20 Greatest Final Shots In Movies Ever

7. The Shining (1980)

The Shining Ending
Warner Bros. Pictures

Perhaps no final image has struck up quite so much persistent and rabid debate as the enigmatic, mind-blowing last shot in Stanley Kubrick's masterful horror film.

After psychopath Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) freezes to death while in axe-wielding pursuit of his family, Kubrick delivers one final provocation, by pulling in on a photo hanging in the Overlook Hotel, taken in 1921 but appearing to feature Torrance at the centre.

Fan theories have been floating around for literally decades, perhaps that Jack has been "absorbed" into the Overlook, or as Grady (Philip Stone) tells him, he has "always been the caretaker."

Whatever your own opinion, the film's power to keep people talking almost 40 years later is a monumental testament to Kubrick's cerebral, boundary-pushing genius.

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Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes). General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.