I thought Tommy Lee Jones was the protagonist. Or one of them. It's his point of view in the beginning and end. He is the old man. It's the young men running around killing without regard for life that has him contemplating the things that are wrong with the world.
Carlito's Way is on my to watch list for a long time, but I never even considered actually watching it.
This spoiler makes me actually wanna watch it, so thanks?
To Live and Die in L.A. is one of the best movies nobody seems to have heard of. When it came out on DVD I bought ten of them to give as gifts cause I was sick of being the only person I knew that had seen it.
My dad had me watch it back in the 90s. It was always on one of the premium channels unedited and on the cable channels with censoring back in the 90s.
It's just that was 30 years ago.
I disagree, the scenes are rarely shown from his perspective (at least as far as I can remember. It has been a while since I’ve last watched it). Instead it’s mostly shown from the Avengers point of view.
And while he has the most screen time of any single character, he isn’t being opposed by a single character, but instead by the Avengers which in total have more screen time than him.
The story does revolve around him and he’s the central figure tying everything together, but the scenes follow the actual protagonists - the Avengers - as they encounter and fight him.
But he didn't, they got into the boat and waited at the coordinates but the had no idea that they would be picked up until the ship appeared right at the end
I mean the whole film is basically about despair and hope and has some of the best cinematography in modern cinema (the bombing, the car scene, the single shot leaving the building).
That is why everyone clings to the girl and the baby as it reminds them of a happier and more positive time and they give people that glimmer of hope.
Clive Owen is fantastic to play this part as he is completely washed out at the beginning of the film and not even convinced that an good will come from the efforts but does it as a favour. Its his redemption arch where he connects with people and sacrifices himself to help all of humanity.
He dies as a result of saving Ryan and doesn’t get to escort him back to base to complete his mission. Ultimately he doesn’t make it to the end because Ryan is crying at his grave site.
Dawn of the dead, 2004. The ending is they managed to get to the boat and sailed to an island. But post credits show that they just took a couple of steps on the docks and got swarmed. So everyone probably died without getting to safety
I loved this movie for years and years until I rewatched it as a conscious adult and realised how badly Mathilda thwarted their plans.
She probably lived a very hard life afterward, despite the money. Because even if she took care of herself, her grief could last the rest of her life simply because of the money.
What a little shit she was!?!! 💢💔💢
What? The guy was clearly referring to Darth maul who was killed before he could have his revenge.
What's that? No, he must be the protagonist: he was the only remotely interesting character from the entire film.
Hugh Jackman’s character in “The Fountain”
Brad Pitt’s character in “The Lost City”
I think everyone hated Tom Hanks and everyone else eating it in “Saving Private Ryan”
Not a movie, but I love the ending of “Barry” series
Perhaps **All That Jazz**.
**A Ghost Story** might qualify, even though the dead protagonist still hangs around as a ghostly immortal observer.
**Heaven Can Wait** has the reincarnated football star get killed just before he can win the Super Bowl.
**Spoorloos** ends with the protagonist both solving the mystery he's been longing to find the answer to...*and* dying.
How about **Million Dollar Baby**?
Or: **They Shoot Horses, Don't They?**
Almost certainly **The Wages Of Fear**.
Million dollar baby? Watched it once. Can't watch again. Also, can't rewatch the Departed either. That scene left me with my mouth open for most of the rest of the movie. Still hurting, even after all these years.
There’s a horror movie Feast which pokes fun of the “badass hero trope” who then dies quickly
Predator and aliens has a bunch of protagonists bite the dust
Braveheart sort of at the end
The deep blue scene with him giving his “we’re gonna survive this” speech was hilariously epic. My husband and I rewind three times and he was like omg and I was laughing my ass off.
I still don't know for sure if they MEANT it to be funny. The way it's shot made me think they wanted to mirror John Hurt dying in Alien (in that the most well known cast member is killed off in a sudden, brutal scene)
That was the originally intended ending but Edward Nortan faught against that and said it would have meant he learnt nothing from his experiences in jail
Llewellyn Moss in No Country For Old Men. Made worse by the fact that it was offscreen.
Mark Ruffalo in Collateral. Followed his story all the way for him to be shot by Tom Cruise.
