History EndingFatigue / LiveActionFilms

* The 1967 version of ''[[Film/CasinoRoyale1967 Casino Royale]]'' has this; it arguably starts when [[spoiler: Evelyn Tremble and Le Chiffre are killed.]] The remainder of the film has to bring all the other characters together to unmask and confront the BigBad. The resultant climax degenerates into a gigantic free-for-all fight in the casino [[spoiler: with an EverybodyDiesEnding]] played for LAUGHS, followed by a [[spoiler: FluffyCloudHeaven]] ending. This was mainly due to a large amount of behind-the-scenes problems, most of which started when Creator/PeterSellers left in the middle of filming.* The 2005 ''Film/CharlieAndTheChocolateFactory'' has this due to AdaptationExpansion, namely the DarkAndTroubledPast it gives Willy Wonka. Because of his [[MommyIssues Daddy Issues]], he [[spoiler: insists Charlie give up his own family if he wants to inherit the factory, and Charlie refuses]]. The fallout from this means the story requires an additional climax before the book's happy ending can commence, and pads the movie by at least five minutes ''not'' counting the setup in the flashbacks. This is noticeable because other adaptations manage to flesh out the story's finale, which ''is'' a bit thin on the page, without ''dragging'' it out. Compare it to [[Film/WillyWonkaAndTheChocolateFactory the 1971 film]]'s suspenseful and emotional climax.

* The 1967 version of ''[[Film/CasinoRoyale1967 Casino Royale]]'' has this; it arguably starts when [[spoiler: Evelyn Tremble and Le Chiffre are killed.]] The remainder of the film has to bring all the other characters together to unmask and confront the BigBad. The resultant climax degenerates into a gigantic free-for-all fight in the casino [[spoiler: with an EverybodyDiesEnding]] played for LAUGHS, followed by a [[spoiler: FluffyCloudHeaven]] ending. This was mainly due to a large amount of behind-the-scenes problems, most of which started when Creator/PeterSellers left in the middle of filming.

* ''Franchise/StarWars'':
** One of the (many) criticisms of ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'' is that it has four simultaneous ending threads that it cuts rapidly between. This makes each individual thread difficult to follow. Creator/GeorgeLucas realized how problematic this was too late into production to fix it, but the lesson learned here led to much more concise endings for ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'' and ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith.''
** Unfortunately, the ''climax'' of ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'' tends to go on and ''on''. First Anakin and Padmé go to Geonosis to rescue Obi-Wan, get into a scrap in the droid factory, get captured, and have to fight in an arena battle alongside Obi-Wan. Then the other Jedi show up and have a fight with battle droids. Then Yoda shows up with the Clone army and there's another massive battle while the heroes chase Dooku. And ''then'' there are three separate lightsaber duels involving Obi-Wan, Anakin, Yoda, and Dooku, before the movie finally reaches its resolution. While there are certainly some good and exciting moments in the third act, considering the entire film is over two hours long (until ''The Last Jedi'' was released, it was the longest theatrical ''Star Wars'' film), one gets the sense some of the action could've been condensed to shorten the runtime.
** [[DefiedTrope Defied]] with ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith''; Creator/GeorgeLucas notes in the DVDCommentary that he cut out a scene from the epilogue of Yoda traveling to Dagobah expressly because the ending was already so lengthy and information-packed that anything more would just make it drag on.
** ''Film/RogueOne'' invokes this in an interesting way. At the climax, [[spoiler: the Rogue One crew have successfully transmitted the Death Star plans to the Rebel Alliance, but all died in the process. It looks like the end, but then the movie just...keeps going. For the next ten to fifteen minutes, it seems to forget about Rogue One and shifts to the Rebel soldiers who are carrying the Death Star blueprints to safety. The movie keeps shifting viewpoints until it eventually lands on Princess Leia getting the plans, leading directly into the events of ''Film/ANewHope''. All to drive home that Jyn and Cassian and the others ''weren't'' the heroes; they were just the [[RedShirt Red Shirts and Spear Carriers]] whose narrative purpose was to set up the actual heroes. Once they're gone the story just goes on without them.]]
** ''Film/TheLastJedi'': There are ''four'' climactic fights stuffed between the second and third act of the movie. [[spoiler:Kylo Ren defeating Snoke and then he and Rey fighting his guards and then each other]], Finn dueling Phasma as Snoke's ship goes pear-shaped due to [[spoiler:Holdo hyperspace-ramming the ''Raddus'' into it]], the First Order's assault on the old Rebel base on Crait where the last of the Resistance are hiding, and finally rounds it out with a duel between [[spoiler:Kylo Ren and Luke Skywalker]]. To say the least, it goes on and on, and it's ''a lot'' to take in.

