The Ending: After finding his wife dead, coming across a giant monster the size of a skyscraper and finally running out of gas, David (Thomas Jane) and the three other adult survivors agree that it's best to take the easy way out with a bullet to the brain. With only four bullets left, David shoots the three adults as well as his own young son, and then ventures out into the mist to be devoured by the beasts. Just at that moment, the mist pulls back to reveal a military convoy passing through the area with survivors in tow, having effectively quashed the monster invasion moments earlier. To rub salt in the wound, a woman who David and others presumed would die by running off to rescue her kids earlier in the movie is in the convoy, safe and sound with her children. David breaks down in front of the military personnel as the shot pulls back to reveal dozens of dead monsters. Why It's Awesome: Because after these characters are put through so much turmoil, the expectation is that they'll finally be rescued. Above all else, the kid won't die, right? Daringly, Frank Darabont intentionally deviates from the ending of Stephen King's source material (where they continue to drive to a possible but uncertain haven), and the result is so potent that King himself said he wished he came up with it. The use of Dead Can Dance's The Host of Seraphim helps cement just how heart-wrenching the twist is, and Jane's devastating performance seals the deal.
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.
