What Does The Ending Of 10 Cloverfield Lane Really Mean?

10 Cloverfield Lane's Ending Is All About Making Difficult Decisions

Whether or not humanity beats the aliens isn't important to the story of 10 Cloverfield Lane; the point is that Michelle has made the proactive decision to fight when, by all accounts, she could have simply driven off to safety. And making the difficult choice is ultimately what 10 Cloverfield Lane is all about. At the start Michelle choses to leave her boyfriend, possibly out of fear, and later tells of an event from her part that has haunted her for years; a young girl was being physically abused by her father and, despite being aware and angry about it, she didn't step in. Emmett compounds this sense of fear for going outside our well-defined comfort zone with his story of extreme excitement for going to an out-of-state college, only to engineer a way he wouldn't actually have to leave home. For much of the movie, any big decision is made by necessity; most of the actions in the bunker are made out of desperation, in reaction to clear, unavoidable external threats. However, at the end Michelle is given an explicit choice between presumed safety and a threat greater than either of those she's already faced, with her decision showing an understanding of the welfare of those other than herself and a clear desire to not let her insecurities dominate, in the process cleansing herself of previous mistakes.