* ''Film/{{Savages}}'' has what seems to be a big climactic finale that would end the story.. .oh wait it was just an ImagineSpot by the narrator. Now HERE'S the real ending!
* ''Film/AirForceOne''. Just when you thought the film was gonna end after Korshunov and Radek die, [=MiGs=] loyal to Radek launch to shoot down the plane only to be stopped by friendly F-15 Eagles. ''Then'', it turns out the plane is almost out of fuel and thus unable to land. Marshall pilots the plane to the Caspian Sea and the USAF sends in an MC-130 to evac the president and everyone else via zip-line, ''but then'' Gibbs tries one last attempt to kill him, but fails to do so as the plane crashes, taking him with it. The film finally ends for real afterwards.
* Deliberately invoked in ''Film/HotFuzz''. After a long climactic battle where it seems all the villains have been dealt with, BigBad [[spoiler:Frank Butterman]] escapes and takes Danny hostage. Nicholas is just as exasperated by this as the audience, and shouts "Pack it in, [[spoiler:Frank]], you silly bastard!" The creators explicitly noted that they were inspired by the point in ''Bad Boys II'' (see above) where it looks like everything's wrapped up, but then Martin Lawrence's character intones that "This shit just got ''real''," and the movie keeps going.
* The MediaNotes/{{Bollywood}} film ''Arth'' is about a couple having a divorce, the story centered around the woman's emotional struggles. The two finally meet up again, both having gone through hardships. When the woman asks her ex-husband if they'd like to get back together again, the husband answers back, "No," and the ''second half'' of the film begins. This next half has a totally unrelated plot, where the last 30 minutes of the film consist of roughly seven sequences, each tying up a loose thread and each edited as if they would cut to credits.
* ''Film/ReeferMadnessTheMusical'' ''could'' have ended with [[spoiler:Mary's death.]] It ''could'' have ended with [[spoiler:the group number when Jimmy is pardoned on death row]]. Instead, it goes on for about ''five more minutes,'' including another song. Granted, that's how the musical and the film ended ''originally''. Now it just ends with [[spoiler:aforementioned group number when Jimmy gets pardoned]].
* Inverted with ''Film/MontyPythonAndTheHolyGrail''. The money ran out, so the movie ends ''before'' the climax!
* In the 1942 ''Film/JungleBook'', the film continues even after [[spoiler: Mowgli kills [[BigBad Shere Khan]] in their FinalBattle]], which is how [[Literature/TheJungleBook the original book]] ended, with three villagers pursuing a treasure that they kill each other over until the survivor [[spoiler: goes insane and burns both the jungle and the village to the ground, with the film ending after everyone escaped the fire]]. Especially since every other adaptation ends with the battle between Mowgli and Shere Khan. The similar [[Film/TheJungleBook1994 1994 film]] even deliberately averts this by having the treasure plot resolved ''before'' Mowgli's final confrontation with Shere Khan.
* ''Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse'':
** ''Film/ManOfSteel'''s last 45+ minutes are essentially one enormous action climax that gets too tiring to appreciate. Superman and Lois escape from Zod's ship! Now the fight goes to the surface, where Superman battles Faora and Nam! Then there's an even longer final fight where Supes and the US military collaborate to destroy Zod's ship and the World Engine, except the troops can't destroy Zod's ship until Supes destroys the World Engine, which he can't yet because [[spoiler:the alien atmosphere is toxic to him]], and even afterward they have deal with [[spoiler:Jor-El's key not activating]] and Faora attacking them, and even after all that Zod still isn't dead...
** ''Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice'' climaxes with [[spoiler: Superman's HeroicSacrifice]] and the denouement starts with a scene between Martha and Lois. Then we get a talk between Bruce and Diana, [[spoiler: an extended funeral montage]], another talk between Bruce and Diana, a sequence wrapping up Lex's fate, and [[spoiler: teasing that Superman is NotQuiteDead]] before the credits finally roll.
** One of the most common criticisms of ''Film/WonderWoman2017''. While the movie clocks in at a little over two hours (not exceptionally long by superhero movie standards), some people feel that the last act drags on more than it should, which, along with it being often considered as the movie's weakest part altogether, has made some feel that it could have been shorter.
** ''Film/Shazam2019'' was often criticized for its length, which was probably caused by the ''really'' long final battle. First, there's a seemingly final battle in the Shazam throne room. Then, the main characters have to escape from the throne room. Then, there's a battle in the amusement park. Then, the Shazam gang appears. Then, there's a big final battle that lasts around fifteen minutes. As a whole, the climax of Shazam! is one of the most overlong in the DCEU, which is already a big competition.
* ''Film/{{Oppenheimer}}'' has two acts that add up to one extremely long film: The creation of the A-bomb and the inquiry into his patriotism. At the end of the first act, there are a few points with the emotional heft for a valid stopping point. Many audience members, who have not read an extremely detailed synopsis beforehand, could be forgiven for not believing those are ending points. It could even be argued that the scattered insertion of Strauss in the first act was enough to illustrate the subsequent doubts he would face in the second half and make for a complete film.
* ''Film/UpInTheAir'' has Natalie successfully conducting her first day of layoffs, and Ryan attends his sister's wedding, where he learns that "everyone needs a co-pilot," with the implication that he has finally gotten the inspiration he needs to begin a more meaningful relationship with Alex. Great place to leave off, right? But what's this? Alex has a husband? And children? And then Ryan clocks in his ten-millionth flyer mile? And one of Natalie's layoffs commits suicide? And Natalie quits her job out of grief? And the remote layoff program is suspended? And then Natalie applies for ''another'' job...
* ''Film/JackieBrown'' sets things up so that it appears the plan in the clothing store will be the big climax... but nope, the film goes on for another twenty-plus minutes as Ordell just keeps one-upping the protagonists.
* ''Film/DjangoUnchained'': It seems like the gunfight at Candyland will be the finale. But then Django has to give himself up, gets hung upside down for two minutes of torture, has to talk a group of rednecks out of taking him to the mines, rescue his wife and then finally shoot up the rest of the people at Candyland. And this is after things have already gone on for over two hours. According to Creator/SamuelLJackson, the shootout at Candyland originally ''was'' the ending, but after they shot the scene, the director and some of the actors realized that the ending was a bit too generic in light of all that had preceded it. Hence Tarantino's decision to add a bit more.
* After the evil werewolves and government agents are dead, ''Film/HowlingIIITheMarsupials'' then starts a drawn-out happy ending with the two werewolf women hooking up with their respective love interests, living happily together, having children, said children growing up, meeting each other after a long time, and so on.
* ''Film/DoctorZhivago'' could easily end with Yuri and Lara's final parting, with perhaps a brief epilogue to wrap things up. Instead we cut back to Yevgraf and the girl he believes to be Yuri and Lara's child, for another 15-20 minutes of narration and exposition detailing [[spoiler:Yuri's death, Yevgraf's relationship with Lara, Komarovsky's possible fate, ''more'' of The Girl's backstory]]... eventually it all seems monotonous, especially since most of it happens offscreen.
* The 2005 ''Film/CharlieAndTheChocolateFactory'' has this due to AdaptationExpansion, namely the DarkAndTroubledPast it gives Willy Wonka. Because of his [[MommyIssues Daddy Issues]], he [[spoiler: insists Charlie give up his own family if he wants to inherit the factory, and Charlie refuses]]. The fallout from this means the story requires an additional climax before the book's happy ending can commence, and pads the movie by at least five minutes ''not'' counting the setup in the flashbacks. This is noticeable because other adaptations manage to flesh out the story's finale, which ''is'' a bit thin on the page, without ''dragging'' it out. Compare it to [[Film/WillyWonkaAndTheChocolateFactory the 1971 film]]'s suspenseful and emotional climax.
* An amusing variation with the movie ''Film/{{Clue}}''. When the film was in theaters, moviegoers could see one of three different [[TheReveal reveals]] and endings (or ''all'' three, if they wished), depending on which theater they went to. When the film went to the pay-TV channels and video, the creators included all three endings. This meant that if you wanted to see all three endings, you A) paid admission two more times to see the same 87 minutes but with two more different endings, or, B) you had to listen to [[MrExposition Wadsworth]] tell you whodunit (and where, and with what) three times, without ''really knowing the truth for sure'', since all three endings were equally valid and logically sound!
* The [[Film/IntoTheWoods film version]] of ''Theatre/IntoTheWoods'' has received complaints that it really should have just been an expanded version of Act 1, especially since some of the darker elements of Act 2 are toned down anyway. Since there is no attempt of translating the story being two separate acts into film, it also loses many of the powerful parallels of structure and song.
* ''Film/AWalkAmongTheTombstones'' seems set to end with [[spoiler: the final shootout at the cemetery. Instead, it drags on as the antagonists escape and return to their hideout, at which point Albert kills Ray. Then Matthew and the gang show up and Albert is subdued; Matthew advises Kenny to go the CruelMercy route and leave Albert for the police, but the film still doesn't end, since Kenny decides to take his revenge, allowing Albert to escape and kill him. Matthew goes back inside, kills Albert, returns to his apartment, and falls asleep. Then it ends]].
* ''[[Film/{{Taken}} Taken 3]]''. First, there's the climactic StormingTheCastle final shootout on Oleg Malankov's hideout, which ends with Bryan defeating Malankov. Then, [[spoiler: Malankov reveals that he was merely TheDragon to [[BigBad Stuart's]] plan all along, with Stuart having played both Bryan and Malankov. Stuart wounds Sam and kidnaps Kim, forcing Bryan to chase after Stuart to an airport in a Porsche and eventually ramming it into the wheels of Stuart's plane, where he climbs out of the plane's remains and is ultimately subdued by Bryan by being shot and by being knocked out when Bryan [[PistolWhipping pistol whips]] him]].
* In ''Film/RunAllNight'', [[spoiler: [[BigBad Shawn]] is killed]] right at the start of the final act, which makes the last twenty minutes and the showdown with Andrew Price feel unnecessary and longer than it should be.
* ''Film/{{Speed}}'' goes on another half-hour after resolving the bus plot, leading to a prolonged chase scene/hostage standoff in a subway.
* In ''Film/{{Cooties}}'', the teachers get away from the school - the main plot point that had to be overcome. Then they get a JumpScare in the truck. Then they get to Danville. Then they get chased again. then they're cornered. Then TheCavalry comes. ''Then'' the movie ends.
* ''Film/{{Spectre}}'' builds up the climax to be in Morocco. However, with half an hour left for the movie, the real FinalBattle occurs when Bond returns to London.
* ''Film/ExodusGodsAndKings'' teases its audience with about three possible endings after Ramses is defeated, before finally ending with an elderly Moses and the Ark of the Covenant.
* ''Film/AngryVideoGameNerdTheMovie'' introduces a few too many plot threads and ends up with a bloated climax to tie everything up. The Nerd and the alien have to escape from Area 51, the alien has to rebuild his ship, and the Nerd has to review ''Eetee'' for his fans, which would have been plenty to end the film on, but there's ''also'' a giant monster that has to be stopped, which adds a solid twenty minutes to the runtime and drags the main plot to a halt.
* ''Film/TheThrone'' has three different endings. First Sado dies, then King Yeongjo mourns over his body. Pretty powerful ending. Then Yeonjo himself dies. Then Sado's son has a son, who grows up and honours Yeongjo's elderly wife in a celebration, and ''finally'' the movie ends.
* ''Film/OutOfAfrica'' spends its last hour with Isak Dinesen saying goodbye to, it seems, ''every'' character with a speaking role... in scenes that each individually seem like they were written to be the final scene.
* Inverted during post-production of ''Film/TheTerminator''. The producer insisted that the film ends at the scene where the title character appears to have been killed in the oil-truck explosion. [[Creator/JamesCameron Cameron]] locked him out of the editing suite so he could include the scenes in the factory after it, where [[spoiler:Reese dies after blowing up the metal skeleton, leaving Sarah to finally crush him to death herself]]. No-one complained that it went on too long.

