10 Dramatic Movie Deaths You Couldn't Help Laughing At

Nobody could keep a straight face during these scenes.

Total Recall Cohegan
TriStar Pictures

One of the most amazing things about films is all the different ways they can make us feel. From the comfort of a sofa or cinema seat, movies allow us to experience the full spectrum of emotions, with the best pictures able to masterfully provoke feelings of joy, terror, heartache, dread, and so much more. They can make us laugh and cry. They can break our hearts and put the pieces back together again. When done well, a single scene can make us feel almost anything.

Sometimes, however, the intended emotional reaction of a certain scene doesn't quite come about. Some scenes that are meant to be funny don't raise a single laugh. Some scenes that are meant to be exciting leave us yawning with boredom. And some scenes that are meant to be dramatic or tragic unintentionally make us laugh.

Even the greatest of movies can be guilty of this. Throughout history, plenty of critically acclaimed, successful movies have featured unintentionally hilarious moments. Whether it was because of bad acting, over the top special effects, or something else altogether, these dramatic movie deaths ended up being far funnier than they ever should have been.

10. Darth Maul (The Phantom Menace)

Total Recall Cohegan
Lucasfilm

Opinions are divided on The Phantom Menace as a film, but even those who hate the first Star Wars prequel tend to agree that Darth Maul is a really cool villain. His subtly-delivered dialogue, stylish skin pattern, devilish horns, and double-bladed lightsaber helped him to stand out as one of the most memorable characters in the entire Star Wars series, but his death certainly raised a few giggles in cinemas all over the world.

The final fight scene between Maul, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Qui-Gon Jinn is nicely choreographed, with some cool acrobatics and martial arts moves. The Sith samurai gains the upper hand over his opponents on multiple occasions, killing Qui-Gon and pacing menacingly back and forth as he waits for Obi-Wan to arrive, eventually pushing the young Jedi into a huge shaft.

In a seemingly inescapable situation, Obi-Wan uses the force to leap out of the pit and over Maul's head, slashing him across the midriff as he does. It's a dramatic and triumphant moment, but Maul's constipated expression as he falls backwards and then the funny way his body splits in half and flops off down the shaft stole a little of the tension from the scene.

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