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[nkarafo]

Because i feel like i'm the only one.

So now that's Halloween, i get all the horror movie references and posts in all parts of the internet. And The Mist is a pretty common topic. And of course, everyone just posts about how amazing that ending was.

I always thought this ending was stupid. Not bad, just stupid. Because it was made only for the sake of shocking the audience and making the "oh if only they waited a bit longer" ending.

But it completely defies logic, statistics and even the lore in this movie.

The fact that all four rational adults in the car simply agreed, without one protest, to get a bullet in the head is statistically impossible i think. I get the situation is desperate and i also get they think the alternative is worse. But there are some other factors:

- It didn't look like too much time had passed. It didn't look like they went too far. It felt like they were what, 5 hours in that car? 10 maybe?
- It didn't look like they were starving. They were in good shape. They still had plenty of time before they were truly desperate enough for killing themselves.
- They had absolutely no reason to believe the whole world was covered in the mist. They knew they could be wrong about that (and they were). Even if they were 90% sure that's the case, the 10% left is enough hope to not want to end your life.
- The movie assumes all 4 out of 4 people in the car had the guts to do this. In real life suicide is scary and not every desperate person has the courage to go through this. In fact, very few do. I would say only 1 out of 10 desperate people would manage it. I just hate how Hollywood movies portray suicide like it's some easy thing to do or "the easy way out". It's not easy. Not 4 out of 4 easy, for sure. Otherwise there would be no desperate people in the world. Not even 1 out of 4 protesting is just dumb.
- The movie established these people were the rational ones. They weren't brainwashed by some government or cult. Heck, even the brainwashed Japanese WW2 soldiers didn't all agree to suicide.
- Not 1 out of the 4 people thought to wait it out longer. Nobody thought maybe there's still hope, maybe the army (duh) is on it. They are not starving, they are not in pain, they are still in the safety of the car. Remember there were 4 people in there. 4 out of 4, again. Not even one protested at least.
- The "it's just a movie, try to enjoy it" defense doesn't work. The whole movie works because these four characters were supposed to be the rational ones VS the irrational ones. The movie itself establishes that during it's whole duration. I'm not just going to ignore that because the movie decided to ignore it for a crowd pleasing, shocking "twist" ending.

As you can see, my issue is mostly a statistical one. If it was just one person in the car it would be fine. Maybe two maximum, i would probably buy this. But four? Nah, that's too many people to all think and feel alike for something so final and scary.

The defense for all that is always the same: "You don't know what you would do in this situation". Nah, i'm pretty sure i would. And most likely you would do the same as i would. I don't believe you would do the same thing these people did. I'm sure you would protest, disagree or you would be too scared to do it. You would wait until you were truly desperate. And even then i bet you would just try your chances sprinting out of the car in hope you get in another that has gas, or maybe a house to catch your breath and eat/drink.

Maybe i'm wrong and you, yes you personally, are maybe brave enough to put a bullet in your head because you think your life is not worth waiting out more or trying your chances. But what are the chances every one around you thinks the same as you?


Anyway, that's why i hate this ending. Not only because it's dumb but also because everyone else seems to love it so much.

Happy Halloween.


Edit: I suggested two much better "bad" endings:

Protag wants to kill himself and suggests the others do the same. There's some arguing and two of them don't want to. So they leave the car (and the audience assumes they will most likely get killed by monsters). A few minutes pass until they gather the courage to do it so Protag kills his son and the other person who agreed to the plan and then the army appears just like in the movie. Along with them he hears the two people who left the car shouting. Then they appear and say to him "we saw them and tried to come to you but we couldn't find our way back in the mist" and try to comfort the protag.

It's basically the same unexpected ending and has the same shocking result. But it's also even more depressing because you also add the factor that the people who left the car knew the others would kill themselves but didn't have the time to save the situation. So now you have the protag who is devastated for him murdering his son and the other person (like in the movie) and you also have the two survivors who are also devastated because they couldn't save them in time.