* ''Film/TheTigerMakesOut'' could have ended like the play it was based on, ''The Tiger'', with Ben and Gloria planning to meet her again. But after they consummate their relationship, Gloria goes back home. Ben follows her and gets run over by luggage carts. Ben rides with Gloria on the train. Gloria gets off at her stop. Ben stalks her home. He's noticed by Gloria's husband, and Gloria and her husband jump on the bed so much that their heads go through the ceiling (and probably would have suffocated if the police hadn't started to arrive). Ben runs away from the police. The movie finally ends when Ben is lying in the bed with his landlady and her husband.
* In ''Film/FunnyPeople'', George is dying but gets to make all his restitution emotionally with the people in his life. He then gets the one that got away to fall back in love with him. Then his assistant, who is a child of divorce, ruins that in favor of the couple who is already married. Then George and his assistant reconcile. It's quite a bit of MoodWhiplash.
* ''Film/{{Cruella}}'' really had an excessive number of showdowns between Cruella and the baroness as if one would bring more stakes than the one before it.
* Lampshaded and defied in ''Film/KissKissBangBang'':
-->'''Harry''': Don't worry, I saw ''[[Film/TheLordOfTheRings Lord of the Rings]]''. I'm not going to end this seventeen times.
* Averted ''twice'' by Creator/DavidCronenberg with both ''Film/TheDeadZone'' and ''Film/TheFly1986''. As originally shot, ''both'' movies ended with short, hopeful epilogues detailing [[spoiler: the final fate of the protagonist's lover (and in the latter their unborn child)]]. In fact, no less than ''four'' versions of an epilogue were shot and tested for the latter. But none worked well with test audiences or the filmmakers themselves, so instead both films just end [[spoiler: immediately after the protagonist dies]]. In the case of ''The Fly'', this aversion meant that a major plot point went unresolved... and allowed a sequel to be produced three years later.
* ''Film/AvengersEndgame'' spends roughly 30 minutes wrapping things up after the climactic final battle and [[spoiler: Tony Stark's funeral.]] Justified in that the film is the GrandFinale of the ''first three phases'' of the MCU, so there's a lot to wrap up. The Russo Brothers even cited this as their primary reason for cutting out many scenes near the end.
* The 60's spy-spoof ''Film/DrGoldfootAndTheBikiniMachine'' climaxes with a DrivingADesk chase-scene around San Francisco that goes on ''way'' too long. It finally ends with [[spoiler: Goldfoot and his idiot henchman Igor appearing to die in a very emphatic fashion,]] but then [[spoiler: the heroes celebrate by going on a plane trip, only to learn the duo are somehow still alive.]]
* Some ''Film/ConAir'' viewers find the fire truck chase and admittedly silly death of Cyrus to be a significant downgrade when compared to the Vegas Strip airplane crash that occurred just before it.
* In ''Film/FaceOff'', the climactic battle between Archer and Castor goes on for an insanely long time. Archer's final cry for Castor to "DIIIIIEEEEE!" seems rather on the money.
* ''Film/PacificRim'': One criticism the film gets is that the extended Hong Kong fight scene is so amazing and triumphant that the story's actual climax feels like a major downgrade by comparison. It seems more like the film is struggling to wrap itself up in a cohesive way rather the rift fight scene being a cool sequence on its own, as though the writers realized they could not top the prior fight scene but tried to do so anyway.
* ''Film/Expend4bles'': No one expected the battle on Rahmat's ship was going to take up the bulk of the film. And just when you thought it'd be over after Rahmat dies, [[spoiler:he reveals he never had the kill switch, but his client did, and that's when Marsh steps in to reveal his true status as the BigBad.]]

