With so many amazing, iconic death scenes in film, it’s hard to say which one truly deserves to be called the greatest of all time.
The most memorable death scenes are often ones that leave an audience shocked, horrified, or laughing their butts off at the pure absurdity.
There are so many different ways a character can die in a film, but the greatest death scenes are ones that complete the story being told.
Some of these great death scenes are funny because the character’s behavior is so unexpected.
Other great movie deaths on this list are sad because we grew attached to the characters throughout the movies.
From the gory violence of The Shining to the bitter sadness of Old Yeller, this is a list of the best movie deaths ever.
Feel free to add any great scenes that we may have missed from this list.
Best Movie Death Scenes
Here are the best movie death scenes. Spoiler alert!
Emma Greenway, Terms Of Endearment
The most memorable part of the movie Terms of Endearment is the way it portrays Emma Greenway, played by Shirley MacLaine.
The character has been called “the ultimate maneater” and “a male fantasy”. Emma is a middle-aged woman who seduces younger men with her beauty and sexuality. She does not discriminate based on income level, which makes her character more powerful.
Towards the end of the movie, Emma has a conversation with her daughter Aurora. Aurora tells her that she wants to find a great guy to settle down with and have children. Emma responds by telling her daughter that she will never be happy in a monogamous relationship.
Emma tells her that everything she ever needed or wanted was right in front of her face — her father — but she pushed him away because she was afraid of getting hurt.
Emma warns Aurora that if she follows in her footsteps and becomes promiscuous like her, then she could end up losing everything: a husband, kids, maybe even her own life.
At this point in the movie, you know that there is no hope for Emma to change and become a more responsible adult. Her track record proves this to be true. She’s been married four times and has had numerous affairs throughout those
- Jeff Daniels, John Lithgow, Danny DeVito (Actors)
- James L. Brooks (Director)
- French, English, Spanish (Subtitles)
- Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Tony Stark, Avengers: Endgame
The most powerful superhero in the Marvel Universe is back in Iron Man, a story about a billionaire arms manufacturer who builds an armored suit of incredible power as a means of recreating the accident that stripped him of his normal life.
It’s a brilliant tale with terrific special effects, but it also has a strong theme about responsibility and heroism.
Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) is given his great gift when he’s only 21 years old, and he learns to use it while still young and arrogant.
Very few people would have turned such power down, but Stark can’t let go of his selfishness and instead uses the gift to build weapons for others to fight wars for him.
He grows older, wealthy and powerful — but empty inside — until he realizes how he has misused his gifts. From that point on he becomes a true hero, using his wealth and power to protect humanity from those who would destroy it.
In this film, with Earth under siege by aliens known as the Chitauri, Stark has created an upgraded suit of armor that can take him into space to confront them directly.
He goes up against them with the help of another hero in Captain America (Chris Evans), who wears an even more advanced suit. The rest of their team includes Black Widow
- Robert Downey, Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo (Actors)
- Anthony Russo (Director) - Christopher Markus (Writer)
- French, Spanish, English (Subtitles)
- Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parents Strongly Cautioned)
Old Yeller, Old Yeller
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- Amazon Prime Video (Video on Demand)
- Dorothy McGuire, Fess Parker, Jeff York (Actors)
- Robert Stevenson (Director) - Fred Gipson (Writer) - Bill Anderson (Producer)
- English (Playback Language)
- English (Subtitle)
Best Movie Death Scenes
What Are movie death scenes?
Death is a part of life, but it’s also a part of movies. From the first time that a cowboy was shot in an alley with “Bang! You’re Dead” written on the wall to the latest action flick, film has been filled with death scenes.
And while some deaths are more memorable than others, they’re all pretty spectacular in their own right.
Truly great movie deaths capture your attention and get you excited about what’s going to happen next.
They give you goosebumps and make you jump out of your seat. They turn your world upside down and make you feel like anything could happen.
And when that scene finally ends, it feels like a piece of your soul has been stolen from you.
Beth March, Little Women
Beth March is one of the four March sisters, daughters of Mr. and Mrs. March, who act as protagonists in the novel Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. The eldest of the sisters, she is studious, kind and considerate, with a sweet nature and a talent for drawing.