Another better and more shocking bad ending would be the protag making the decision for them and killing the ones that don't want to kill themselves as well, since he holds the gun. Which would make his regret even worse since he knows he also killed a couple of people who could now be alive.

There you go, took me 2 minutes to write two better endings that do the same thing the one in the movie does plus more and they also solve all the issues of believability at the same time.

 

[The Cockatrice]

It's a horror movie. All horror movies have ridiculous ending and all horror movies defy human common sense. I think it was a fucked up ending and I enjoyed it.

 

[nkarafo]

and all horror movies defy human common sense.

Not this one. This one was based on human common sense all the way until it decided it wouldn't.

 

[The Cockatrice]

Not this one. This one was based on human common sense all the way until it decided it wouldn't.

Not really considering the stuff that happens in the mall. If you wanna ignore the fact that it's a horror movie and people are idiots in them for the sake of the genre, then let me tell ya buddy, that fear, depression, panic, massive anxiety has lead to people killing themselves far easier irl than what the characters probably must've felt at that point.

 

[Angry_Megalodon]

I disagree.

He's heavily influenced by having seen his wife in a spider web and the promise he made to his son. I understand they went for the shock value, but I find the situation very believable. If you want something stupid, just check the dad's sacrifice in A Quiet Place, which was completely avoidable.

I could give both cases a pass because the characters are under extreme stress, fighting cosmic horrors that normally would drive people mad (as it's shown in the movie). Real life people freak out very easily, just like five years ago, with some of the most irrational and dumb behaviors possible.

 

[gradient]

I like it.

It's dark and damning. They were terrified and the horrific deaths that they'd just witnessed were fresh in their mind and would be a huge driving factor in the psychology of their decisions.

I see it as representative of how terror and trauma warp our thinking and lead to seemingly irrational choices.

 

[SirKicksalot]

The movie establishes that the person who was right was the lady who wanted to go home in the beginning.
The protagonist is the bravest of the cowards and suffers the consequences.

 

[poodaddy]

The movie kinda sucks in general. I found it a bit dull and generic. Very overrated film.

I've heard the book is better but I haven't read it, and I dislike the movie enough that I doubt I ever will.

 

[P:axMagellanic]

I dunno fella, those monsters were pretty fucking horrendous.

 

[poppabk]

I think it works, could have maybe have worked better with an extra push - maybe one more gross death to make the choice more stark, but it's such a horrific ending that I'm happy to give them a pass.

 

[JimmyRustler]

I thought the entire movie is very dumb and always found it surprising how well this movie was received in general.

 

[SJRB]

It's amazing because it's such a curveball.

Not in a million years could you guess that finale, it's pure shock value. Such a bleak, depressing vibe. The sense of dread when they drive around that desolate wasteland, and it gets even worse when they see that behemoth and assume that life as they know it is pretty much over. How could they not think that after the horrors they endured the last 24 hours? They're out of gas, out of food. No refuge in sight, otherdimensional beasts on the prowl everywhere they go.

Committing sudoku might just be the most logical move.

Awesome ending.

 

[Men_in_Boxes]

I dug it.

More movies should have memorable twist endings.

 

[nkarafo]

Not in a million years could you guess that finale, it's pure shock value.

Exactly, i was shocked they went with something so cliche and dumb. I would have never guessed, considering the rest of the movie. It's like the director decided to troll us in the last scene.

I get it.

 

[Trilobit]

If the movie focused more on the cosmic horror instead of the characters it would have been a lot better film. The glimpses we got of the creatures in the mist were very cool and so I got bummed out every time we had to endure scenes with the people.

 

[NeverYouMind]

I have no problem with the suicide pact. I have a problem that immediately after the army pulls in with the woman that ran back home from the supermarket in the mist alone. That level of irony has no place in this film.

The novella ending is a lot more hopeful (survivors stay on the road scavenging supplies while traveling toward a special place) and leaves a lot of room for any continuation.

 

[Days like these...]

Because i feel like i'm the only one.