* ''Film/VelvetGoldmine'', not helped by the entire film being fairly incomprehensible to begin with. A contemporary reviewer described it as "the longest two hours of your life".
* ''Film/{{Alien 3}}'' has six or seven endings in quick succession, as if Creator/DavidFincher couldn't decide on what closing shot would be coolest.
* ''Film/TheLordOfTheRingsTheReturnOfTheKing''. From the destruction of Sauron to the actual end of the movie is almost 30 more minutes, during which the movie "fades out" ''six'' times! The effect is mitigated somewhat if one considers it the ending of a twelve-hour film, and the conclusion of the entire film trilogy[[note]]the source material is not actually a trilogy but rather a single DoorStopper book that was DividedForPublication[[/note]], especially if you also include ''Film/TheHobbit'' trilogy to make it the conclusion of ''six'' movies (which backs up Bilbo's send-off as well and the parallels to his return to Hobbiton). Regardless, the common jab at the time was that Return of the King's eleven [[MediaNotes/AcademyAward Oscars]] were awarded for each of its endings.
** A further complication is that the ''novel'' doesn't have six potential endings in a row: the film adaptation cut out the longer "Scouring of the Shire" sequence, due to the (debatable, but not irrational) assessment that it is anticlimactic and would slow down the pacing of the film - and, if nothing else, it would add ''another'' 30 minutes or so of screentime to the movie, between the farewell to all the non-Hobbit characters at Minas Tirith, then the farewells to the Hobbit characters. In the source material, it was less "multiple endings in a row" than an entire ''sequence'' serving as a coda. Loosely compare to how adaptations of ''Les Miserables'' speed through the DistantFinale epilogues for the entire cast, which were better paced in the novel (but a book can do things a film can't).
* ''Film/GodzillaRaidsAgain'' has Godzilla kill his opponent... over 30 minutes before the film ends. Afterward, the viewer is treated to a still-running and boring romance subplot about the human characters, and then a long and dull scene (five minutes) of airplanes causing an avalanche to bury Godzilla.
* ''Film/DestroyAllMonsters'' has the Humans free their Kilaak-enslaved colleagues. Then astronaut soldiers destroy the enemy base on the moon. Then they themselves take control of the monsters and mass them at the main Kilaak base. But before they can begin the attack, Ghidorah shows up, under Kilaak control, and the Kilaaks also manage to undo Earth's control of the monsters. But it's okay - the monsters know who their enemy is. Dog pile on Ghidorah, he goes down, but the Kilaak's unleash a 'Burning Monster', that turns out to be just another spaceship which Earth forces destroy, and the Kilaak base is finally put down. When the final overview of the peaceful monsters back on Monsterland occurs, you fight between wanting it to end and fully expecting something else to happen.

