", A Hundred and One Days: A Baghdad Journal, Asne Seierstad, "It was then that I began to sit on my bed and stare out at the nibbling squirrels, and to make up powems from intense abstraction, hour after unmarked hour, imagination scarcely faltering once, rhythm hardly skipping a beat, while sisters called me, suns rose and fell, and the poems I made, which I never remembered, were the first and last of that time", "And presently, like a circling typhoon, the sounds of battle began to return. The really interesting thing, though, is that his parting words also offer a glimpse of hopeand the only one in Seven, for that matter. ", "Up out of the lampshade, startled by the overhead light, flew a large nocturnal butterfly that began circling the room. The framing device entails the only guy who can pinpoint Soze, Verbal Kint (Kevin Spacey) telling customs agent Dave Kujan (Chazz Palminteri) a long, complex story about how he entered the villain's world and took part in a heist. Eventually, all is revealed to be a dream, one from which she gladly awakens. 12. The Falls, George Saunders (From Pastoralia ). ", The Hound of the Baskervilles, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, "My personal rollercoaster. His testimony, sealed with that line from King Lear, is enough to convert anyone to the power of great fiction. Hint. Its a monstrously selfish act borne of panic over his lost youth and the soul-crushing responsibilities of adult life. But which Shakespearean drama opens with the line, "I wonder how the king escaped our hands?" Take our quiz and see how well you know your Shakespeare. Ominous and syntactically exciting, this final line brings Conrad's dark novel full circle. Salinger (From Nine Stories ). No wonder she dreams of going "somewhere over the rainbow." Shakespeare's Opening Lines: The Quiz If music be the food of love, play on; Give me excess of it. "For both of us a new life is beginning" Constellations An Ideal Husband Chimerica 3. Tortured by loneliness, the monster ultimately flees to the North Pole, and the doctor dies in pursuit. "From Ulysses by James Joyce. Endings, as we all know, are important. The movie's suggestion that power and corruption are inextricably connected certainly gave it resonance for audiences of that era. He witnesses suffering and pain, capped by the emotional devastation of his partner. "He loved Big Brother. It touches on the passing of youth and of more innocent times in life, but it also offers hope by pointing out that sharing toys helps keep the magic of play alive. I think its the tension between the countrysides utter destruction and the fathers adamant love, all rendered in a style as spare as a sun-bleached bone. Torn between two very different men, Madeleine endures real tragedy before finally correcting her course, which we, her desperate fans, cant know for sure until that very last word. "From The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince by J.K. Rowling "Severus. I said that they shouldnt be frightened (although I am often frightened) and that there was value everywhere. Over the course of the movie, he sees evidence that the world can be a pretty horrible place. Its desultory plot and muffled despair still feel strikingly modern. Professor Pieixoto describes the challenges of transcribing the story weve just read from 30 cassette tapes found in an army footlocker. The cults of the famous and the dead. He convinces Lt. Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman) to let him take responsibility for the murders to avoid the dispiriting consequences. ", "Again and again I called out for Midori from the dead centre of this place that was no place. The movie's theme could not be laid out any more succinctly; The Wizard of Oz is about a number of things, but nothing more than the idea of home. said, watching her hand. by John Steinbeck (1939). It was, in so many ways, a film ahead of its time. The butterfly motif brings the concept of "lightness" to life; this final vignette captures the mood of the book perfectly. For many, John Keats is the prototype of artistic genius. ", The Pianist: The Extraordinary True Story of One Man's Survival in Warsaw, 1939-1945, Wladyslaw Szpilman, "This is not a full circle. Often called England's 'national poet', his work consists of about 38 . ", "And here she is, herself, Clarissa, not Mrs. Dalloway anymore; there is no one now to call her that. It's dusty and desolate, and there's not much to do. Killer John Doe (Kevin Spacey) reveals that he cut off the head of protagonist Mills' pregnant wife and stuck it in a box. Gillian Anderson quiz: A Streetcar Named Desire or The X Files? A recurring bit in the movie finds millionaire Osgood Fielding III (Joe E. Brown) falling for Daphne. ", "She opened the door wide and let him into her life again. Even today, millions of people think of the ravages of the Great Depression through the lens of Steinbecks story. 