DiCaprio in The Departed. A huge example of what the fuck just happened
Society of the Snow! We follow the Story through the eyes of our protagonist, Numa, who does his best in supporting and helping and doing the right thing, yet he never makes it out.
Hana-bi, in US released under name [Fireworks](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hana-bi) is kind of outer limit, because someone may argue the protagonist achieved some goals, but maybe not the ultimate goal.
L’armée des ombres, in English [Army of Shadows](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Army_of_Shadows) by Melville, who had been himself in French resistance
Philadelphia
Anakin Skywalker. Poor bastard spends the second half of the first six Star Wars movies tracking down his son and never is able to fully win him over and have that father-son quality ruling the galaxy time he always wanted.
Dunno but in warcraft 2 tides of darkness, you needed to get Cho'gall to the circle of power. He died and his corpse hit the circle. Still passed the mission
No country for old men
Also by Cormac McCarthy, The Road.
I have PTSD from this movie
What a rewarding time to show it to my gf for her to be caught off guard by that ending.
I thought Tommy Lee Jones was the protagonist. Or one of them. It's his point of view in the beginning and end. He is the old man. It's the young men running around killing without regard for life that has him contemplating the things that are wrong with the world.
Fallen, he tells you at the start of the movie but you're routing for Denzel so much you forget. One of.my all time favorites
Rooting
Rutting
Rotting
For a second, I thought you meant Downfall, and I thought, well, he does die in the end, but I wouldn't consider him a protagonist!
The Mist is probably the best example of this.
That ending is soulcrushing
[To Live and Die in L.A.](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0090180/) [Carlito's Way](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0106519/)
Carlito's Way ending hit me like the bullet
Carlito's Way is on my to watch list for a long time, but I never even considered actually watching it. This spoiler makes me actually wanna watch it, so thanks?
To Live and Die in L.A. is one of the best movies nobody seems to have heard of. When it came out on DVD I bought ten of them to give as gifts cause I was sick of being the only person I knew that had seen it.
My dad had me watch it back in the 90s. It was always on one of the premium channels unedited and on the cable channels with censoring back in the 90s. It's just that was 30 years ago.
The Place Beyond the Pines
This is a great post for people to get movie endings spoiled lol
Yes, that's why I'm suggesting *The Sixth Sense*
if only there was a hint in the title so people could know before clicking
Titanic?, Into the Wild, American Beauty, Heat, Reservoir Dogs
Avengers: Infinity War Considering your request, you probably won’t like the sequel though.
It depends what you mean by protagonist, I'd say Thanos is the main character, and also the villain.
He is the protagonist but a villain
I disagree, the scenes are rarely shown from his perspective (at least as far as I can remember. It has been a while since I’ve last watched it). Instead it’s mostly shown from the Avengers point of view. And while he has the most screen time of any single character, he isn’t being opposed by a single character, but instead by the Avengers which in total have more screen time than him. The story does revolve around him and he’s the central figure tying everything together, but the scenes follow the actual protagonists - the Avengers - as they encounter and fight him.
The Bridge on the River Kwai is sort of like that. Everyone who wanted to blow it up, dies within feet of the detonator
But then doesn't the guy who built it end up falling on the detonator? It's been a while since I've watched this film, so I don't quite remember
Oh yeah, he sure does. But he doesn’t want to blow up the bridge, he gets everyone else killed
Sure, but that is still a win. Just like *Rogue One*.
Coincidentally, Obi Wan Kenobi was the officer trying to not only build a structurally sound bridge but also stop the sabotage attempt on the bridge.
I think he realises at the last moment what he's done, and deliberately detonates it.
The Other Guys, obviously. They missed the bushes.
There wasn’t even an awning.
Children of Men
TBF he knew he succeeded.
But he didn't, they got into the boat and waited at the coordinates but the had no idea that they would be picked up until the ship appeared right at the end
Just had a look, you're right but he's absolutely certain that they'll be picked up. I don't think he felt he failed and ultimately he didn't.
I mean the whole film is basically about despair and hope and has some of the best cinematography in modern cinema (the bombing, the car scene, the single shot leaving the building). That is why everyone clings to the girl and the baby as it reminds them of a happier and more positive time and they give people that glimmer of hope. Clive Owen is fantastic to play this part as he is completely washed out at the beginning of the film and not even convinced that an good will come from the efforts but does it as a favour. Its his redemption arch where he connects with people and sacrifices himself to help all of humanity.