* In the ''Film/JamesBond'' reboot film ''Film/CasinoRoyale2006'', what seems to be the climax of the film, the resolution of the big poker game, is only the end of the second act. Some audience members were confused that the film kept going, following Bond as he [[spoiler:retires and ultimately faces the tragedy that makes him]] the ruthless lothario we all know.
* The 1967 version of ''[[Film/CasinoRoyale1967 Casino Royale]]'' has this; it arguably starts when [[spoiler: Evelyn Tremble and Le Chiffre are killed.]] The remainder of the film has to bring all the other characters together to unmask and confront the BigBad. The resultant climax degenerates into a gigantic free-for-all fight in the casino [[spoiler: with an EverybodyDiesEnding]] played for LAUGHS, followed by a [[spoiler: FluffyCloudHeaven]] ending. This was mainly due to a large amount of behind-the-scenes problems, most of which started when Creator/PeterSellers left in the middle of filming.
* ''Film/TheStrangers'' reaches the perfect ending (It will be easier next time) and adds a boring and unnecessary sequence just to show us that, [[AssPull despite the impossibility of it]], [[spoiler: Kristen]] is NotQuiteDead.
* ''Film/TheDeparted''. Even after [[spoiler:Frank Costello dies]], the viewer has to sit through a good half hour of tying up loose ends.
* ''Franchise/StarWars'':
** One of the (many) criticisms of ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'' is that it has four simultaneous ending threads that it cuts rapidly between. This makes each individual thread difficult to follow. Creator/GeorgeLucas realized how problematic this was too late into production to fix it, but the lesson learned here led to much more concise endings for ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'' and ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith.''
** Unfortunately, the ''climax'' of ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'' tends to go on and ''on''. First Anakin and Padmé go to Geonosis to rescue Obi-Wan, get into a scrap in the droid factory, get captured, and have to fight in an arena battle alongside Obi-Wan. Then the other Jedi show up and have a fight with battle droids. Then Yoda shows up with the Clone army and there's another massive battle while the heroes chase Dooku. And ''then'' there are three separate lightsaber duels involving Obi-Wan, Anakin, Yoda, and Dooku, before the movie finally reaches its resolution. While there are certainly some good and exciting moments in the third act, considering the entire film is over two hours long (until ''The Last Jedi'' was released, it was the longest theatrical ''Star Wars'' film), one gets the sense some of the action could've been condensed to shorten the runtime.
** [[DefiedTrope Defied]] with ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith''; Creator/GeorgeLucas notes in the DVDCommentary that he cut out a scene from the epilogue of Yoda traveling to Dagobah expressly because the ending was already so lengthy and information-packed that anything more would just make it drag on.
** ''Film/RogueOne'' invokes this in an interesting way. At the climax, [[spoiler: the Rogue One crew have successfully transmitted the Death Star plans to the Rebel Alliance, but all died in the process. It looks like the end, but then the movie just...keeps going. For the next ten to fifteen minutes, it seems to forget about Rogue One and shifts to the Rebel soldiers who are carrying the Death Star blueprints to safety. The movie keeps shifting viewpoints until it eventually lands on Princess Leia getting the plans, leading directly into the events of ''Film/ANewHope''. All to drive home that Jyn and Cassian and the others ''weren't'' the heroes; they were just the [[RedShirt Red Shirts and Spear Carriers]] whose narrative purpose was to set up the actual heroes. Once they're gone the story just goes on without them.]]
** ''Film/TheLastJedi'': There are ''four'' climactic fights stuffed between the second and third act of the movie. [[spoiler:Kylo Ren defeating Snoke and then he and Rey fighting his guards and then each other]], Finn dueling Phasma as Snoke's ship goes pear-shaped due to [[spoiler:Holdo hyperspace-ramming the ''Raddus'' into it]], the First Order's assault on the old Rebel base on Crait where the last of the Resistance are hiding, and finally rounds it out with a duel between [[spoiler:Kylo Ren and Luke Skywalker]]. To say the least, it goes on and on, and it's ''a lot'' to take in.
* The one complaint about ''Film/TheDarkKnight'' seems to be that it goes on for too long and seems to be about to end three or four times before it finally actually does. Part of the problem might be that viewers became more emotionally attached to the Joker than Two-Face. [[spoiler:The corruption of Harvey Dent is the masterstroke of Joker's plan, so the resolution with Two-Face is thematically the climax, but once the Joker himself has left the film, audiences started to lose interest.]] According to the writers, this situation happened because the film's final script was put together with parts from two other screenplays. Two-Face was supposed to be in a completely different film, but once the producers understood the appeal, they wrote him into the film. The original film was supposed to end at the scene where The Joker gets taken into custody.
* All other complaints aside, perhaps the biggest failing of ''Film/{{Brazil}}'' was that the final part of the movie consists of one scene after another each of which looks like a climactic ending. Final count: about fourteen. Then it's all subverted with a monumental TwistEnding. The biggest problem with the [[ExecutiveMeddling Love Conquers All]] version is that it kept most of those endlessly rising endings and then cut the punchline/climax.