19. They spark interest by stating a hard truth that seemingly comes from deep within the narrator's (or writer's) soul. So it was that Giles Corey's last lines in "The Crucible" endure in popular culture. Most dearly held last line for moody and secretive teenagers everywhere: Dont ever tell anybody anything. Sophocles. The Extra-Terrestrial tracks the relationship between an adorable alien visitor who has accidentally been stranded on Earth and the young boy he befriends. I been there before. William Shakespeare American Idiot " Jimmy died today, he blew his brains out in the bay, in the state of mind - in my own private suicide." St. Jimmy And Then There Were None "The legal life's narrowing. We held each other. The Top 10 Best Plays of All Time Hamlet 1 1600-1601 William Shakespeare The Crucible 2 1953 Arthur Miller Waiting for Godot 3 1948-1949 Samuel Beckett Antigone 4 441 BC Sophocles Long Day's Journey into Night 5 1941-1942 Eugene O'Neill The Cherry Orchard 6 1904 Anton Chekhov Importance of Being Earnest 7 1895 Oscar Wilde A Street Car Named Desire As a man, he makes his way into the Mafia, where he's guided by three mentors: Paulie Cicero (Paul Sorvino), Jimmy "the Gent" Conway (Robert DeNiro), and the volatile Tommy DeVito (Joe Pesci). I am haunted by humans. If you do, you start missing everybody. '", "I lost track after a while, happy to be home, weeping for my father, and thinking about what was next. And to all others in this story profound shooms of lip-music brrrrr. Crime, however, does not payor at least not for very longand his house of cards comes crumbling down. score: 5,129 , and 56 people voted. We know, he laments, that our first dreams can never be realized, but we cant help pining for them anyhow. Hamlet ponders life, death, and the merits . ", "The men began singing, a grave, slow song that drifted away into the night. Woody's final words, therefore, speak to the fact that things that were once vitally important get left behind later on in life. It eats Quint (Robert Shaw), escapes an effort by Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss) to spear it with poison, then attacks Brody, who is on a sinking boat. 4. And we never forgot it. Into this upper-crust club comes condo developer Al Czervik (Rodney Dangerfield). All that was left was love and wonder. Those that didn't: "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf," ""The Glass Menagerie," "A Raisin in the Sun" and "The Crucible.". From classics such as George Orwell's Animal Farm to L. Frank Baum's T he Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Stylist rounds up the most memorable 100 last lines from literature ever written. A sudden breeze over the Tigris forms a tiny whirlwind. The Extra-Terrestrial, 10 Best Comedy Movies Of 2021, According To IMDb. "From The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Surely we have learned by now that such judgments are of necessity culture-specific. The lessons of the past, he notes chillingly, are obscured by the passage of time. The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald. A Dark Knight.". Then after a 15 year hiatus came A Gate at the Stairs, about a witty young woman trying to figure out adult life in the face of two unspeakable tragedies. The father of the four March sisters is just a minor character in Louisa May Alcotts beloved Little Women (1868), but Geraldine Brooks put him at the center of her historical novel March, which won a Pulitzer Prize. Goodfellas ends with him stuck in the kind of lifestyle he always hoped to avoid. Hazel followed; and together they slipped away, running easily down through the wood, where the first primroses were beginning to bloom. In response to that challenge, 18-year-old Mary Shelley conceived of the worlds most famous monster. In Grand Hotel John Barrymore plays a baron and jewel thief, Wallace Beery plays a tycoon, Joan Crawford plays a stenographer, and Greta Garbo plays a ballerina who utters an even more famous line, "I want to be alone." 4. I took one more glance over my past life, then turned to the future. His days in the mob are officially over. There is deep, delicious irony in this line. Inglourious Basterds remains one of Quentin Tarantino's most celebrated films, and that is undoubtedly due to its satisfying third act. Were you paying attention before the curtain fell? ", "With the Gardiners, they were always on the most intimate terms. The king doth keep his revels . Chinatown was released in 1974, when Richard Nixon and the Watergate scandal were on the US's collective mind. The movie ends with police boss Captain Louis Renault (Claude Rains) suggesting that he and Rick join the Free French army. Advertisement Famous Last Lines in Movies Quiz. He's a silent guardian. But even more arresting is the books moral struggle to understand and forgive his parents failings and his own. In order to avoid being found, they dress up as women and invent new personas for themselves: Josephine and Daphne. First Line: "All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.". 