Top 10 Goodbye Scenes in Film
Hello, Toby Gold here and welcome to another Top 10 List. I'm almost 18, so in honour of my adulthood, today I'll be counting down my Top 10 Goodbye Scenes in Film. For this list, I've chosen scenes where a character says goodbye to another character, either knowing they'll never meet again or unsure if they ever will. I have excluded permanent death scenes from this list, so, sorry Harry Stamper. Also, if you haven't seen the movie, I will issue a spoiler alert. Now, let's do this.
10. The Wizard of Oz (1939)
After the Wonderful Wizard of Oz departs in his hot air balloon without her, protagonist Dorothy Gale meets up with Glinda the Good Witch of the South. Glinda tells Dorothy that she had the power to return to Kansas all along, thanks to the ruby slippers she received at the beginning of the film. After saying goodbye to the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Cowardly Lion, Glinda instructs Dorothy to click her heels together, and soon enough, she returns to Kansas and reunites with her Aunt Em and Uncle Henry. It's a truly classic finale, and I've got to admit, there's no place like home.
9. Monsters, Inc. (2001)
Monsters get their electrical power by crossing over into the human world and scaring children for their screams, which are then turned into energy. However, it is neither safe nor easy work, as children are considered toxic to monsters. When a human child named Boo enters the monster world, best friends Mike Wazowski and James P. "Sulley" Sullivan try to get her back to where she came from. After evading their corrupt boss and the monster authorities, the director of the Child Detection Agency (CDA) tells the monstrous duo to return Boo home, following which the door is demolished to prevent any further contact. Sometime later, Mike salvages the remains of Boo's door and rebuilds it, allowing Sulley to reunite with Boo.
8. Big Hero 6 (2014)
After his older brother dies in a fire, teenage robotics prodigy Hiro Hamada teams up with his brother's huggable creation, Baymax, to track down the masked man responsible for the tragedy. Their manhunt leads them to an abandoned research facility, where they discover that Robert Callaghan, the head of the robotics program at San Fransokyo Institute of Technology, is the culprit. Later, Callaghan tries to kill billionaire genius Alastair Krei by sucking him through a damaged portal, in the same manner that the former's daughter, a test pilot working for Krei, had died. In the following battle, Callaghan's microbots are destroyed, and Hiro and Baymax leave the villainous professor to the police, but the action doesn't stop there. Baymax detects life coming from inside the portal, and realizing that Callaghan's daughter is still alive, the two go into the portal to rescue her. After finding her floating unconsciously in the wreckage, Baymax starts to lose his battery. Unable to get Hiro and Callaghan's daughter to safety in time, the inflatable healthcare robot blasts them to safety with his rocket fist and is lost in the portal. Sometime later, Hiro rebuilds Baymax, and the two are reunited, but in the moment, I wasn't satisfied with Disney's care.
7. Cast Away (2000)
Yes, Wilson is a volleyball, but to Tom Hanks' castaway Chuck Noland, he was his friend and companion after his plane crash-landed on an island. Chuck spends four years on the island, where his only means of socialization is with "Wilson," a volleyball who ended up on the island with him. When a large section of a portable toilet washes up on the island, Chuck uses it as a sail to build a raft. However, when a storm nearly rips the raft apart, Wilson becomes untethered and floats away. After trying and failing to rescue the volleyball, Chuck collapses into tears and is rescued by a passing ship. Tom Hanks has made a lot of movies that ended with goodbyes, one of which I'll get too later.
6. Furious 7 (2015)
Paul Walker was best known for the Fast and the Furious movies, so it is ironic that he died in a car accident in real life. In those films, Walker played Brian O'Conner, an FBI agent who joins a street racing crew after falling in love with Mia Toretto, the sister of the gang's leader, Dominic Toretto. The two eventually settle down, get married, and have a son. However, after one of their own is killed by Deckard Shaw, the brother of a former enemy, Dom, Brian, and the rest of the crew team up with the Diplomatic Security Service to avenge him. After dealing with Shaw and preventing a group of terrorists from getting their hands on a worldwide tracking device known as God's Eye, Brian decides he's better off retired with his new family. Dom catches up to Brian, and as he remembers all the good times they've had together, the two friends bid each other farewell and drive off in separate directions. A beautiful sendoff to a fallen hero.