* The main plot in ''Film/MammaMia'' is wrapped up in the wedding scene, but there are three more musical numbers afterward anyway. "I Have a Dream" is how the show closes on stage, so that's understandable, but in between we have "When All Is Said and Done" and "Take a Chance on Me," the latter of which is merely a segment [[HookedUpAfterwards hooking up two supporting characters]]. And this isn't even counting the "Dancing Queen" reprise and "Waterloo" that makes up the first segment of the end credits. In the stage show, the cast basically keeps singing encores until the audiences starts to leave, so the lengthy denouement is an intentional reflection of this.
* Other film musicals that suffered this:
** The Floor Show in ''Film/TheRockyHorrorPictureShow'' has good songs but doesn't do anything to advance the story, largely because there's so little left to tell by that point. The traditional AudienceParticipation exchange references this fact:
--->'''Dr. Frank 'n' Furter:''' Whatever happened...
--->'''Audience:''' To the ''plot?''
** In ''Film/TheWiz'', after Evillene's defeat and the heroes discovering the Wiz's true identity, it takes three songs and a good deal of talk to get Dorothy home. Plus, they're relatively subdued compared to many of the songs that preceded them, which feels anti-climactic.[[note]]In [[Theatre/TheWiz the original play]], this stretch of the story included ''six'' songs.[[/note]]
** ''Film/SgtPeppersLonelyHeartsClubBand'' defeats the villains during "Come Together" and then wastes four songs (two performed in one medley) as the town and Billy Shears deal with [[spoiler: Strawberry Fields']] demise... which becomes a DisneyDeath after all that, making all the moping pointless.
** ''Theatre/TheSoundOfMusic'' has three of these: once [[DownerEnding when Maria leaves the Von Trapp house]], the second at the wedding, complete with soaring, triumphant choral music (even for ''[=SoM=]''), and the actual ending of the film. The first would probably not be an ending in itself (due to its downer nature in a mostly uplifting musical), but it feels that way as it leads into the {{Intermission}}. Originally, the German release of the film ''did'' have the wedding scene as the ending, since the entire third act was cut because of its focus on post-Anschluss Austria.
** The plot of ''Film/HelloDolly'' is really over with the reconciliation of Horace and Dolly to the strains of the title song, but this continues without interruption into the entire cast storming on stage with reprises of all major numbers. The movie drags this glorified curtain call out even longer.