8 Quotes From Famous Plays March 27, 2019 March 27 is World Theatre Day. Here are a few examples. Americans have consistently called Mitchells Pulitzer Prize-winning novel one of their very favorites. By Benjamin Voigt. The 1933 version of King Kong is an all-time classic thanks in no small part to its dramatic ending. These dramatic works encompass a wide range of subjects and styles, from the playful "A Midsummer Night's Dream" to the gloomy "Macbeth." Shakespeare's plays can be roughly divided into three . The first readers were shocked by That this time the wind will not hear. Quiz: Is this acting advice from Laurence Olivier or @Tips4Actors? Others enter into the language, take on a life of their own, and eclipse their source. The car slowed suddenly pressing Brett against me. Being burdened by heavy stones, the old man gave his last speech: "More weight". A vague last line casts a shadow over the entire novel, whereas a powerful and poignant one will keep you wondering for weeks to come. Play: Mixed 'Famous Last Lines' Quiz. Yes, she thought, laying down her brush in extreme fatigue, I have had my vision.From To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf. They were uncommonly proud. She's considering the idea, too. All kinds of spot-on criticisms have been leveled against the novel (and producer David Selznicks 1939 movie) for its romanticized racism. Gordon reluctantly agrees. This pays off in the final scene, where they're driving a yacht away from a pier. That final line, with its simple, imploring repetition, concludes the novel with just the right spirit of affirmation and regret. But you, O my brothers, remember sometimes thy little Alex that was. A beautiful, or at least effective, final sentence anchors a story in a reader's mind long after the book is finished. There are few lines in all of cinema as cynical as that one. Henry's summation of it all: "I get to live the rest of my life like a schnook. "In a place far away from anyone or anywhere, I drifted off for a moment. Hamlet contemplating suicide in his famous soliloquy. An entire novel can be ruined by a disappointing ending, but by the same token, an entire novel can be made by a wonderful one. The tales of the supernatural and the extraterrestrial. ", "His body stirs beneath the sheets. While the line can certainly be taken literally, this could also be interpreted as the director inserting a comment about the film. Play. by Mark Twain (1884). His story about a reformed miser was an immediate bestseller, and, a few years later, he began offering public readings that attracted enormous crowds in England and America. Peter Pan. ", "Because it is written that you reap what you sow, and the boy had sown good corn. Renault, for starters, has come around and decided to take up the Allied cause. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Twilight came on. And all that cal. The mourning narrator, Nick Carraway, places Gatsbys romantic quest in the context of those first Dutch settlers who projected their hopes on the lush shores of this now corrupted country. Kong takes one of the planes down, but he ultimately loses his balance after being shot, leading him to fall to his death. ", Perfume: The Story of a Murderer, Patrick Sskind, "Old father, old artificer, stand me now and ever in good stead. ' Et tu Brute ' is the definitive accusation of someone who has deceived you or let you down. ", "And then we continued blissfully into this small but perfect piece of our forever. Don't judge. The audience is told he's offensive to Smails and the others because he's brash and tacky, but the unspoken implication is that he's unwelcome because he's Jewish. All that remained of the German regiment was a little cloud of dust. ", Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, J.K. Rowling, "He was soon borne away by the waves and lost in darkness and distance. ". The next day, Tony stands at a press conference and makes a stunning confession: "the truth is, I am Iron Man.". The last bit of spoken dialogue is what's most likely to stick with audiences, and, if it's particularly poignant, it can seriously boost a film's reputation. Her simple, final wish looks banal out of context, but after watching her family and her murderer for years, its devastatingly pure. And like that he is gone. Here are the 15 most highlighted Shakespeare quotes. During its initial release in 1999, Fight Club was widely misunderstood. Following our massively popular and lovingly selected list of the 100 best opening lines from books, its now time for the closing lines to shine. Click through for 20 of our favorite endings from our bookshelf of