10 Horror Films Ruined by WTF Endings
5. Invaders From Mars (1986)
In between Poltergeist and The Texas Chain Saw Massacre 2, Tobe Hooper helmed a remake of the 1953 B-movie, Invaders from Mars. The film focuses on a boy called David Gardner who tries to stop extra-terrestrials from brainwashing the inhabitants of his hometown.
By no means is this Hooper's best work, but Invaders from Mars has a lot of positive elements, including the eerie sound effects, haunting score, and the phenomenal Martian effects, which were created by the legendary Stan Winston. Like E.T. - The Extra-Terrestrial, telling the story through the eyes of a 12-year-old taps into a child-like terror, amplifying the scares exponentially.
With that said, the entire story is sullied by the last few minutes, which relies on the most overdone trope imaginable. Just as the Gardner family are about to die, David wakes up, proving it was all a dream.
As lazy as this ending is, it somehow gets worse. Just as David is about to nod off again, an alien invasion actually occurs, causing the boy to scream in terror.
Although the original culminated in the same manner, the remake could've easily changed this pointless cop-out.