The 20 Most Awesome Movie Deaths
5. Accidental Discharge in Pulp Fiction
Another Tarantino death staple, the accidental discharge in Pulp Fiction is so unexpected yet highlights the carelessness of the perpetrator, Vincent Vega (John Travolta). Sick, bloody and gruesomely funny, the scene sees Vega unintentionally fire his pistol, blasting poor Marvin in the grill when Jules’ (Samuel L. Jackson) car goes over a bump. Then Vega simply says “Aw, man, I shot Marvin in the face.”
4. Gun vs. Sword in Raiders of the Lost Ark
In one of the greatest crowd-pleasing death scenes, Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) is challenged to a duel with an apparently highly skilled Arab swordsman in the middle of a Cairo bazaar. Highly confident of his talent, the Arab laughs and skillfully twirls his swishing broadsword for the crowd. Obviously in a hurry to find his beloved Marion Ravenwood, Indy simply grabs his pistol and dispatch his opponent. One of the great scene in cinema’s history and it was all improvised because Harrison Ford was suffering from food poisoning and was unable to perform the original scene which involved Indy grabbing the sword with his whip.
3. The Curb Stomp in American History X
The now infamous and shocking curb stomping scene in which Nazi skinhead Derek Vinyard (Ed Norton) forces wounded black car thief Lawrence (Antonio David Lyons) to bite down on the sidewalk curb and then stomps on the man’s head, snapping his neck in half. Painful!
2. Fried Brain for Dinner in Hannibal
One of the most disturbing scene ever, we watch helplessly as Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) carefully slices his victim’s (Ray Liotta) skull open to expose the brain. He then goes on to feed his victim a chunk of his own brain while he is still alive. Bon appetit!
1. Tony Montana’s Last Stand in Scarface
The definition of going down in a blaze of glory and a hail of gunfire, Tony Montana (Al Pacino) knows Sosa’s men are coming for him and makes a foolish yet heroic last stand after his sister is murdered right in front of him. High on his own coke, he becomes a one-man army, taking out numerous assailants with his M16 in a bloody standoff at his mansion. Screaming timeless lines such as “Say hello to my little friend!”, “I’m taking you all to hell with me” and ”You think you can kill me with lousy bullets huh?”, Tony is riddled with bullets that don’t seem to have any effect on him. That is until “the skull” appears behind him and shotgun blast him in the back at point blank.
And there you have it, 20 of the most awesome movie deaths in movie history! Did we omit anything? Should some of these be higher/lower? Rant away in the comments!
53 Comments
nice piece! totally agree with nightmare on elm street and in the departed (it always takes me aback when Leo gets shot because we’re so rooting for him. then….pow)
Thanks Candice! Leo dying was definitely a shocker, it’s so unceremonious with no build up whatsoever.
The only one I think might be missing is the opening death in Jaws. Oh, and I’d have put the chestburster higher on the list.
Great list!
Awesome list! I can’t argue with any of your selections.
There’s some good ones on here. I really like the one in The Professional. The one in Fellowship is easily one of my all time favorites. Great pick for A Nightmare on Elm Street.
I don’t know if Aim for the Bushes is one of the all time best, but it certainly funny and probably the most memorable death scene from last year.
Unfortunately, the death scene in Scarface is the only good scene in the entirety of Scarface. The original is much, much better.
However, I can’t believe your overlooked Psycho. Probably the most iconic death scene of all time.
Also, the opening of Citizen Kane always struck me as one of the most haunting death scenes.
And King Kong! Where is King Kong?
Thanks James! Obviously, with the thousands and thousands of existing movies deaths, it was hard to compile a list like this. I didn’t want to make a “Best Movie Deaths” list because heck who am I to do that, and I just wanted to point out some of the most awesome ones I had seen. In this vein, Psycho is certainly up there as one of the most memorable one in cinema’s history but maybe not one that I would consider truly awesome
Finally! Someone else who thinks the original ‘Scarface’ is better than the remake! I was beginning to think I was the only one.
There’s a remake of Scarface?
Who plays Pacino’s part?
No, the Pacino version is the remake. The original one from 1932 had Paul Muni in that role.
Ow, I didn’t know that! Thank you Anna
@James, love your Scarface comment. I used to think I was the only one thinking that it’s not very good (highly overrated imo). Glad to know there’s two of us:P
HHAHAHAHHAHAHAHA! Ray Liotta eating his own brains. CLASSIC!