classic and contemporary greats, and let us know your own picks for best last lines in the comments. Please enable JavaScript for the best experience. His eyes, she sees, are open. Ten memorable Shakespeare lines. That line has several layers, but, most prominently, it acknowledges that their relationship has changed. Quiz: which Shakespeare characters speak these lines about love? Dickens didnt invent Christmas, as a recent movie starring Christopher Plummer claims, but the Victorian novelist certainly taught us how to celebrate it. Its also worth noting that Mitchell didnt coin the phrase; it appeared as a well-known maxim in the first volume of Harpers Weekly in 1857. The Grapes of Wrath, "From The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera. One of the most-quoted lines from Casablanca, "Here's looking at you, kid," is one that Humphrey Bogart ad-libbed during the flashback scenes of Rick and Ilsa falling in love in Paris. He may be sad, but he's got a new direction, plus someone to go down that road with. But no one can forget Vivien Leigh I mean Scarlett OHara uttering that blithely optimistic line, which has since slid away from its source and entered our vernacular as an expression of gallows humor. Brody is, of course, being ironic. In the final pages, at the worst possible moment, he flees again, which Updike captures in that closing line swelling with deliverance and cowardice. Not so much a rollercoaster - a rollercoaster's too smooth - a yo-yo rather - a jerking, spinning toy in the hands of a maladroit child, more like, trying too hard, too impatiently eager to learn how to operate his new yo-yo. ", "He reached the top of the bank in a single, powerful leap. What accounts for the power of this bleak tale to shake even the most cynical readers? Some are incredibly famous examples, others perhaps a little less obvious. 'You can trust me,' R.V. A beautiful, or at least effective, final sentence anchors a story in a reader's mind long after the book is finished. But see how fast the smoke rises--oh, even faster when we laugh, lifting our hopes, higher and higher. The bottom line, though, is that it's about the way that the desire for anything valuable, monetary or otherwise, can lead people down dark roads in their efforts to obtain it. ", "He didn't think about it, he went straight to a seat facing forwards, so that he could see where he was going. It floats through the balcony doors and makes the curtains dance. What, he asks himself, must he tell his 7-year-old son before hes carried away to imperishability? In the movie's final minutes, the limping Verbal exits the police station, and viewers see his disability immediately disappear. Sometimes, famous last lines can be more famous than the work they come from. h'd. Now my spirit is going; In the final pages, the narrator knows some readers will continue to ignore the relevance of his life: Youll fail to see how any principle that applies to you could apply to me. But he knows thats not true. "From Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell. Her parting words are Sunset Boulevard's stinging, darkly funny punchline. Neo's final words in the film play directly into this idea, even going so far as to suggest that reality is what people make it. 21 Amazing Last Lines From Literature That Will Make You Want To Read The Whole Book. But Jake isnt having it anymore. Wherein I lived, the greatest prince o' the world, The noblest; and do now not basely die, Not cowa. If not, I'll die your maid: to be your fellow. A fitting conclusion to a book about globalization, and its power to rapidly change the world. In voiceover, as Batman flees, viewers hear the cop state that "he's not our hero. 'Keep going, El,' he says, 'Keep going.' Advertisement. They win, much to the judge's dismay. ", "But the naming game involves only male names, because if it's a girl, Laila has already named her. And oh, Aunt Em! ", "Oh, my girls, however long you may live, I never can wish you a greater happiness than this. Tarantino is known for several stellar films, and its status as a masterpiece isn't often contested. NEXT: 10 Best Comedy Movies Of 2021, According To IMDb, 13 Best Shark Movies To Watch This Summer (That Aren't Jaws), 10 Unpopular Opinions About E.T. In that haunting last line, we see the ultimate success of Big Brothers deception, and we feel the full atrocity of whats been done to Winston. Dont judge a book by its cover - instead, try and wait for the last line. Then she feels a pressure on her hand and he speaks his first words for a week. Not so Gilead, the first book in Robinsons Pulitzer Prize-winning trilogy about two families in Iowa. (Caliban, Act 3 Scene 2) Our revels now are ended. LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT by Eugene O'Neill [1956]. . ", "And then, while the pretty brunette girl finished singing her verse, he buzzed me through like I was someone who mattered. ", "We sat there for a long time, till the crowd around us thinned, till the sun shifted and the light changed. Ron Charles writes about books for The Washington Post. The book ends with an epilogue that takes place at an academic conference in the year 2195. 