10 Horror Movie Endings That Leave You Speechless

A war horror to end all war, The Painted Bird takes a similar line to Come and See, depicting a young boy caught, itinerant and alone, in the midst of WWII, visited by a multitude of man-made hells. Adapted from Jerzy Kosiński's infamous book, director Václav Marhoul keeps in all the worst parts, presenting war and its horrors unflinchingly, challenging audiences to face the worst parts of a reality many countries around the world are forced to live with today.

We follow Joska (Petr Kotlar) through scenes of depravity and misery, as he leaves behind his dead aunt and has to wander out across Eastern Europe alone. He witnesses rape, murder and animal abuse, is subjected to several forms of paedophilia, physical abuse and racism, and is forced to engage in violence for his own survival and others' pleasure. 

Thus, when the end of the film rolls round and Joska is returned to his family, he is barely recognisable, and has lost his previous self, refusing to respond to his name and protesting furiously against his father who tries to explain why they sent him to his aunt's. This bleakness is only compounded by a final image on the bus home, where Joska uncovers his father's Auschwitz concentration camp tattoo.

There is no way not to take the point, to feel the horrors, but we also never want to watch it again - and therein lies the film's ultimate lesson.