MovieChat Forums > Local Hero (1983) Discussion > Possibly Best Ending Ever (spoiler!!!)

Possibly Best Ending Ever (spoiler!!!)

posted 21 years ago by Mickyfinn
68 replies | jump to latest

I wonder if I am alone in seeing the end of Local Hero possibly the best ending of a motion picture....ever.

Mac wandering through his apartment.....Mark Knophler's music....Mac checking the fridge...removing rocks and shells from his pockets....posting pictures....moving to his balcony, the city sounds welling up...fade out and up on Furness..... the red phone box... music picking up...two rings.. and a cut (not fade) to black and credits...music to full (the music title? Coming Home).

I get emotional just thinking about it. I think its because we feel for Mac- at once both an incredible sense of loss and an indescribable sense of hope as the phone rings... and even then a sense of introspection in the cut to black- perhaps an examination of ourselves.

Unbelievable. Local Hero is one film I use to answer the question- if you'd like to know what I'm all about- what truly moves me or what I aspire to- watch it, and then get back to me.

Unfortunate so many will never have the privedge to see this film (for whatever reason).

[–] david.rouson 21 years ago

Thanks for that, i'm glad this film means as much to other people as it means to me.

[dog2]

[–] monica77 21 years ago

Thank you "Mickyfinn". You said it all! I'm really glad too, that this film means as much to other people as it means to me.

I also get emotional just thinking about it. If I was Mac, I would have done anything to stay in Scotland. He found paradise :-)

[–] sabalon1 20 years ago

i identify with mac completely

as i posted in a previous post, my fathers job had me moving to 10 different states - 13 total moves until i was 13 years old. for me that phone box ringing scene at the end of the film has been a carthsis for me. i can remember so many times calling previous towns i've lived in just to hold on to my sanity.

now i was 15 when the film came out so i probably wouldnt have seen it or even gotten it at the time. ironically when the film did come out i was in the hospital for a nervous breakdown ( just try saying goodbye to childhood friends you just made a dozen times in a dozen years and see if you keep your mind intact LOL). over the years, i have found the film as a whole a mending of the soul as i return to reality.

i also find that the movie also had an effect on me in that i am now living in a small coastal new england town north of boston, working in a restaurant not unlike Gordon did in the film. no rabbit on the menu though LOL.

corey

if it wasn't for my horse, i wouldn't have spent that year in college

[–] david-goodfellow 20 years ago

He also found himself .. so there was still hope for him in the future :)

"I can spell, but I cant type"

[–] PhilippBohr 19 years ago

But let's be realistic - what should he in it for him? Build up and run the next KNOX Oil affiliate? As it's well known, once the romantic side fades, reality can be very hard.

Philipp Bohr

[–] PhilippBohr 19 years ago

I think I have some solution worked out - review my "Sea and Stars" thread on it. Here's the plan:

Since the plan in the end of the movie is to build a facility for oceanographic and atronomical research, Danny Oldsen and MacIntyre could be the directors of it, after MacIntyre switched places with Gordon Urquhart. MacIntyre then could research Stella (= Stars) and Danny Oldsen could research Marina (=Water).

How's that for perfect?

Philipp

[–] 19 years ago

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[–] PhilippBohr 19 years ago

I guess this is what This End intents - it leaves us vast space for our fantasy to roam and write our own ending, after our own taste.

Philipp Bohr

[–] marmota-b 18 years ago

Oh yes, Stella means star! I didn't notice it. That's great!

[–] rgtemail 20 years ago

I agree that the ending is excellent. I've had Mac's experience myself:

I used to spend my entire summers as a kid on the coast of Maine in a small town. When returning to NYC at Labor Day, I did the same thing as Mac - unloaded the pocket of shells, and stare out into my fancy, suburban backyard, and wondered what really matters.

Both Miane (and Seattle, where I am now) look a lot like the part of Scotland where Local Hero was filmed. No wonder this film appeals to me so much.

BTW, friends of Local Hero should know that there is a fancy "coffee table" book about making this film. It is hard to find, but is full of interesting stuff.

If you like the music, the CD of the entire soundtrack is quite good.

Another quirky comment: my dad (RIP) looked almost exactly like Burt Lancaster, and was often mistaken for him. Only Freud knows what, if anything, this means.................

Finally (you won't believe this): My ex-wife looks a lot like the gal who plays Stella in Local Hero, and is of Scottish extraction. Unfortunately, she also had the same tendencies as Stella.

[–] 20 years ago

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[–] pounce44 20 years ago

Favorite movie, favorite ending.
So glad that others feel the same way.

[–] david-goodfellow 20 years ago

The ultimate Bittersweet ending ..
yes i agree.. one of the best most haunting and perfect endings I've ever seen in a film and it is a large part of why it is one of my favorite films of all time.

