20 Greatest Final Shots In Movies Ever

13. The Thing (1982)

Though you probably wouldn't want to hang the final image of John Carpenter's 1982 sci-fi classic on a wall, what it lacks in context-free finesse it more than compensates for with its sheer, pervasive bleakness.

The film ends with the two remaining men, MacReady (Kurt Russell) and Childs (Keith David), sat amid the fiery remains of the exploded Norwegian base, slowly succumbing to the icy elements as they appreciate that their mutual distrust of one another will surely mean both their deaths.

As Carpenter's ominous, minimalist synth score kicks in, the eerie calm of the burning base leaves the prospect of death percolating in the viewer's brain: not only MacReady and Childs, but also any potential rescue teams who may show up.