10 Awful Endings That Screwed Great Movies (And What Should Have Happened Instead)

8. The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King

A very grudging entry onto this list, as Peter Jackson did an amazing job adapting Tolkien's epic story to screen. The final entry in the trilogy has countless moments of brilliance and is a film that improves with the extended edition, thanks to key scenes such as the houses of healing, Aragorn and the army of the dead and the Mouth of Sauron. So why is it on the list? Here are two key reasons. 1) There are a lot of endings to the film. Seven in fact. Even I will admit that slowed the pace somewhat. 2) A key ending was cut. What you say? More endings? (No, not the famous 'scouring of the Shire' scenes from the book; as fantastic as this story is, it would have broken the pacing further). The ending that needed to be in the film was Saruman's death. To cruelly cut Christopher Lee's villainous wizard from the third film altogether in the theatrical version was a bizarre decision, considered his massively heightened antagonist role in the first two. In fact, the scenes that were cut from Lord Of The Rings: Return Of The King were the only scenes where the wizard appeared in the books. How It Should Have Ended: After the events at Mount Doom, the surviving Fellowship reuniting, Aragon's coronation at Minas Tirith, the journey back to the Shire and life after (such as Sam's wedding), could have been shown in a montage over a few minutes. Then the pace could have slowed again for that final, bittersweet scene at the Grey Havens where the hobbits (and us) say those final goodbyes. Ten minutes could easily have been shaved off Lord Of The Rings: Return Of The King, making room for Saruman's death, which should never have been cut in the first place.