Twitter Asks: What Still From a Movie/TV Show Destroys Those Who’ve Seen It?
There are moments in movies and television shows that can completely wreck us. Those moments then cause a bit of a problem when we see them out of context and are crying over something that seems innocent to anyone who hasn’t seen it. I’m talking your (in recent times) Blackbeard and Stede sitting on a dock or Tony Stark’s floating arc reactor. The moments that look like nothing spectacular but then, to someone who knows what’s happening, they’re sobbing on the sidelines.
And when writer and editor Ryley (@columnthirteen) asked what still will devastate anyone who knows what it is from, Twitter came with some great suggestions.
It’s quite a wide-ranging list. You have things like Futurama mixed with Oscar-winning movies.
For me, a lot of my first choices were already represented, but stopping to think about a moment that just leaves me emotionally distraught brings me to Inside Llewyn Davis. If it isn’t seeing Bob Dylan perform at Llewyn’s club of choice at the end of the movie, theoretically showing us that Llewyn missed his chance at finding his own success, it is this scene when Oscar Isaac, as Llewyn Davis, makes the journey to perform for someone who could change his life, but Llewyn gets in his own way yet again and ruins the audition.
It’s that level of pain that just really drives the knife in even deeper and leaves us feeling hollow. But there are plenty of other options for this prompt, too, and ones that many brought up on Twitter. Some of my favorites made the cut, so let’s break down why each of them feel like we’re being ripped in two whenever we look at it.
Fleabag
In theory, this is just Andrew Scott and Phoebe Waller-Bridge sitting at a bus stop together. In reality, it’s the last moments of their relationship and leads to Fleabag telling the Hot Priest that she loves him, and he responds, “It’ll pass.” So sure, to those on the outside, it looks like a priest helping someone, but those of us who watched and loved Fleabag know that this is the opposite of a “nice” scene and is, instead, the most heartbreaking moment on a television show in recent years.
Jojo Rabbit
This is choosing violence. This scene in Jojo Rabbit was towards the beginning of the movie and established Jojo’s relationship with his mother, and boy oh boy does the reason this hurts suck. (Spoilers for Jojo Rabbit so scroll if you don’t want to know.) In the context of Jojo Rabbit, this shot with Rosie’s (Scarlet Johansson) feet is later mirrored when Rosie is killed and hanged in the town square to make an example of her, because she was trying to fight back against the Nazis. So this shot in particular hurts when you know how it will be referenced later.
Brokeback Mountain
If you haven’t seen Brokeback Mountain, Ang Lee brings to life a love story that also feels like pain rolled in nails that keeps stabbing your heart over and over again, and this shot in particular is just so incredibly emotional, equaled only by Heath Ledger, as Ennis, holding onto Jack’s (Jake Gyllenhaal) denim jacket and sobbing into it. We love to just emotionally destroy ourselves.
Doctor Who
Now, Doctor Who had many suggestions so I went with my favorites. (Sorry, Rose and Ten. I love you, but these just hurt me more.) First up is Vincent Van Gogh (played by Tony Curran) seeing his work at the Musée d’Orsay and what it means to people around the world. He’s sobbing as he sees his work celebrated, and as the curator is talking about how he thinks that Vincent is one of the best artists of all time.
That is then paired with Matt Smith’s final moments as the Doctor, when he gives a speech that says to us all that he’ll always remember when the Doctor was “me.” It’s a beautiful regeneration scene and one that I constantly think back to.
Atonement
The brief moment at the end of Atonement when you think that Robbie and Cecilia get to have a happy ending? That’s a crime. That’s just pain and anger all rolled into one, and it took me quite a long while to forgive Saoirse Ronan (who played Briony) for what she did to them.
—
Did your favorite make the cut? Which is your choice? Let us know what you saw out there in the comments below!
(featured image: CBS films)
Have a tip we should know? tips@themarysue.com