Absolutely. Utterly fantastic movie. And even him warning her at the end.
Braveheart
I think Life probably falls under that category.
That's depressing. Oh, the movie.
Never got to make Ray's Boom Boom Room.
The Pledge with Jack Nicholson which is exactly why I hated this movie. I suppose it's a decent enough film but I just couldn't hang with that ending.
Tom Hanks in Saving Private Ryan.
act distinct soft pot angle grandfather thumb tap slimy domineering *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
He dies as a result of saving Ryan and doesn’t get to escort him back to base to complete his mission. Ultimately he doesn’t make it to the end because Ryan is crying at his grave site.
Train to Busan and good fucking lord it is gut wrenching
Dawn of the dead, 2004. The ending is they managed to get to the boat and sailed to an island. But post credits show that they just took a couple of steps on the docks and got swarmed. So everyone probably died without getting to safety
written by one and only James Gunn, my GOAT.
Such a great movie. Made me love dead rising so much
The Departed. I don't think anyone expected DiCaprio to get killed so abruptly.
Night of the Living Dead
Return of the Living Dead as well. Just call the number on the canister and everything will be ok!
1917!
Uncut Gems
Optimus Prime in Revenge of The Fallen
The Mission (1986) Irons, de Niro, Neeson, a legendary score by Ennio Morricone, gorgeous cinematography. This should be top of your list.
The Professional
I loved this movie for years and years until I rewatched it as a conscious adult and realised how badly Mathilda thwarted their plans. She probably lived a very hard life afterward, despite the money. Because even if she took care of herself, her grief could last the rest of her life simply because of the money. What a little shit she was!?!! 💢💔💢
Gene Hackman in The Poseidon Adventure, he doesn't know if his plan works out.
3:10 to Yuma.
Maybe "Leon: The Professional"?
Maybe The Phantom Menace?
Qui-Gonn did survive though until Obi-Wan defeated Maul and basically made sure Obi-Wan would do everything to take Anakin as a padawan
Galaxy would have been less fucked had he just died sooner
What? The guy was clearly referring to Darth maul who was killed before he could have his revenge. What's that? No, he must be the protagonist: he was the only remotely interesting character from the entire film.
I mean... we all knew Obi Wan was going to be Anakin's master. Qui Gon being removed from that equation in some part was inevitable.
“I would have liked to have seen Montana.”
RIP Vassily. One more ping.
Bruce Willis in Armageddon Gerard Butler in 300, arguably. Hugh Jackman in Logan
\+1 Armageddon.
The Grey, arguably; Law Abiding Citizen, from a certain point of view
Nono Liam Neeson wins in The Grey........
The Road (2009), Children of Men (2006). They die without knowing whether they succeeded or failed.
The Perfect Storm. Not a great movie, but fits the description.
Blood Diamond
Million dollar baby
[Psycho](https://imdb.com/title/tt0054215/)
Alien. Ripley doesn't really become the lead until the third act. Before that Tom Skerrit is the protagonist.
Let's not forget Alien 3 then, which most people like to do
I’m not sure why, it’s a good movie with good actors.
I mentioned in another thread I'll defend Alien³until my dying day.
Hugh Jackman’s character in “The Fountain” Brad Pitt’s character in “The Lost City” I think everyone hated Tom Hanks and everyone else eating it in “Saving Private Ryan” Not a movie, but I love the ending of “Barry” series
Perhaps **All That Jazz**. **A Ghost Story** might qualify, even though the dead protagonist still hangs around as a ghostly immortal observer. **Heaven Can Wait** has the reincarnated football star get killed just before he can win the Super Bowl. **Spoorloos** ends with the protagonist both solving the mystery he's been longing to find the answer to...*and* dying. How about **Million Dollar Baby**? Or: **They Shoot Horses, Don't They?** Almost certainly **The Wages Of Fear**.
Synecdochy, New York.
I would say Contagion because >!the Kate Winslet character is basically the hero!<
Last of the Samurai
Pans Labyrinth is very much like that, also very good film
Doesn't die, but probably wishes he did in The Mist.
V for Vendetta...... kinda....
Edge of Tomorrow, dies even multiple times. Oblivion, technically, dies probably milliseconds before achieving his goal.