5. Boyhood (2014)
Richard Linklater's 2014 coming-of-age drama film Boyhood depicts the childhood and adolescence of Mason Evans Jr. as he grows up in Texas with divorced parents, played by Patricia Arquette and Ethan Hawke. Arquette won an Oscar for this movie, and let me tell you why. In a heartbreaking final scene, an adult Mason is preparing to leave for college, causing his mother, Olivia, to break down, disillusioned by how quickly time has passed. She fears that her death will be the next milestone. I hope to live independently, and the first part of that is leaving your parents, which can be a very sad thing.
4. Schindler's List (1993)
Okay, this is where things really hit home. I'm Jewish, and I am sensitive to talk of the Holocaust. In Steven Spielberg's exceptional Holocaust drama film Schindler's List, carelessly greedy German businessman Oskar Schindler saves countless lives from the Nazis by providing his Jewish workers with protection, showing great heroism in the face of pure evil. With the Red Army closing in, the SS guards at Schindler's factory are ordered to kill the Jewish workers, but he convinces them not to, so they can return to their families "as men, not as murderers." Bidding farewell to his workers with the intention of surrendering to the Americans, Schindler is given a signed statement attesting to his humanitarian efforts and a ring engraved with a Talmudic quote: "Whoever saves one life saves the world entire." Schindler is touched by this, but also realizes that he could have saved a lot more lives. Liam Neeson has delved into violent action movies since this truly amazing film was released, but Schindler's List will always, in my opinion, be his best work.
3. E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
Speaking of Spielberg, perhaps his most famous parting scene is at the end of E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial. In this heartwarming science fiction film, a lonely boy named Elliott befriends the titular extra-terrestrial after he is stranded on Earth. Elliott and his siblings try to help E.T. contact his people, while trying to keep him secret from their mother and the government. After escaping from the authorities, the film's main cast heads into the forest, where they encounter E.T.'s ship. As he is preparing to return home, E.T. says goodbye to his human friends and tells Elliott that he'll be right there, pointing his glowing finger to his forehead. I love this movie very much, and although this scene was sad, it was necessary for E.T. to return to his own world.
2. Toy Story 3 (2010)
The first two Toy Story movies came out in the 1990s, so, given the subject matter, it is fitting that the third film should come out in 2010, when those who watched the first two are going to college. Andy has grown up, leaving Woody and the gang uncertain about their future. After escaping from a prison-like daycare centre and surviving the incinerator at a local landfill, the toys return to Andy's house and prepare to go their separate ways. However, Woody leaves a note for Andy, who, believing it to be from his mother, gives the gang away to a sweet little girl named Bonnie. After discovering Woody at the bottom of the box, whom Bonnie had previously come into possession of during the cowboy doll's escape from Sunnyside Daycare, Andy hesitantly passes him on to her, and the two play with the toys one last time before Andy leaves for college. As Andy is driving away, Woody says three little words that end childhood forever: "So long, partner." I don't think Toy Story 4 can top this beautiful scene.
Before I reveal my top choice, here are some honourable mentions:
- Gone with the Wind (1939)
- Lost in Translation (2003)
- Casablanca (1942)
- The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010)
- The Notebook (2004)
1. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
It's always nice when the good guys win, but sometimes, it comes at a price. After finally destroying the One Ring, hobbits Frodo Baggins, Samwise Gamgee, Peregrin Took, and Meriadoc Brandybuck return to the Shire, but find that they have changed since their big adventure. Frodo, unable to cope with the horrors he went through, departs Middle-earth for the Undying Lands, but not before bidding farewell to his loyal companion, Sam. I didn't like this scene at the time I first saw it, given that Frodo and Sam went through so much together, but I now understand that it was time for Frodo to move on and I reluctantly accepted it.
