Even a great movie can be ruined by a bad ending, it's arguably the hardest, and most
important, part to get right.
Continuity errors and awkward dialogue might be forgiven, but a movie's ending sticks with
the audience long after the credits roll.
Thankfully, that's what alternate endings are for.
Check out these famous films with awesome alternate endings, but watch out for spoilers!
Heathers
In the 1988 black comedy Heathers, Veronica, played by Winona Ryder, learns a lesson about
the high cost of popularity after she joins a clique of girls, all named Heather, at her
school.
She also becomes romantically involved with new student JD, played by Christian Slater,
who is determined to shake up the social status quo in some very unexpected ways.
Like with bombs.
In the theatrical ending, after JD's bomb explodes, Veronica walks into the school,
where she encounters Heather Duke.
Veronica takes away Heather's red scrunchie and tells her…
“Heather my love, there’s a new sheriff in town.”
Then she catches up to her old friend Martha "Dumptruck" Dunnstock, and the film ends on
a hopeful note.
Several other endings to Heathers were scrapped along the way.
“The original ending was that the bomb was strapped to me and I give this amazing speech.”
In the best alternate version, writer Daniel Waters gives Martha Dunnstock the last laugh.
When Veronica tries to rekindle their friendship, Martha stabs her in the chest, calling her
Heather.
As she dies, Veronica protests that her name isn’t Heather, but Martha ignores her, getting
up from her wheelchair and triumphantly walking away from the friend that betrayed her.
Ouch.
The Butterfly Effect
In the 2004 psychological thriller The Butterfly Effect, 20-year-old Evan discovers his frequent
headaches and blackouts are actually a manifestation of his ability to travel back in time.
Evan uses his childhood journals to go back and change traumatic experiences for himself
and his friends.
However, he soon learns that even small and seemingly positive changes can drastically
affect the future, and not always in a good way.
In the theatrical ending, Evan travels back to the day he met his friend Kayleigh and
changes things so they never meet and become neighbors.
When Evan returns to the future, he's relieved to see that this change has made things better
for the lives of his friends.
He burns his journals, thereby preventing himself from ever altering the timeline again.
The alternate ending found on the Director's Cut DVD is much darker than the original.
On the brink of madness, Evan travels back in time, strangling himself in the womb with
his own umbilical cord, to prevent his own birth.
For a movie that offers so much to think about, this ending is definitely the more thought-provoking
one.
First Blood
In the 1982 action film First Blood, Vietnam veteran John Rambo drifts through Washington
state, where he has a run-in with an intolerant Sheriff.
After the former Green Beret refuses to be pushed around by the authoritarian cop, Rambo
finds himself fighting for his life as he tries to escape the small town and evade the
lawman and his lackeys.
At the end, Rambo corners and wounds the sheriff, preparing to kill him.
However, his former commander Colonel Sam Trautman arrives in time to stop John from
doing the deed and Rambo breaks down, recounting his traumatic experiences during the war and
surrendering to Trautman.
It's not necessarily a bad ending, but it was a little unsatisfying, and it left the
door open for several mediocre sequels.
The original ending to First Blood keeps much closer to David Morrell's 1972 novel.
Rambo still has his tearful breakdown, but he decides that the events of Vietnam have
made his life all but pointless, as he can't live normally in society anymore.
Rambo gives the Colonel his gun.
“Take me."
"You owe me that.
Do it.”
When Trautman can't do it, Rambo grabs his arm, causing the gun to go off.
Given what we know of Rambo's character, this finale seems like a more fitting and realistic
way for him to go out.
Pretty In Pink
John Hughes' 1986 cult classic Pretty In Pink features geeky high schoolers Andie and her
best friend, Duckie.
Duckie is madly in love with Andie, but she begins dating the popular Blane, triggering
a bitter argument with Duckie.
Later, Blane's friend Steff teases him about Andie, causing Blane to avoid her and lie
about his prom plans.
Undeterred, Andie goes to the prom alone, but she still has a chance to find true love.
At the prom, Andie and Duckie make up and head for the dance floor.
After telling Steff what he thinks of him, Blane congratulates Duckie and tells Andie
how he feels about her, kissing her on the cheek and walking out.
“I love you”
Duckie puts his own feelings aside and encourages Andie to follow him.
Andie and Blane kiss in the parking lot, Duckie dances with a cute girl, and they all live
happily ever after.
It's all very romantic, if you're a 13-year-old girl.
Test audiences, as it turns out, didn't like the original ending, which had Andie choose
Duckie over Blane.
Pretty in Pink should have been about two geeks finding love, but the revised ending
turns it into a formulaic teen fairytale, except Blane is no Prince Charming.
"Hey let's go upstairs, huh?"
Jon Cryer may be famous for that dance in the record store, but the scene where Duckie
sits in his room listening to Morrissey is the most honest performance of teenage heartbreak
ever filmed.
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
In Edgar Wright's 2010 action comedy Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, slacker musician Scott
Pilgrim flounders his way through an unsatisfying life.
He's a bassist in a struggling garage band, he has no plans for the future, and his girlfriend,
Knives Chau, is a clingy 17-year-old high school student.
When Scott meets Ramona, he immediately becomes infatuated with her, but he must defeat her
seven evil exes in order to win her heart.
The ending used for the theatrical release was actually supposed to be the movie's alternate
ending.
It was shot after the original one had been filmed in order to match the ending of the
Scott Pilgrim graphic novels.
After helping Scott defeat Ramona's final evil ex, Knives tells Scott that she's come
to terms with their breakup and understands that their relationship is over.
Although she swore to win him back, Knives gives her blessing for Scott to pursue his
new romance with Ramona.
In the film's original ending, Scott realizes that he still has feelings for Knives.
“Your hair’s getting really shaggy."
"It is?"
"I like it."
"You do?"
The couple rekindle their romance over a video game, and Ramona realizes that she doesn't
need to be in a relationship or constantly reinventing herself to be happy.
Seeing healthy and mature decision-making in a movie is like seeing a unicorn in the
wild, which is why we love this ending.
Die Hard with a Vengeance
In 1995's Die Hard with a Vengeance, terrorist Simon Gruber has taken all of New York City
hostage in order to steal a boatload of gold and to get revenge on Lieutenant John McClane
for the death of his brother, Hans.
With the help of Harlem shopkeeper Zeus Carver, McClane deals with bomb threats and bank heists
as he pursues Gruber and his lackeys across the five boroughs.
At the film’s climax, McClane follows Gruber to a hideout in Quebec.
Most of the bad guys are quickly rounded up, but Gruber and his girlfriend attempt to escape
in a helicopter.
McClane manages to get the best of them.
"Get out of here!"
It's a typical action-film finale: unrealistic, full of questionable physics, and made to
showcase a big explosion.
"Yippee kay yay, mother----er!"
In an alternate ending, Gruber escapes with the gold, while McClane takes the blame for
the terrorist's trail of destruction.
The NYPD kicks McClane off the force, but he goes rogue and tracks down Simon Gruber
himself.
“How are my friends in the NYPD?”
"Well, I was fired from the NYPD.
Cops trying to save my pension."
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
He corners the villain, forcing him to play a game of "McClane Says," with riddles and
a rocket launcher thrown in for fun.
After a few suspenseful rounds, Gruber loses, taking a RPG to the chest.
This more realistic ending is miles better than the theatrical version.
Sometimes, a small "boom" is even more satisfying than a big one.