15 Greatest Movie Endings Of The Decade

3. Avengers: Endgame (2019)

After the profound emotional turmoil of Infinity War's end, Avengers: Endgame had a year of almost unspeakable, white hot hype to contend with and it somehow managed to deliver. It's a triumph of spectacle and emotional heft that perfectly ends the first age of MCU heroes and offers a look at a hopeful future.

But the ending's most important notes - and its most successful - are the bits centred around the fates of Tony Stark and Captain America. First, we get Tony's almost inevitable end as he finally proves he is the man to lay down on the wire (after years of trying) and gets to save the world - an agenda that has been destroying him - without destroying his legacy and a chance of a family (albeit briefly). When he snaps his fingers and rebukes Thanos with "I am Iron Man", it invokes a curious mix of chest-bursting pride and leg-hollowing distress. That's great writing.

And then we get to see Captain America's end and the solution to the tragedy of his very existence as he's given the chance to go back and reclaim his life after giving everything altruistically. Watching him return and pass on the mantle to Sam and then wistfully refuse to tell the tale of his life is just gloriously good.