Do you agree with my list? Which goodbye scene were you sad about? This is Toby Gold, bidding you farewell until we meet again.
10. The Wizard of Oz (1939)
After the Wonderful Wizard of Oz departs in his hot air balloon without her, protagonist Dorothy Gale meets up with Glinda the Good Witch of the South. Glinda tells Dorothy that she had the power to return to Kansas all along, thanks to the ruby slippers she received at the beginning of the film. After saying goodbye to the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Cowardly Lion, Glinda instructs Dorothy to click her heels together, and soon enough, she returns to Kansas and reunites with her Aunt Em and Uncle Henry. It's a truly classic finale, and I've got to admit, there's no place like home.
9. Monsters, Inc. (2001)
Monsters get their electrical power by crossing over into the human world and scaring children for their screams, which are then turned into energy. However, it is neither safe nor easy work, as children are considered toxic to monsters. When a human child named Boo enters the monster world, best friends Mike Wazowski and James P. "Sulley" Sullivan try to get her back to where she came from. After evading their corrupt boss and the monster authorities, the director of the Child Detection Agency (CDA) tells the monstrous duo to return Boo home, following which the door is demolished to prevent any further contact. Sometime later, Mike salvages the remains of Boo's door and rebuilds it, allowing Sulley to reunite with Boo.
8. Big Hero 6 (2014)
After his older brother dies in a fire, teenage robotics prodigy Hiro Hamada teams up with his brother's huggable creation, Baymax, to track down the masked man responsible for the tragedy. Their manhunt leads them to an abandoned research facility, where they discover that Robert Callaghan, the head of the robotics program at San Fransokyo Institute of Technology, is the culprit. Later, Callaghan tries to kill billionaire genius Alastair Krei by sucking him through a damaged portal, in the same manner that the former's daughter, a test pilot working for Krei, had died. In the following battle, Callaghan's microbots are destroyed, and Hiro and Baymax leave the villainous professor to the police, but the action doesn't stop there. Baymax detects life coming from inside the portal, and realizing that Callaghan's daughter is still alive, the two go into the portal to rescue her. After finding her floating unconsciously in the wreckage, Baymax starts to lose his battery. Unable to get Hiro and Callaghan's daughter to safety in time, the inflatable healthcare robot blasts them to safety with his rocket fist and is lost in the portal. Sometime later, Hiro rebuilds Baymax, and the two are reunited, but in the moment, I wasn't satisfied with Disney's care.
7. Cast Away (2000)
Yes, Wilson is a volleyball, but to Tom Hanks' castaway Chuck Noland, he was his friend and companion after his plane crash-landed on an island. Chuck spends four years on the island, where his only means of socialization is with "Wilson," a volleyball who ended up on the island with him. When a large section of a portable toilet washes up on the island, Chuck uses it as a sail to build a raft. However, when a storm nearly rips the raft apart, Wilson becomes untethered and floats away. After trying and failing to rescue the volleyball, Chuck collapses into tears and is rescued by a passing ship. Tom Hanks has made a lot of movies that ended with goodbyes, one of which I'll get too later.
6. Furious 7 (2015)
Paul Walker was best known for the Fast and the Furious movies, so it is ironic that he died in a car accident in real life. In those films, Walker played Brian O'Conner, an FBI agent who joins a street racing crew after falling in love with Mia Toretto, the sister of the gang's leader, Dominic Toretto. The two eventually settle down, get married, and have a son. However, after one of their own is killed by Deckard Shaw, the brother of a former enemy, Dom, Brian, and the rest of the crew team up with the Diplomatic Security Service to avenge him. After dealing with Shaw and preventing a group of terrorists from getting their hands on a worldwide tracking device known as God's Eye, Brian decides he's better off retired with his new family. Dom catches up to Brian, and as he remembers all the good times they've had together, the two friends bid each other farewell and drive off in separate directions. A beautiful sendoff to a fallen hero.