"I can spell, but I cant type"

[–] Linus1971 20 years ago

It is indeed a great ending to a wonderful film. It's a shame more people haven't seen Local Hero.

[–] 20 years ago

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[–] lilmizreddevil 20 years ago

well - we' re watching this at the moment in our film studies class - consisting of 17/ 18 yr olds - we have so far found it enjoyable, plus while comparing it to Trainspotting - (all about the scottish movies!!)
- we haven't got to the ending yet - but thought wud look here!
we were wondering about the baby in todays lesson - can't wait to get to the end!!

[–] mad19571 20 years ago

I experienced almost exactly the same emotions that are expressed at the end of this film in 1983 after visiting my friends in Ketchikan, Alaska (even to the point of having to call them first thing when I got home) and, thus, agree with your assessment.
There are a few films that I would like to suggest as coming close to this ending. 2001: A Space Odyssey, Michael Caine's version of The Italian Job (a true cliffhanger if ever ther was one), Fairy Tale: The True Story and Bill Forsyth's own film Housekeeping.
Thanks for your message reminding me of how special this movie is.
I'll make a good Gordon, Gordon.

[–] 20 years ago

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[–] haescott 19 years ago

The movie ending spoke volumes to me, as I too live in Houston and I once lived in Scotland. I've traveled the world and have never felt for any country in the world as I've felt for Scotland.

I remember visiting Scotland for the first time and crossing the border from England into Scotland. It was difficult for me to catch my breath. I was driving through the Lake District in England, which is beautiful and looks a lot like Scotland and I truly appreciated the scenery.

I don't mean to be come off as overly dramatic, but this was my experience. When I crossed the border into Scotland, a feeling came over me that made it difficult for me to breathe. My eyes welled up with tears. It was something I haven't felt before or since.

I watch LH to bring me back. I lived in Lossie Mouth (between Inverness and Aberdeen) on the coast of the North Sea for two wonderful years. My dream is to own a property there one day and summer in Scotland. I live and work in Houston (awful place) currently, and I can understand MacIntyre's longing to return. I truly believe it is him calling and that's the perfect ending for me.

I'd gladly leave it all to return to my quirky friends who really knew how to live. I think the Scots keep it simple, which cuts back on stress and increases their ability to welcome everyone. LH portrays these attitudes perfectly and since it's so true to life, it's greatly appreciated by all who know how live and want to start right away!

[–] 19 years ago

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[–] morris7800 19 years ago

I am a huge fan of Bill Forsyth (Comfort and Joy rules!), and Local Hero is easily in my top ten favorite films. The final scene makes me emotional every time I see the film... the sense of longing it evokes is very real and very touching. It is the perfect ending to the perfect film. Another film with an effortlessly graceful ending is Being There, the Hal Ashby masterwork. Coincidentally the ending of Bill Forsyth's Housekeeping is stunning yet simple as well. But my all time favorite ending to a film is the last shot of Dazed and Confused, depicting 4 previously unconnected characters heading down the road together. I grew up in Texas around the same time as Richard Linklater and the nostalgia evoked by that last scene of the Texas highway stretching into the distance and the good time being had by all made me squeeze out a happy tear or two.

[–] hughdal 18 years ago

I guess I'm as close to Mac as you can get these days. I moved to Scotland from California in 1978 during that oil boom and never left! Another movie that can get me wet eyed is Loch Ness with the same American goes to Scotland theme. I too am a big LH hero fan and just wanted to interject some trivia about the movie. About 10-15 years ago when LH was all the rage we would get our visitors over from the states. By and large they all wanted to see where LH was filmed. From Aberdeen it's about a 2 hour drive to Pennan the village used in the wide angle shots. And yes they did finally put a red phone box up there. The beach scenes were filmed up the road a few miles at a beach called Camusdarrach. What surprised us was that purely by accident we stopped one night at a hotel on the way to the west coast around 60 miles south of Pennan. After checking in and having a wonder around I mentioned to the owner that the dining room seemed familiar. He told me it was the room they used for all the "eating" scences in LH including the famous lemon juice scene. The owner got a stand-in part and can be seen drinking from a can of beer during the kitchen scene. To this day I can't remember the hotels name or where exactly we found it. Maybe I just had the ultimate LH dream.

[–] pounce44 18 years ago

Thanks for posting, hughdal. Sometimes the coolest things happen by accident rather than design.

[–] Tarasicodissa 19 years ago

That is beyond all question the most miserable homecoming in the history of motion pictures.

[–] 19 years ago

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[–] rabidbob 19 years ago

It's a brutal thing when you can't stay in a place that speaks to your soul.