Best Movie Scenes Ever

Unforgiven. Favorite short dialogue of all time.

Right before the Eastwood character, William Money, kills Gene Hackman’s character “Little Bill”, Bill says, “I don’t deserve to die like this.”

Eastwood’s reply is simply, “Deserves got nothing to do with it.”

It’s absolutely such a chilling and powerful scene.

Some really good responses. I'll add a few I've not seen posted. The scene in the Exorcist where Linda Blair does something horrific with a Crucifix. Probably the most shocking thing I've seen in a movie.

When Michael realized that Fredo is the one who betrayed him in Godfather 2.

The final scene in Planet of the Apes - When Heston realizes that he's on planet Earth.

Finally, the evolution of the beginning of everything in "The tree of life".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=az7L-VffHBo

bladerunner wrote: Some really good responses.

Seconded. And really good thread idea, OP.

Couple of the many that could be named:

Paths of Glory, ending - German girl in bar - after a movie full of cruelty and indifference, personal and institutional; the turn of the crowd in the bar is pretty powerful. Saw this years ago and has stuck with me.

The Shining, manuscript scene - up until this point, weird stuff had been happening with <one character, no spoilers> but you realize something big about <another character, no spoiler> and you realize, "oh no. he's not right."

First Man, moon landing scene - great, tense scene even though you know whats going to happen, made fantastic by an awesome score that really opens up as a wide angle moonscape scene of lunar landing over crater is shown.

Some overlooked ones that are amazing:

October Sky: when his dad comes for the last rocket launch.

A wonderful life: the last scene singing auld lang syne. Has proved itself and lasted the test of time.

Ferris Bueller's Day Off: scene in the museum.

The dark knight: Record for highest batting average of great scenes??

I feel like there are also probably 10 tom hanks scenes you could argue.

+Many others I have failed to remember.

curiositykilledcat wrote:Eastwood’s reply is simply, “Deserves got nothing to do with it.”.

That line has served me better than any other, I use it often...

When I was young, the scene in When a Stranger Calls where the entire police force is trying to protect a woman and her kids from a psycho killer who is telephoning threats. They have her house completely sealed and surrounded, when the last call comes, and is traced: "He's calling from INSIDE the house"

afewgoodones wrote:

Some overlooked ones that are amazing:

October Sky: when his dad comes for the last rocket launch.

A wonderful life: the last scene singing auld lang syne. Has proved itself and lasted the test of time.

Ferris Bueller's Day Off: scene in the museum.

The dark knight: Record for highest batting average of great scenes??

I feel like there are also probably 10 tom hanks scenes you could argue.

+Many others I have failed to remember.

Forgot about the dark knight. The opening bank heist in imax was probably one of the greatest theater experiences I’ve ever had

Bettingfool wrote:For sports movies:

Hoosiers- When Jimmy says I play, coach stays. He goes, I go.

Plus at the end of the movie in the championship game when they are drawing up the final play and Jimmy interrupts the coach and say, "I'll make it". Then he goes out and does it.

Dr. Van Nostrand wrote:

Godfather I - baptism of Connie and Carlo’s baby that’s it end of thread no more posts please good work people have a good weekend!

There has been many great ones mentioned here but I have to agree with this.

I’ll give one that I like in another movie Carlitos Way. When Sean Penn playing a corrupt lawyer visits his mob client in Rikers . The mobster tells him he knows he stole his money and he is going to kill him. Tells him the hole has been dug the lime has been bought.

Not a great movie but I love that scene. When Penn walks outside he throws up. Penn was incredible in this movie. You wouldn’t even recognize him.

Hopefully this works.

1995's Heat: bank robbery scene

The ending scene to the 1984 film "The Killing Fields" where Dith Pran (Dr. Haing Ngor) and Sydney Schanberg reunite in a refugee camp after Pran escaped the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia.

https://youtu.be/MbK3VTClzpw

The train platform scene in 1967 "In the Heat of the Night" where Chief Bill Gillespie (Rod Steiger) gets Virgil Tibbs (Sidney Poitier) to stay in Sparta to solve the murder.

https://youtu.be/cXfD-Ai_QuA

The Tears in Rain monologue by replicant Roy Batty (Rutger Hauer) at the conclusion of the 1982 film Bladerunner.

https://youtu.be/NoAzpa1x7jU

Sometimes it’s nice to have a discussion where you don’t have to change the world and people can give constructive thoughts and ideas. I think this was the idea behind “social media”

The last scene of Mediterraneo.

The last scene of Splendor in the Grass.

The first time James Mason sees Sue Lyon (Lolita). In the garden.

The basement scene in Psycho when we first see 'Mother.'

Stanley screaming, "Stella."

Slim Pickens riding the bomb in Dr Strangelove.

Peter Sellers screaming 'Heil my Furher' in Strangelove.

Robert Duvall, "I love the smell of napalm in the morning. It smells like victory."

Lee Remick walking down the street at the end of 'Days of Wine and Roses.

"Here's Johnny."

I wanted to submit an old one and a new one, but afewgoodones beat me to the old one. I agree that the last scene in I’ts A Wonderful Life has emotional impact that resonates to this day. “Remember, no man is a failure who has friends”. Powerful stuff.

For a recent movie scene, I am going with the final scene in The Force Awakens. Rey climbs the hill after a long journey and holds out the long lost lightsaber to an unwilling Luke Skywalker. Without speaking a word of dialogue, Mark Hamill gives a master class in facial expression acting. Several emotions conveyed silently in just a few seconds. Hurt, knowing, reluctance, and resignation to being unwillingly pulled back into IT. Beautifully done. Of course, Rian Johnson did his best to ruin that scene in the following movie.

Some of my favorites:

The first ever "Bond, James Bond" scene in Dr. No.

"These go to eleven" scene in This Is Spinal Tap (among dozens of others contenders).

The Paul Allen ax murder scene in American Psycho (which was equaled by the amazing Huey Lewis / Weird Al parody years later).

The flying monkeys scene in Wizard of Oz (scared the bejesus out of me as a kid).

The scene where Lester quits his job and gets a year's severance in American Beauty.

The scene in The Decline of Western Civilization with Chris Holmes guzzling vodka in the swimming pool.

The manuscript scene in The Shining (already mentioned).

The cocaine deal scene in Boogie Nights