(Not really) Happy Endings

[Frybird]

After reading the thread about the decline of happy endings i felt inspired to open this one about supposedly Happy Ending that are...well, not really that happy at all, if you think about it.

For example, Gears of War. Especially in the Second Game it is said that the humans pretty much provoked a war thanks to battling each other and robbing the planet of precious resources. So it's always sort of a strange "Happy End" when the testosterone redneck-y humans win a fight against thier underground neighbors.

Or look at the Matrix Trilogy...in the end, the situation is pretty much the same as before, just with less green and a shaky truce...was that really worth it?


More examples as i remember them, till then:

What "Happy Endings" (any Media) did just not felt right to you?

 

[Aloran]

(SPOILER)
the final fantasy film with aliens and stuff...
The only male in the film dies to save humanity.
Leaving a 20 or so year old woman and a 70 year old man
Can someone explain how they plan to repopulate the human race?

 

[RetiarySword]

(SPOILER)
the final fantasy film with aliens and stuff...
The only male in the film dies to save humanity.
Leaving a 20 or so year old woman and a 70 year old man
Can someone explain how they plan to repopulate the human race?

That is the luckiest old man ever!!
'Its time to repopulate, for the species'
'Only if you was the last man in the..'
'Ahha! Lets get freaky!'

 

[Lord Krunk]

Halo 3.

Spoiler: SPOILERS!

So, the MC winds up destroying the only device capable of wiping out the Flood, which are obviously still aound because Gravemind would have thought of that beforehand (otherwise, it's terrible writing).

Problem is, now there's nothing left. The Flood are just going to wipe everything out (unless they can find the other Halos, which they would destroy anyway) because there's nothing to stop them.

Bittersweet or what?

 

[Gaskell]

Post Modernism


The reason for the fall of happy endings is the maturation of the audience. We are all aware of happy "hollywood" endings, and the endings which result in unexpected tragedy are there to invoke an exaggerated response within us
Look at Pulp Fiction and reservoir dogs
None of the characters from Pulp Fiction have a happy ending
Reservoir Dogs, the main two characters who were psycho's both get shot in the face at the end.
It assumes our prior knowledge then perverts it

 

[Aloran]

(SPOILER)
the final fantasy film with aliens and stuff...
The only male in the film dies to save humanity.
Leaving a 20 or so year old woman and a 70 year old man
Can someone explain how they plan to repopulate the human race?

That is the luckiest old man ever!!
'Its time to repopulate, for the species'
'Only if you was the last man in the..'
'Ahha! Lets get freaky!'

GENIUS!
both amazing and "ewww" at the same time

 

[Pringles]

Stranger than fiction

*SPOILER*

Great film and i recomment it to anyone. Will ferrell's Truman show basically. But the ending marred it for me and ruined it for my mate i saw it with. I know how the director justifies it even IN the films dialogue but the main character should have STAYED dead. The idea that he gets his life in order, is so content and happy but then sacrifices it to save the child is fantastic. The impact of that was pretty much tangible in the cinema not to sound overly tacky, but then the resolution softened the blow to the point of dissapointment. Was his first film both writing AND directing so its understandable but a shame. Makes me a sad panda it does...

 

[Sevre]

Fallout 3.

Spoiler

You die.

 

[FlameOfArnor]

rocky horror picture show. sure the bad guy dies and the world is saved but all the good guys are left dying as well and it ends saying how pointless existence is.

 

[SecretTacoNinja]

rocky horror picture show. sure the bad guy dies and the world is saved but all the good guys are left dying as well and it ends saying how pointless existence is.

The world was never in danger. :\
The bad guy didn't die either, the bad guys - Riffraff and Magenta - got off scott-free.

So it's really a full-blown sad ending.

 

[Dragon_of_red]

Fallout 3.

Spoiler

You die.

How is in any way possible that a happy ending?

Unless of course you were being an arsehole, then it may be ok.

 

[Nazulu]

Conquars Bad Fur Days' ending was both sad and funny but probably more sad.

 

[Davey Woo]

Overlord (NOT Raising Hell)

Spoiler

You finish the game knowing that you were never the REAL Overlord, and you had been played by your 'beloved' minions

 

[morphyx_69]

**SPOILER**

The Watchmen, world peace is created but at the cost of millions of lives, both in the book and in the film. Dunno if you would call that a happy ending.

 

[Avatar Roku]

**SPOILER**

The Watchmen, world peace is created but at the cost of millions of lives, both in the book and in the film. Dunno if you would call that a happy ending.

I would. I mean, those millions of people were from New York, fro Christ's sake!

 

[dark_taint92]

i think the duke nukem land of the babes ending was happy funny and a bit depressin all at the same time
every man on earth is dead only duke nukem is left with a huge population of women to please
he has a huge line of them and they go in one at a time and he gets to f*** them

 

[LINKXIII]

Fallout 3
Any silent hill game

 

[ThePoodonkis]

Worst ending for a movie: Funny Games US.

 

[AtticusSP]

Radiata Stories.
Neither endings are actually good, and one of them is poorly explained, and took me forever to understand what actually happened.

 

[AlphaOmega]

No Country for Old Men has a downright unhappy ending
There Will be BLood turns the main character from unlikeable to Mr Dick USA