* The biofilm ''{{Film/W}}'' had a seemingly fitting ending where all the actors morph into their Real Life counterparts and it ends with news footage... then the movie continues for another 30 minutes.
* By Creator/StevenSpielberg:
** ''Film/{{Hook}}''. With the climax down to the swordfight between Peter and Hook, it ends and begins again ''twice'' before the villain finally gets his comeuppance. After that, Peter sends Jack and Maggie back to London with Tinkerbell guiding them, then bids farewell to the Lost Boys (and [[spoiler: chooses Thudbutt as their new leader]]) before setting off alone. The kids greet Moira and Wendy in the latter's townhouse, but Peter comes to Kensington Park for some reason and encounters in turn [[spoiler: a trashman who may be Smee]] and Tinkerbell, making a final farewell to her. He returns to the townhouse for ''another'' joyous family reunion, the business deal and "Tootles's lost marbles" subplots are tied off, and '''then''' the movie ends.
** ''Film/TheLostWorldJurassicPark'' has its peculiar San Diego T-Rex rampage epilogue, which was not in the source novel and seems more fit for a full-fledged sequel than the last half-hour of its predecessor -- especially with most of the human characters absent save for the protagonist, his lover, and the villain. The story goes was that it ''was'' originally conceived as such, but Spielberg doubted he would direct a third film. In addition, it ''does'' make the movie slightly less of a straight retread of the first one.
** ''[[Film/AIArtificialIntelligence A.I.]]'' seems like it will end twice: when David drops on the sea that engulfed New York, and when he is talking to a submerged statue of the Blue Fairy, begging to be turned into a real boy. Both would be {{Downer Ending}}s of their own, but then the film cuts to a DistantFinale long after humanity has gone extinct, and some Sufficiently Advanced Robots turn the film into a real TearJerker.[[note]]Perhaps this reflects the difficulty Kubrick and his various co-writers had coming up with an ending they liked[[/note]].
** ''Film/CatchMeIfYouCan'' tries to end three or four times, but Creator/LeonardoDiCaprio ''just won't stop running away''. Even when he does finally get caught and it has a perfectly satisfactory ending, there's a good 20 minutes more about his working with the man who caught him!
** ''{{Film/Munich}}'': After Avner returns to his family there are at least two to three scenes that feel like the film is building up to its end, only to have it keep going.
** ''Literature/WarHorse'' makes the viewer think there's an additional action scene going to take place after its climax, then drags out its denouement.
** ''{{Film/Lincoln}}'' has a poignant shot of Honest Abe walking away after bidding his goodbyes before heading off to Ford's Theater. Does the movie end there? Nope. Instead it continues on to his assassination, [[spoiler:or rather, psyching out the audience by depicting a ''simultaneous'' play,]] to Lincoln's deathbed, then to him giving his second inaugural address.

* Plenty of {{slasher movie}}s do this by having the second half of the movie consist almost entirely of the killer chasing the FinalGirl around, with no plot twists or anything to shake things up.
* [[Creator/MarxBrothers Chico Marx's]] piano performance of "Sugartime" in ''Theatre/AnimalCrackers'' was an in-film example. He...just keeps playing it, going over the same part over and over again. This eventually leads to a series of jokes about trying to end it.
-->'''Chico:''' I can't think of the finish.\\
'''Groucho:''' I can't think of anything else!\\
[...]\\
'''Chico:'''I think I went past it.\\
'''Groucho:'''Well, when you come around again, jump off!

* ''Film/{{Australia}}'', which had an intermediate climax good enough for one movie on its own. It starts all over again halfway through.
* A major criticism of ''Film/{{Transformers|2007}}'' is that the final battle dragged on far too long. For [[Film/TransformersRevengeOfTheFallen the sequel]] it's more that the final ''battle'' was actually ''[[CurbstompBattle too short]]'', while the whole sequence of [[spoiler:running-to-bring-Optimus-back-to-life]] was too long.
* In ''Film/StarTrekIntoDarkness'', there seems to be a perfectly adequate ending of Spock setting off a series of explosives aboard Khan's ship, followed by Kirk performing a HeroicSacrifice to prevent the Enterprise from crashing. But then there's an extra ending where Khan, who hasn't been seen for about ten minutes, crashes on Earth and Spock chases him through a city...
* Japanese Film ''Film/TheGreatYokaiWar'' had a lengthy, exciting, and rather satisfying climax followed by an uncomfortable scene where all the colorfully-costumed youkai have left, without closure, leaving a young boy and a grown man alone in the ruins of Tokyo for several minutes in which they have an awkward conversation and the man begins to drink.
* ''Film/BattleRoyale 2'' does this at least three or four times.