So now that's Halloween, i get all the horror movie references and posts in all parts of the internet. And The Mist is a pretty common topic. And of course, everyone just posts about how amazing that ending was.

I always thought this ending was stupid. Not bad, just stupid. Because it was made only for the sake of shocking the audience and making the "oh if only they waited a bit longer" ending.

But it completely defies logic, statistics and even the lore in this movie.

The fact that all four rational adults in the car simply agreed, without one protest, to get a bullet in the head is statistically impossible i think. I get the situation is desperate and i also get they think the alternative is worse. But there are some other factors:

- It didn't look like too much time had passed. It didn't look like they went too far. It felt like they were what, 5 hours in that car? 10 maybe?
- It didn't look like they were starving. They were in good shape. They still had plenty of time before they were truly desperate enough for killing themselves.
- They had absolutely no reason to believe the whole world was covered in the mist. They knew they could be wrong about that (and they were). Even if they were 90% sure that's the case, the 10% left is enough hope to not want to end your life.
- The movie assumes all 4 out of 4 people in the car had the guts to do this. In real life suicide is scary and not every desperate person has the courage to go through this. In fact, very few do. I would say only 1 out of 10 desperate people would manage it. I just hate how Hollywood movies portray suicide like it's some easy thing to do or "the easy way out". It's not easy. Not 4 out of 4 easy, for sure. Otherwise there would be no desperate people in the world. Not even 1 out of 4 protesting is just dumb.
- The movie established these people were the rational ones. They weren't brainwashed by some government or cult. Heck, even the brainwashed Japanese WW2 soldiers didn't all agree to suicide.
- Not 1 out of the 4 people thought to wait it out longer. Nobody thought maybe there's still hope, maybe the army (duh) is on it. They are not starving, they are not in pain, they are still in the safety of the car. Remember there were 4 people in there. 4 out of 4, again. Not even one protested at least.
- The "it's just a movie, try to enjoy it" defense doesn't work. The whole movie works because these four characters were supposed to be the rational ones VS the irrational ones. The movie itself establishes that during it's whole duration. I'm not just going to ignore that because the movie decided to ignore it for a crowd pleasing, shocking "twist" ending.

As you can see, my issue is mostly a statistical one. If it was just one person in the car it would be fine. Maybe two maximum, i would probably buy this. But four? Nah, that's too many people to all think and feel alike for something so final and scary.

The defense for all that is always the same: "You don't know what you would do in this situation". Nah, i'm pretty sure i would. And most likely you would do the same as i would. I don't believe you would do the same thing these people did. I'm sure you would protest, disagree or you would be too scared to do it. You would wait until you were truly desperate. And even then i bet you would just try your chances sprinting out of the car in hope you get in another that has gas, or maybe a house to catch your breath and eat/drink.

Maybe i'm wrong and you, yes you personally, are maybe brave enough to put a bullet in your head because you think your life is not worth waiting out more or trying your chances. But what are the chances every one around you thinks the same as you?


Anyway, that's why i hate this ending. Not only because it's dumb but also because everyone else seems to love it so much.

Happy Halloween.

They should have called The Warrens to perform an exorcism so that they could live happily ever after.

 

[ZeroZeroQuatre]

The movie was fantastic... and totally ruined by that shlocky ending.
Back then, a fan worked on an alternative version, "restoring" the pessimistic Lovecraftian vibes of the original ending : The Mist - The Novella Cut.
Dunno if the file's still floating around tho, it's been one million years

 

[poppabk]

Exactly, i was shocked they went with something so cliche and dumb. I would have never guessed, considering the rest of the movie. It's like the director decided to troll us in the last scene.

I get it.

Yeah so many movies end with a father shooting his young kid in the head to save him from a horrendous death only to realize that he just had to wait 5 more minutes and everything would have been fine.
Getting sick of this been the final scene in so many movies.

 

[spookyfish]

The reason I hate is because it makes the religious nut right. Which I'm pretty sure is NOT what Darabont wanted.

