stop spinning in the end, it was about to before the movie abruptly ended. If you ask me, Christopher Nolan, who wrote and directed this movie, wanted people to debate over the movie, but also wanted to provide a happy ending.

The Shining (1980)

Lastly, we have Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiece The Shining, based on the famous Stephen King novel (though King would argue that the film is not a masterpiece – as they say in Ready Player One (2018), “a creation the creator hates”). Kubrick makes the story his own, by changing some of the themes of the story, but keeping the plot the same. The movie works because it raises many questions about the film’s ending.

Before we discuss the ending, though, let’s talk about what leads up to it. Jack and Wendy (Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall) accept a job as caretakers of a hotel after it closes down for the winter. Throughout the winter, Jack is possessed by the hotel, which they were told was built on an ancient burial ground. After giving into this possession, Jack starts to see ghosts throughout the hotel.

Jack has a conversation with one in the ballroom bathroom. The ghost introduces himself as “Grady,” which Jack recognizes as the name of a former caretaker who murdered his family. Jack calls him out on that, but Grady gives the chilling response, “I’m sorry to differ with you, sir… but you are the caretaker. You’ve always been the caretaker. I should know, sir. I’ve always been here.”. This gives the notion that Jack is somehow drawn to this hotel and that he has been there on more than one occasion. Even earlier in the film, Jack mentions to Wendy that this place is somehow familiar to him like he’s been there before.

The film ends with Jack failing to murder Wendy and their son Danny (Danny Lloyd), after losing Danny in the hedge maze. Wendy and Danny escape from the hotel and Jack freezes to death in the snow. Then we cut to the ballroom and the camera zooms in one of the photographs. It shows a group of guests at a party with Jack in the foreground with the caption, “Overlook Hotel. July 4th Ball, 1921.” This proves that Jack has been to the hotel before. But why does he come back?

In Closing and Other Titles

These films all raise good questions and I love debating them with others who have seen these movies. It’s a good way to talk film, for one, and it’s also a great way to learn from each other’s interpretations.

Here are some other movies with ambiguous endings that I recommend seeing:

The 400 Blows (1959)

Blow-Up (1966)

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Blade Runner (1982)

Vanilla Sky (2001)

No Country for Old Men (2007)

Black Swan (2010)

Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014)

Happy watching!