Man, how long did it take you to come up with this list. Some serious winners here and I’m laughing double-time at Bill Murray’s “Maybe Garfield…” death in Zombieland. Robocop, The Professional, The Thing, Pulp Fiction; dude, this is the best Top Anything I’ve read in a long time. Well done.
Ever see the ’80s remake of The Blob by chance? Some wild ones in there too.
Thanks Aiden, you are much too kind sir…
No I haven’t had a chance to see the Blob yet but it looks like a riot!
Ha, good one with Meet Joe Black… though I always fall asleep in the same part, and I have to watch the movie in two parts… the beginning of the film was like – WHAT? What just happened to Brad? xD
I thought Haldir’s death in TTT was pretty epic. I cried like a baby and he wasn’t even that major a character.
This was outstanding to read. Loved it!
Some other deaths that I found awesome:
-Thelma and Louise diving into the Grand Canyon in their ’66 Thunderbird convertible (would have been more awesome if Brad Pitt was with them).
-Goose ejecting into the hatch of the F-14 in slow-mo. But that wasn’t the awesome part. The awesome part was the music that accompanies Maverick as he goes about his grieving process.
I second that Thelma & Louise scene. Ha..ha.. yeah, even better yet if he were in the trunk!!
Awesome post! Boromir’s death is amongst my favorites also. I love The Departed, so the Leo death scene truly shocked me when I first saw it. You drew attention to the best death scene in The Thing, and ‘Marvin’ and the now infamous curb stomp are both memorable. I haven’t seen Scarface in years, but I don’t remember enjoying it as much as I expected.
Versus‘ one-handed cop– the cop whose reflexes are 1,000 times faster than those of Mike Tyson!– has a pretty awesome death. It’s short and abrupt, but nothing beats his final word of, “Oops!” as he realizes he wasn’t quite fast enough to dodge the human-obliterating shell launched at him by the film’s hero. It’s so quick that you could blink and miss it but it’s absolutely hysterical nonetheless.
And how about Woo-jin’s death in Oldboy? Talk about the cycle of revenge coming full circle.
Can’t wait to see how the rest of the list comes out!
Terminator 2 is up there for me. The music blaring while Arnold lowers himself into molten lava and then gives the thumbs up is totally badass. But yeah, this is a good list. I also love the cat’s death in Boondock Saints, if animal deaths are included.
Totally agree Arnolds finally in T2 is truly awesome. The music does a lot of it to its one of the best movie themes of all time.
I am with you Phillip!
That scene is somemorable
The Raiders of the Lost Ark scene is just so full of win.
That Leo death in The Departed always gets the blood pumping. Every time I watch the film I hope, this time, he’ll miss the bullet and win the day.
This is a top list Castor but can I just ask: has anyone else seen Sharl Attack 3: Megaloden?
…speaking of shark-inspired deaths, there’s a few in Jaws – Quint’s final goodbye and of course poor Chrissy at the beginning. In terms of visceral effect – there’s not much that tops David Warner’s decapitation in The Omen – nasty!
Oh boy, good thing you didn’t publish this right on Valentine’s day, Castor
Totally agree w/ The Professional, LOTR’s Boromir and Indy’s sword vs gun. Now, I probably won’t use the word ‘awesome’ but they’re certainly memorable.
I’d add Leonidas’ death in 300 and this unexpected scene in Deep Blue Sea where Sam Jackson suddenly got swallowed by the big shark right in the middle of a speech!! Crummy movie but man, who could forget that scene?! Here it is below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMwmqp3GLMc
Ahaha it’s funny you say that because I had been working on this then came Monday morning when I realized it wouldn’t be a good idea to post in on Valentine’s Day
That’s the main reason I came up on the fly with that 5 underrated V-Day movies.
Why must we celebrate the ending of a life?
*warble*
Interesting list Castor. Not many I would put on my own, but to each their own. I can tell from this you like your death surprising. Not the ‘build up’ to the big emotional moment type, eh?
This isn’t a favorite or best list. This is an awesome list
1. Death is never ‘awesome’ – even in cinema.
2. I would argue that an emotionally gripping beyond compare death could be just as ‘awesome’ as any over the top violent one.
3. If you don’t accept the first as likely, you’ve succumbed to the modern era of “spectacle is everything” and I weep for the Castor I used to know.
You are totally right that well crafted, highly emotional death can be just as awesome and that could be a list for another day (eg Most Memorable or Most Emotional etc…) Now, I obviously went with the flashy ones
It’s not 100% clear that Elle Driver died.
