10 "Ambiguous" Movie Endings (That Totally Aren't)

Denis Villeneuve's Prisoners is a fascinating example of a film that's often deemed to have an ambiguous ending simply because it doesn't show what is very clearly implied to happen next.

In the final scene, Detective Loki (Jake Gyllenhaal) visits the crime scene at Holly Jones' (Melissa Leo) house, where unbeknownst to him Keller Dover (Hugh Jackman) has been sealed in a hidden pit in the yard.

Keller's in luck, though, having found his daughter's whistle, which can be heard faintly in the distance as Loki stands in the yard. Loki initially dismisses it as ambient noise, but upon hearing it again freezes in his tracks, and the film abruptly cuts to black.

In the decade since Prisoners' release, audiences have argued over whether or not Loki discovered Keller, but there's really no debate about this - he absolutely did.

Loki would find the source of the sound, being a detective and all, and rescue Keller. This was even backed up by screenwriter Aaron Guzikowski, who confirmed that an extended ending was shot in which Loki discovered Keller, in case the studio balked at the more elliptical ending.

There's only one logical outcome of Loki hearing that whistle, so there's really nothing else to consider here.