 

[Nocty]

A guilty pleasure of mine, it's badly acted and middle of the road writing but as an overall package it's an enjoyable film. The ending is indeed poor but eh

 

[nkarafo]

Yeah so many movies end with a father shooting his young kid in the head to save him from a horrendous death only to realize that he just had to wait 5 more minutes and everything would have been fine.
Getting sick of this been the final scene in so many movies.

I mean suicide.

Suicide in most Hollywood movies is a cliche. It's used too many times as a last moment decision in bad situations or when there is no time left, etc.

let me tell ya buddy, that fear, depression, panic, massive anxiety has lead to people killing themselves far easier irl than what the characters probably must've felt at that point.

I'm not an expert but i'm willing to bet all those people are suffering from those things for a very long time before they finally end it. It's not like they got depressed for a couple of hours one day and said, oh well, i'll put a bullet in my head now.

I just think that killing oneself is not an easy decision, unless there's some serious mental issue or something. I feel like it's only because of all the movies we have watched that we believe it is.

And as i said, you have 4 different people in the car. All 4 agreed to do this, not even 1 had second thoughts, there was no arguing, no discussion of alternative options, nobody chickened out, nobody's survival instinct kicked in. 4 out of 4. It's pretty ridiculous.

 

[Ulysses 31]

If the movie focused more on the cosmic horror instead of the characters it would have been a lot better film. The glimpses we got of the creatures in the mist were very cool and so I got bummed out every time we had to endure scenes with the people.

It's a Stephen King story, there's usually a religious nut in there.

 

[Durien]

The movie kinda sucks in general. I found it a bit dull and generic. Very overrated film.

I've heard the book is better but I haven't read it, and I dislike the movie enough that I doubt I ever will.

The book is better but the movie i think does a good job on its own. I like thr ending of both.

 

[Paasei]

The ending came very unexpected, that's what makes it good. Way more creative than the bog standard happy endings where everything will be all right in the end.

 

[nkarafo]

The ending came very unexpected, that's what makes it good. Way more creative than the bog standard happy endings where everything will be all right in the end.

I wasn't arguing about it being a "bad" anding.

Here's how i would end it: Protag wants to kill himself and suggests the others do the same. There's some arguing and two of them don't want to. So they leave the car (and the audience assumes they will most likely get killed by monsters). A few minutes pass until they gather the courage to do it so Protag kills his son and the other person who agreed to the plan and then the army appears just like in the movie. Along with them he hears the two people who left the car shouting. Then they appear and say to him "we saw them and tried to come to you but we couldn't find our way back in the mist" and try to comfort the protag.

It's basically the same unexpected ending and has the same shocking result. But it's also even more depressing because you also add the factor that the people who left the car knew the others would kill themselves but didn't have the time to save the situation. So now you have the protag who is devastated for him murdering his son and the other person (like in the movie) and you also have the two survivors who are also devastated because they couldn't save them in time.

Another better and more shocking bad ending would be the protag making the decision for them and killing the ones that don't want to kill themselves as well, since he holds the gun. Which would make his regret even worse since he knows he also killed a couple of people who could now be alive.

There you go, took me 2 minutes to write two better endings that do the same thing the one in the movie does plus more and they also solve all the issues of believability at the same time.

That's why the ending in the movie is dumb.

 

[GymWolf]

Loved the movie and the ending.

When they saw the giant monster they understood it was over, no sense in being fucked up by monsters, better die with a rapid death.

 

[nkarafo]

When they saw the giant monster they understood it was over, no sense in being fucked up by monsters, better die with a rapid death.

That depends. How sure you are about the monster fucking fate? I don't think they had enough evidence to suggest 100% the whole world is like this. So in a pool of 4 people you would expect at least one would think there's still hope.

Even if they were 100% sure there is no way to avoid a gruesome monster fucking death, in a pool of 4 people you would still expect at least one still being in denial clinging to hopioum because the survival instinct kicked in or because they are too scared to kill themselves.