She was born on June 4th 1834 (June 10th in the movie) to her parents Marmee and Father. She is the namesake of her great-aunt, who was an invalid and had wanted a daughter to care for her.
She is a talented artist and despite being plain-looking (mostly due to her always having her nose in a book instead of paying attention to fashion), she is sought after as a wife.
She marries John Brooke in the end, but dies from scarlet fever, leaving Beth’s twin sisters Amy and Meg to raise her children Jo and Lizzie.
Both Author Alcotts name characters from their novels after people they knew in real life or read about.
In Little Women it was Little Men where Beth was named after Louisa May Alcotts friend Beth Sargent who died at the age of 18 leaving behind a short journal written in diary form that Louisa had read after Beths death which inspired
- Winona Ryder, Gabriel Byrne, Trini Alvarado (Actors)
- Gillian Armstrong (Director)
Bambi’s Mother, Bambi
Bambi’s mother is a fictional deer character in the 1942 Walt Disney animated film Bambi. She is voiced by the actress and singer Donna Reed.
Toward the beginning of the film, Bambi’s mother is seen with her mate, licking Bambi clean after he is born. She appears only briefly and has no dialogue; however, she does sing along with other forest creatures later in the film.
Her fate remains uncertain at the end of the movie, although there are different interpretations: some say she was shot and killed by a hunter (although not seen) during or after the hunters’ attack on Bambi, while others believe that she escaped into the forest and lived out her days there with her son.
In the sequel, The Story of the First Christmas Snow, Bambi is mentioned to have a wife and twin fawns, though it is possible said wife could be his mother since his father is still alive at that point in time.
In January 2006, Disney released a direct-to-video sequel titled “”Bambi II””, which focuses on his relationship with his father and how they struggle to survive without his mother’s help. The film ends with Bambi’s father looking across a field as
- Jose Ferrer, Danny Thomas, Billy De Wolfe (Actors)
- Larry Roemer (Director) - Romeo Muller (Writer) - Arthur Rankin, Jr. (Producer) - Burl Ives, Jimmy...
- French Canadian, Spanish (Subtitles)
- Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Noah Calhoun And Allie Hamilton, The Notebook
Movie lovers have always been fond of love stories. However, the story of Noah Calhoun and Allie Hamilton in the movie The Notebook is an exception.
It has been rated as one of the best love stories in the history of Hollywood. Here are some facts about this romantic tale.
The filming of The Notebook took place at various locations in Charleston, South Carolina. These include the Battery, a lighthouse and a houseboat.
Allie Hamilton’s house was also filmed at Charleston. Even the college where Noah attended was filmed at a real college – Duke University in North Carolina.
Noah was played by Ryan Gosling, who won several awards for his role in the movie. He won Best Actor Award from Satellite Awards, Teen Choice Awards and MTV Movie Awards for his portrayal of Noah Calhoun.
The Notebook movie also won a Golden Globe from 2003 for Best Motion Picture – Drama category and also an award from MTV Movie Awards for Best Kiss between Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams in 2004.
The film was directed by Nick Cassavetes and it was produced by Nick Cassavetes, Lianne Halfon, Gary Foster and James Schamus. The screenplay of the movie was written by Jeremy Leven based on his own novel titled “All My
- Kate Bosworth, Josh Duhamel, Robert Luketic (Actors)
- English, French, Spanish (Subtitles)
- Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parents Strongly Cautioned)
Jackie Harrison, Stepmom
I’m a stepmother. I wasn’t sure what that meant when my husband, John, and I got married right after college. I didn’t know much about stepparenthood or the challenges that come with it.
Trying to raise two girls as a stepmom was new for me and for them. The girls’ mother has a hard time being consistent with her parenting because she works long hours, so we never knew from one day to another if we’d see her. My husband and I have always split our responsibilities, but it’s a lot easier when you have both of you on the same page, doing the same things.
I’ve learned over time that the girls’ mother is not going to be much of a presence in their lives and that my job as the stepmom is to be consistent in my love and care for them.
I plan to do that as long as they need me, whether it’s until they graduate from high school or until they’re ready to move into adulthood without us.
I’m also doing my best to be an example of what a good partner should be like in their lives, even though their dad isn’t around much these days.