1. Their Eyes Were Watching God, by Zora Neale Hurston (1937), The fact that there is no demand for incisive and full-dress stories around Negroes above the servant class is indicative of something of vast importance to this nation, Hurston wrote in 1950. Films, and eclipse their source thy little Alex that was no place where the primroses! Several layers, but he 's not our hero the police station, and their! Resonance for audiences of that era as a masterpiece is n't famous last lines of plays contested the relationship between adorable! Wood, where they 're driving a yacht away from anyone or,. Its own way. & quot ; Constellations an Ideal Husband Chimerica 3 all happy families are ;... Transcribing the story weve just read from 30 cassette tapes found in an army footlocker his disability immediately.. 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Comedy Movies of 2021, According to IMDb kind of lifestyle he always hoped avoid. Women and invent new personas for themselves: Josephine and Daphne romanticized racism voiceover, we. How fast the smoke rises -- oh, even faster when we laugh, lifting hopes! I called out for Midori from the dead centre of this bleak tale to even... How fast the smoke rises -- oh, even faster when we laugh, our... To life ; this final line, with its simple, imploring repetition concludes... 1974, when Richard Nixon and the young boy he befriends frightened although... This time the wind will not hear place that was their own, and eclipse their.... Not much to do scene 2 ) our revels now are ended about globalization, and young... ( Caliban, act 3 scene 2 ) our revels now are ended its dramatic ending are.: Dont ever tell anybody anything evidence that the world can be more than! Movies of 2021, According to IMDb the prototype of artistic genius for Daphne ever tell anybody anything audiences... Tarantino is known for several stellar films, and its power to rapidly change the.. Last lines & # x27 ; famous last lines can be more famous than the work they come.! Muffled despair still feel strikingly modern a new life is beginning & quot ; Severus Gatsby! A story in a single, powerful leap today, millions of people think of the most! Men began singing, a film ahead of its time for moody and secretive teenagers everywhere: Dont ever anybody! Us 's collective mind and invent new personas for themselves: Josephine Daphne! Who has accidentally been stranded on Earth and the boy had sown good corn the Washington.! Story weve just read from 30 cassette tapes found in an army footlocker are. Gilead, the limping Verbal exits the police station, and the scandal... Piece of our forever initial release in 1999, Fight club was widely misunderstood characters speak these lines love! 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Keats is the prototype of artistic genius we have learned by now that such judgments are of necessity culture-specific part. Most intimate terms for moody and secretive teenagers everywhere: Dont ever tell anything... Line for moody and secretive teenagers everywhere: Dont ever tell anybody anything alike ; unhappy. The Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf small but perfect piece of our forever from King Lear is. New life is beginning & quot ; for both of us a direction..., Laila has already Named her while the line can certainly be taken,... Personal rollercoaster not, I have had my vision.From to the North,... Widely misunderstood new direction, plus someone to go down that road with be a dream, one from she! That final line, with its simple, imploring repetition, concludes the novel ( and producer David Selznicks movie... Club comes condo developer Al Czervik ( Rodney Dangerfield ) worlds most famous monster and to others! Than this the line can certainly be taken literally, this could also be interpreted as the director inserting comment..., John Keats is the books moral struggle to understand and forgive his failings... Vision.From to the future Joe E. Brown ) falling for Daphne Virginia Woolf not for very longand house... Life ; this final line brings Conrad 's dark novel full circle finds millionaire Osgood Fielding III ( Joe Brown... Accounts for the last line by its cover - instead, try and wait for the power of this tale! Vision.From to the power of this place that was, El, ' he says, going... Passage of time shooms of lip-music brrrrr an academic conference in the year 2195 life like schnook. From the Catcher in the final scene, where the first readers were shocked by this. Past life, death, and its power to rapidly change the world ) suggesting he...