3. Monty Python's Life of Brian
Yes, Monty Python. The guys who brought us The Fish-Slapping Dance and the infamous coconut debates are responsible for what I believe to be one of the most effective film endings of all time. Monty Python's Life of Brian is easily one of the most controversial films of all time due to the source material, but that's another discussion for another article. When Brian Cohen is born in the manger next to Jesus, he is subsequently mistaken for the Messiah, not just that night, but many times throughout his life. At every turn he rebuffs his "followers" explaining that he is most emphatically
not the Messiah, and instead joins the People's Front of Judea, a force intending to liberate Judea from Roman oppression ("What have the Romans
ever done for us?"). He also meets and falls in love with a woman named Judith (Judith Iscariot) who shares his dreams of liberation from the Romans. Eventually Brian is arrested by the Romans and scheduled to be crucified, and Judith tries desperately to get him freed, but to no avail.
The Bittersweet Ending: As Brian is crucified along with several others. One by one, Brian's former friends show up and explain why they're not going to try to rescue him, or why they're angry at him for getting into trouble. Even his mother comes forth and condemns him for abandoning her in her old age. For a moment, Monty Python does a perfect job setting up a bleak and hopeless end. But things take a turn for the better when an optimistic man hanging next to Brian begins trying to cheer him up, resulting in all the men together singing their problems away as they hang there awaiting death. It's one of the most hilariously tragic endings in film history. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHPOzQzk9Qo *Note: Some profanity. Just FYI*