* ''WesternAnimation/SheRaPrincessOfPower'' ends and then promptly moves onto a previously unmentioned plot point, several times. (The film clearly was intended as a FiveEpisodePilot -- it aired on television in that format later -- not a theatrical film.)
* ''Film/SantaAndTheIceCreamBunny'' falls into this in the version that is a repackaging of a standalone ''Thumbelina'' film because that movie already has a framing device of a young woman visiting an amusement park and visiting a series of dioramas illustrating the fairy tale -- it's a story within a story within a story! When the retelling is over, there's a few minutes following the woman back outside; then the movie returns to the new framing device of Santa Claus trying to get his sleigh out of the Florida sand! Just end already! It doesn't help that ''Thumbelina'', being plopped wholesale into the film, has its own credits intact, meaning there's a "The End" title card shown before returning to Santa and company.
* A common complaint of ''Film/TheAssassinationOfJesseJamesByTheCowardRobertFord'' is that the title event happens, and then the movie goes on for another hour. This is largely due to BillingDisplacement and misgivings over the title. Jesse James isn't the main character, Robert Ford is and it's the story of his legend compared to James's. This even extended to Casey Affleck bizarrely getting nominated for the Best Supporting Actor Oscar. In the as-yet-unreleased director's cut it in fact goes on for another two hours after the assassination. This accounts somewhat for why the final third feels a bit more rushed than the previous two thirds.
* ''Film/BadBoysII'' would seem to logically end around the time when the team captures Tapia's drug and money shipments, gaining enough evidence to have him convicted. Instead, Tapiya kidnaps Sid and flees to Cuba, causing the film to go on for another half-hour and leading to a climax where Mike, Marcus, and a few other cops go to Cuba, hook up with local resistance fighters, and assault Tapia's heavily fortified mansion. Even ''this'' takes longer than it should with the gun battle leading to an extended car chase and ending with a standoff outside of Guantanamo Bay. However, one may feel ''MUCH'' more satisfied to see him [[spoiler:get blown up by a mine]] rather than just getting arrested.
* There are at least three points in ''Film/TheBox'' that would have been satisfactory endings to the film before the actual ending. One of these even follows the standard ending formula, with a huge climax and an obvious downward slope in the intensity afterwards, as if the film is winding down, only for it to pick up again. As a result the actual ending, which normally could have been a pretty powerful scene, ends up as kind of weak since at that point the viewer is just waiting for it to be over.
* ''Film/TheNightOfTheHunter'', otherwise a masterpiece of suspense, suffers from an ending that drags on for twenty minutes after the main conflict is resolved, for little reason (other than it's following the similarly dragged-out ending of the original novel).
* ''Film/ScottPilgrimVsTheWorld'' subverts the trope. After a lengthy climax, Scott defeats the final villain and learns a lesson, but out of nowhere, he's suddenly faced with his "evil doppelganger," making it look like there's a whole additional action scene about to take place. [[spoiler:Instead, we cut to after their confrontation, in which they apparently just chatted and parted on good terms. The film ends quickly afterwards.]]

* ''Film/{{Excalibur}}''. As Creator/WilliamGoldman said, you're just unnerved when you should be shocked because [[spoiler:King Arthur '''dies''']].
* ''Film/{{Psycho}}''. Modern audiences are often frustrated that the chilling finale in the cellar is followed by several minutes of exposition by the psychiatrist, who explains everything that happened in the film. Audiences at the time did not appreciate LeftHanging endings.
* ''Film/DinnerForSchmucks''. OK, we had the heartwarming scene, the movie must surely be about to wrap up... nope, there's still more! OK, we're done with the dinner... oh, a little more? Fine. The End, finally, now THERE'S EPILOGUE SCENES?! Ironically, the original film ''The Dinner Game'' avoids this by running just 80 minutes and focusing solely on the main story (the subplots were added for the remake as films under 90 minutes seem to be unfashionable in the US). The final result is considered by many one of the best French films of the 1990s.
* ''Film/TheRing'' ''appears'' to suffer from this. The whole curse thing is resolved and we get a few scenes of the characters returning to their... [[OhCrap hey, what's with Noah's TV?]] Ultimately subverted in that this fake-out ending is probably the best-remembered thing about the film.

* ''Film/TheBeastmaster'': Dar defeats the evil wizard who screwed up his life and took over his rightful kingdom, and announces that he's going to become the new king. Then it turns out the wizard's army is still out there and about to attack the kingdom, so we have a whole other climax on top of it. See this movie for a textbook example of why the Scouring of the Shire was cut from the ''Lord of the Rings'' films.
* {{MediaNotes/Nollywood}} movies often have this, because they are usually very long -- so long that they come on two [=DVDs=].
* The film version of the Creator/TylerPerry play ''I Can Do Bad All By Myself'' not only runs 20-30 minutes longer than it should but has two false endings. The first occurs after the actual ending, after a fade to black. You get ready to leave the theatre but instead of credits, you get a random musical number that has nothing to do with the plot. After that, you get your second false ending. After another fade to black, you get outtakes (on a movie that wasn't even a comedy, no less). By then, most people would have just given up and gone to their car.
* ''Film/{{Scream 4}}'' lampshades this, by the ''killer'' no less:
--> [[spoiler: '''Jill''']]: This is how it's gonna be, Sid? The ending of the movie was supposed to be at the house; I mean, this is just silly.

* In ''Film/TheGreatEscape'', after much build-up and planning, the actual escape starts an hour and forty-five minutes into the movie and is over fifteen minutes later. Then there's ''another'' forty-five minutes left in the movie. Justified in that getting out of the camp is only the first obstacle. The escapees still have to get out of enemy territory and to a neutral country for the escape to ''really'' end. [[spoiler: And most of the escapees don't make it that far.]]
* ''[[Literature/TheMillenniumTrilogy The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo]]''. Like the book, Blomkvist's legal troubles bookend the central mystery plot. After the mystery is resolved, we still spend some time resolving how Blomkvist and Lisbeth get back at Blomkvist's nemesis. Funnily enough, the Swedish version knows when to shut up. After the plot is resolved, we get a short scene of Blomkvist in jail, the news report of his nemesis dead, and Lisbeth in Granada.
* ''Film/MenInBlackII'': Serleena's defeated, the Light of Zartha's on its way home, and then... a locker room/obligatory mind screw scene. It's not that long, but still.
* ''Film/TheHelp'' feels like it should end as Skeeter achieves success with her book and helps the maids out financially as they all begin to have success. but the movie aimlessly wanders for about a half-hour too long after before Aibileen leaves to start a new life.