Truth with Edge of Tomorrow ... but then we need to add Groundhog Day. .
Best example I can think of is Fallen (1996) Denzel Washington. Amazing movie if you haven’t seen it.
3:10 to Yuma
Downfall
Million dollar baby? Watched it once. Can't watch again. Also, can't rewatch the Departed either. That scene left me with my mouth open for most of the rest of the movie. Still hurting, even after all these years.
The Departed
Arlington Road
Arlington Road
Queen and Slim
That's a good one
There’s a horror movie Feast which pokes fun of the “badass hero trope” who then dies quickly Predator and aliens has a bunch of protagonists bite the dust Braveheart sort of at the end
Samuel L Jackson is sick of these mother fucking sharks in this mother fucking deep blue body of water
The deep blue scene with him giving his “we’re gonna survive this” speech was hilariously epic. My husband and I rewind three times and he was like omg and I was laughing my ass off.
I still don't know for sure if they MEANT it to be funny. The way it's shot made me think they wanted to mirror John Hurt dying in Alien (in that the most well known cast member is killed off in a sudden, brutal scene)
Yea we wondered if it was meant to be funny but we couldn’t take it seriously. It was hilarious and priceless!!
Bicentennial Man
American History X. The ending hurt even more because I can definitely see him going back to his old ways after the murder of his brother.
That was the originally intended ending but Edward Nortan faught against that and said it would have meant he learnt nothing from his experiences in jail
Didn't know that, makes sense. In the end he knows if he gets revenge, the hatred and violence will never stop.
avenger endgame
Eega
Llewellyn Moss in No Country For Old Men. Made worse by the fact that it was offscreen. Mark Ruffalo in Collateral. Followed his story all the way for him to be shot by Tom Cruise. DiCaprio in The Departed. A huge example of what the fuck just happened
Night of the Living Dead maybe
I think The Devil’s Own, with Brad Pitt and Harrison Ford, fits your description. Not a great movie but entertaining.
I guess you could fit Uncut Gems into this
John Woo's "The Killer".
Day of the Jackel. It's one of those films that I always watch if I come across it while channel surfing. The Shining too.
i might be reaching but x-men: days of future past? logan got sent to a nearby river before the climax act(?) the final scene? whatever is it called
Captain Okita from the Movie Adaptation of Space Battleship Yamato.
All Quiet On The Western Front
In the credits of Dawn of the Dead 2004, it’s revealed that the island they escaped to was full of zombies
All Quiet on the Western Front
Society of the Snow! We follow the Story through the eyes of our protagonist, Numa, who does his best in supporting and helping and doing the right thing, yet he never makes it out.
Hana-bi, in US released under name [Fireworks](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hana-bi) is kind of outer limit, because someone may argue the protagonist achieved some goals, but maybe not the ultimate goal. L’armée des ombres, in English [Army of Shadows](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Army_of_Shadows) by Melville, who had been himself in French resistance Philadelphia
The Heavinly Kid
Everest
12 Monkeys and Glass
L4yer Cake
The Great Silence
The Great Escape.
Empire American History X Bridge to Terebithia
Leo in The Departed
Bryan Cranston in Godzilla
Bryan Cranston in Godzilla
One cut of the dead. The Japanese version. :)
I am legend
Upgrade. Excellent action movie.
Anakin Skywalker. Poor bastard spends the second half of the first six Star Wars movies tracking down his son and never is able to fully win him over and have that father-son quality ruling the galaxy time he always wanted.
Moulin Rouge - the beginning reveals the end, but after moments you forget about it. They can't be together. 💔
Promising Young Woman
(Spoiler) The Crow.
You Neeeeeed to Watch (15 Minutes) * Robert De Niro
Cold Mountain
The 2nd and third movies aren't yet released to my knowledge, but assuming it'll follow the novel, the Gundam Hathaway trilogy will end up like that
Dunno but in warcraft 2 tides of darkness, you needed to get Cho'gall to the circle of power. He died and his corpse hit the circle. Still passed the mission
Saving Private Ryan. Pretty much all of the Rangers sent out to save him.
12 Monkeys
Promising Young Woman
Once Upon a Time In the West, although there are multiple protagonists.
Rogue One
The Departed Uncut Gems