I agree Kevin but you cannot deny that it is implied that she dies because of the snake she unleashed on Budd.
It was implied that she lived to wreak vengeance with Sophie and Nicki, because that’s how bitches role.
godfather. sonny.
jaws. opening.
maaaybe german sniper in private ryan.
maybe hans in die hard.
oh def t-800 in t2.
Oh how could I forget Hans Gruber’s death! Now that’s a memorable one. I heard that whilst shooting that scene, Rickman was dropped on the count of two instead of three, hence his realistic surprised look as he falls down.
And since we’re talking about awesome, I thought that Ciaran Hinds’ death as Julius Caesar in HBO’s ROME was heart-wrenching. Of course we all know his fate but it was still a suspenseful scene and incredibly well-acted.
Oh glad someone finally said Hans Gruber, that’s what I was going to write at the bottom:P
the 5th most awesome movie death should be attributed to a negligent discharge, not an accidental discharge. the person malfunctioned, not the gun. i know this is a stupid point to bring up, but it wouldn’t be the internet without nitpickers.
You are absolutely right Ranjan, a gun is just an inanimate object and someone should have taught Vega about firearm safety and not leaving your finger on the trigger unless you intend to shoot
Amazing list, and one that provokes a lot more discussion. So many good deaths to choose from, I can’t imagine how you narrowed them down.
Other great ones: Sonny in The Godfather, The ppening of Jaws scene, both the T1000 and the T800 in T2 (as well as the death of John’s stepfather come to think of it). The car-crash scene halfway throug Death Proof would be worth some consideration as well.
My all time favourite death scene though would probably be Mrs Carmody (the batshit crazy religious woman) in The Mist. My audience literally clapped when Toby Jones’s character shot her point blank right between the eyes. There’s also another great death scene in that film, when the biker guy goes out into the mist with a rope attached to him, and they end up just pulling back a pair of severed legs
Great list – but for me the greatest death scene ever has to be Alan Rickman as the Sheriff of Nottingham at the end of Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves – it’s the most over the top theatrical bit of dying ever – love it!
Fantastic choices, all. I hate to put Brad Pitt on here again, but where was his death from “Burn After Reading”? It may not be as emotionally compelling as others mentioned on the list, but it definitely stays with you long after the film has ended.
Thanks Wayne. Brad Pitt’s death in Burn after Reading is definitely a highly memorable one and was worthy of some consideration.
i would like to see sonny from the godfather, or the horses death, i dont know if animals count.
Scarface is terrible.
Does anyone else remember Gene Hackman’s death in “The Quick and the Dead”? He thinks he’s gotten the best of his enemy (Sharon Stone), until he looks down at his shadow and sees a hole of sunlight peeking through. I always thought that was an awesome shot.
Ooh, and another one. John Cusack using a television to crush Dan Aykroyd in “Grosse Pointe Blank.”
Actually you have missed two of the most stylish movie deaths in film history.
Both Sundance Kid and Bitch Cassidy and the Wild Bunch have masterful death scenes.
Great list Castor! Sure it’s not pretty, but it speaks to the impact films have on us and those scenes are memorable. I’m going throw one into the hat here. Carrie’s mom in “Carrie.” I mean that was some creepy sh**!!! I tried to skim over stuff people said about The Godfather cuz I’m going to finally watch that this weekend. I’m doing a new feature on my blog where I watch one movie a month that I should have seen by now. So I have alot of violent scences on horizon.
Great list Castor! I like seeing movies with a lot of blood (accompany with good storyline). I would put some Japanese samurai movies if this is my list. I always think how awesome it is to see body parts flying only with one stoke of Katana.
Remember the short film I put in my blog? the one with someone’s head being blown? That will also be in my list.
http://bokunosekai.wordpress.com/2010/10/06/the-silent-city/
Here’s to remind you
Creative list! definately agree with no. 16
That sound when Norton stomps on the skull is forever in my ‘never-think-about-this-again’ box in my head.
what a list. brilliant stuff Castor. ‘Aim for the bushes’ is such a terrific line. damn, The Other Guys was just a few more gags like that away from being a truly great comedy. that Joe Black clip is great. might actually watch the film now next time its on tv and i have 3 hours to kill.
off top of my head…
Quint in Jaws…
Garcia in Black Rain…
Seagal in, ahem, Executive Decision…
Spock in Wrath of Khan…
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