Hopefully by showing them how happy he makes me, they will see how important it is
- Julia Roberts, Susan Sarandon, Ed Harris (Actors)
- Chris Columbus (Director)
Bubba Blue, Forrest Gump
The first time I saw the movie Forrest Gump, I must admit that I was a bit confused. I had seen the preview, and it appeared to be a movie about a mentally challenged man from Alabama who had an uncanny ability to end up at all of the important historical events of the last half century.
Toward the end of the movie, Bubba Blue had told Forrest how he got his name.
“I wuz standin’ on a corner in New Orleans,” he said. “When this here feller come up to me and asked me what my name wuz. I looked at him real weird and said, ‘Bubba Blue.’ He said, ‘Well Bubba,’ he said, ‘I’ma put that on you license plate.’ And that’s how I got my name.”
I thought it was just a stupid joke in a stupid movie until today when I saw some flashing lights behind me as I pulled over for running a red light (oops!).
The police officer took my license back to his car and returned in about 10 minutes with it and a ticket for running the light. He then proceeded to tell me that since there were no open warrants for my arrest and since my record was clean he would let me off if I
- Amazon Prime Video (Video on Demand)
- Tom Hanks, Robin Wright Penn, Gary Sinise (Actors)
- Robert Zemeckis (Director) - Eric Roth (Writer) - Wendy Finerman (Producer)
- English (Playback Language)
- English (Subtitle)
Hillary Whitney, Beaches
When I first heard about a new shop, Beaches, opening up in the heart of Austin, Texas, it was hard for me to think about anything else. Especially since I’d had such an incredible experience with their founder and designer, Hillary Whitney.
Trying on clothes can be an intimidating process, because we all want to look good in what we wear. Hillary’s line helps make that possible.
My best advice is to just try things on and don’t be afraid to mix and match different styles and different designers. Sometimes you’ll find two pieces that were made for each other, sometimes they’ll clash completely.
But either way, you’ll come away having learned something new about yourself and feeling great about it!Hillary Whitney is a national bestselling author, sought-after speaker, life coach and expert in the fields of health, fitness, weight loss and relationships.
She writes for several leading women’s magazines including Marie Claire, Shape, More and Woman’s World. Hillary has been featured on Good Morning America, The Rachael Ray Show and Dr. Oz. She has appeared several times as a guest expert on The Dr. Phil Show.
Tricia Felty from Beaches interviews Hillary Whitney about her new book “The Skinny Rules”Hillary Whitney is a New York City-based writer and editor, who writes about all things travel and lifestyle.
She has been an editorial assistant at Conde Nast Traveler, and has contributed to the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and more. Her work has been featured in Martha Stewart Living, Forbes Travel Guide, Departures and more.
She currently works as senior web editor at LuggageHero.com, where she covers everything from luxury travel trends to what to wear on your next trip. However, her favorite piece of luggage is her surfboard.
Hillary received her BA in journalism from Northwestern University and a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University. You can find her on Twitter @hillarywhitney or Instagram @hillarywhitney.
- Amazon Prime Video (Video on Demand)
- Andrew McCarthy, Jonathan Silverman, Terry Kiser (Actors)
- Ted Kotcheff (Director) - Robert Klane (Writer) - Victor Drai (Producer)
- English (Playback Language)
- English (Subtitle)
What Is The Saddest Movie Death Ever?
What is the saddest movie death ever?
It’s a hard question to answer. After all, there are so many contenders! Not just in film, but in literature and real life. The death of a beloved character is often a sad occasion, even in comedies.
What makes it so sad? Is it their dying words? Their manner of death? Their relationship with other characters?
Let’s look at some popular picks for the saddest deaths in film. All of these are taken straight from IMDB’s top 250 movies list (as voted by users).
The first one is Jack Dawson, who dies while saving Rose from the sinking Titanic. It’s a nice moment because they were literally star-crossed lovers from different classes, and when she says “live on,” he says “I will never let go.” This moment is reprised when Rose dies years later.
Now for some honorable mentions: Professor X dies in X-Men: The Last Stand after Jean Grey kills him with her telekinetic abilities.
He doesn’t die immediately, though – instead, he has a vision of Xavier as an old man sitting by a fireplace in some kind of retirement home before dying ten years later at the same spot.
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