5. Boyhood (2014)
Richard Linklater's 2014 coming-of-age drama film Boyhood depicts the childhood and adolescence of Mason Evans Jr. as he grows up in Texas with divorced parents, played by Patricia Arquette and Ethan Hawke. Arquette won an Oscar for this movie, and let me tell you why. In a heartbreaking final scene, an adult Mason is preparing to leave for college, causing his mother, Olivia, to break down, disillusioned by how quickly time has passed. She fears that her death will be the next milestone. I hope to live independently, and the first part of that is leaving your parents, which can be a very sad thing.
4. Schindler's List (1993)
Okay, this is where things really hit home. I'm Jewish, and I am sensitive to talk of the Holocaust. In Steven Spielberg's exceptional Holocaust drama film Schindler's List, carelessly greedy German businessman Oskar Schindler saves countless lives from the Nazis by providing his Jewish workers with protection, showing great heroism in the face of pure evil. With the Red Army closing in, the SS guards at Schindler's factory are ordered to kill the Jewish workers, but he convinces them not to, so they can return to their families "as men, not as murderers." Bidding farewell to his workers with the intention of surrendering to the Americans, Schindler is given a signed statement attesting to his humanitarian efforts and a ring engraved with a Talmudic quote: "Whoever saves one life saves the world entire." Schindler is touched by this, but also realizes that he could have saved a lot more lives. Liam Neeson has delved into violent action movies since this truly amazing film was released, but Schindler's List will always, in my opinion, be his best work.
3. E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
Speaking of Spielberg, perhaps his most famous parting scene is at the end of E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial. In this heartwarming science fiction film, a lonely boy named Elliott befriends the titular extra-terrestrial after he is stranded on Earth. Elliott and his siblings try to help E.T. contact his people, while trying to keep him secret from their mother and the government. After escaping from the authorities, the film's main cast heads into the forest, where they encounter E.T.'s ship. As he is preparing to return home, E.T. says goodbye to his human friends and tells Elliott that he'll be right there, pointing his glowing finger to his forehead. I love this movie very much, and although this scene was sad, it was necessary for E.T. to return to his own world.
2. Toy Story 3 (2010)
The first two Toy Story movies came out in the 1990s, so, given the subject matter, it is fitting that the third film should come out in 2010, when those who watched the first two are going to college. Andy has grown up, leaving Woody and the gang uncertain about their future. After escaping from a prison-like daycare centre and surviving the incinerator at a local landfill, the toys return to Andy's house and prepare to go their separate ways. However, Woody leaves a note for Andy, who, believing it to be from his mother, gives the gang away to a sweet little girl named Bonnie. After discovering Woody at the bottom of the box, whom Bonnie had previously come into possession of during the cowboy doll's escape from Sunnyside Daycare, Andy hesitantly passes him on to her, and the two play with the toys one last time before Andy leaves for college. As Andy is driving away, Woody says three little words that end childhood forever: "So long, partner." I don't think Toy Story 4 can top this beautiful scene.
Before I reveal my top choice, here are some honourable mentions:
- Gone with the Wind (1939)
- Lost in Translation (2003)
- Casablanca (1942)
- The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010)
- The Notebook (2004)
1. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
It's always nice when the good guys win, but sometimes, it comes at a price. After finally destroying the One Ring, hobbits Frodo Baggins, Samwise Gamgee, Peregrin Took, and Meriadoc Brandybuck return to the Shire, but find that they have changed since their big adventure. Frodo, unable to cope with the horrors he went through, departs Middle-earth for the Undying Lands, but not before bidding farewell to his loyal companion, Sam. I didn't like this scene at the time I first saw it, given that Frodo and Sam went through so much together, but I now understand that it was time for Frodo to move on and I reluctantly accepted it.
Do you agree with my list? Which goodbye scene were you sad about? This is Toby Gold, bidding you farewell until we meet again.
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