So all in all, nah, i still don't buy a perfect 4 out of 4 would do what they did in the movie.

 

[xrnzaaas]

Yeah I hate that ending, but to be fair I don't like the rest of the movie either.

 

[thefool]

Never (ever) be a doomer. Dommerism intends to dehumanize.

 

[ClanOfNone]

After I saw what happened to the spider dude I'd much rather take a bullet to the brain pan if I were in that situation.
iirc King himself liked the swerve ending.

 

[nkarafo]

After I saw what happened to the spider dude I'd much rather take a bullet to the brain pan if I were in that situation.

Yes but you couldn't be sure you will have the same fate.

You are saying you would kill yourself over a probability? A low probability at that since i don't remember any other character in the movie dying the exact way you describe.

You must be very brave or don't care about living that much. I'm sure people like you exist but in a pool of 4 i would bet all my belongings you would be the only one.

 

[Paasei]

I wasn't arguing about it being a "bad" anding.

Here's how i would end it: Protag wants to kill himself and suggests the others do the same. There's some arguing and two of them don't want to. So they leave the car (and the audience assumes they will most likely get killed by monsters). A few minutes pass until they gather the courage to do it so Protag kills his son and the other person who agreed to the plan and then the army appears just like in the movie. Along with them he hears the two people who left the car shouting. Then they appear and say to him "we saw them and tried to come to you but we couldn't find our way back in the mist" and try to comfort the protag.

It's basically the same unexpected ending and has the same shocking result. But it's also even more depressing because you also add the factor that the people who left the car knew the others would kill themselves but didn't have the time to save the situation. So now you have the protag who is devastated for him murdering his son and the other person (like in the movie) and you also have the two survivors who are also devastated because they couldn't save them in time.

Another better and more shocking bad ending would be the protag making the decision for them and killing the ones that don't want to kill themselves as well, since he holds the gun. Which would make his regret even worse since he knows he also killed a couple of people who could now be alive.

There you go, took me 2 minutes to write two better endings that do the same thing the one in the movie does plus more and they also solve all the issues of believability at the same time.

That's why the ending in the movie is dumb.

Then it's still a matter of perspective. Don't see how these are any less "dumb" as you say than the one in the movie. Getting out of the car in such a situation to see how far you get, to me at least, is way dumber than just taking the bullet. Especially after seeing a monster the size of multiple buildings. I would not even remotely think about a rescue coming up 5min later.

 

[nkarafo]

Then it's still a matter of perspective. Don't see how these are any less "dumb" as you say than the one in the movie. Getting out of the car in such a situation to see how far you get, to me at least, is way dumber than just taking the bullet. Especially after seeing a monster the size of multiple buildings. I would not even remotely think about a rescue coming up 5min later.

I think you are missing the point.

When i say the ending is dumb, i don't mean the characters are acting dumb or not.

In this situation, it would be more realistic/probable for at least 1 character (out of 4 ffs) to try their chance by getting out of the car instead of taking a bullet in the head. Or maybe wait it out more because of the reasons i already explained.

Whether this is a dumb decision by this one character or not it's a matter of perspective, like you say. But from a movie making perspective, i say it's dumb to assume all 4 people in a pool of 4 would just accept to get a bullet in the head.

I don't know how to stress this enough. The issue is not that someone decided to kill themselves over a desperate situation. The issue is that in a pool of 4 people they all decided the same thing. The possibility that someone would chicken out or that someone would be more hopeful than the others is not touched at all. That's dumb.

 

[ClanOfNone]

Yes but you couldn't be sure you will have the same fate.

You are saying you would kill yourself over a probability? A low probability at that since i don't remember any other character in the movie dying the exact way you describe.

You must be very brave or don't care about living that much. I'm sure people like you exist but in a pool of 4 i would bet all my belongings you would be the only one.

lol, I just used spider dude as an example, they saw multiple people killed in many horrific ways all in a very short time span.
Ultimately I think applying real world logic to a fictional setting where monsters are spilling through a rift in reality is kinda weird anyways.