Watched the end of The Mist in a theater in Austin and half the crowd got up to leave

I was down in Austin last month visiting a buddy and we caught a late showing of The Mist at this old theater on South Lamar. You know the ending, right? The guy shoots his family and then the military rolls in like 30 seconds later. Well about 10 people actually walked out during the credits. One guy yelled "that's garbage" at the screen. My buddy thought the whole movie should have ended with them driving off into the fog instead. He said the hopeless ending just pissed him off and ruined the rewatch value. I kinda see his point but I think the gut punch makes it stick with you longer. Has anyone else had a theater experience where the ending literally cleared out the room?

2 comments

2 Comments

beth_sanchez473d ago

Oh man, that sounds rough. I really feel for that guy who yelled at the screen, that kind of ending hits different when you're not ready for it. Did the rest of the crowd seem stunned or was it just those few people?

lisa_brown3d ago

That crowd reaction doesn't surprise me at all. The Mist is one of those rare movies where the ending just leaves you sitting there in silence or walking out mad. My buddy's take about driving off into the fog is interesting but I think that would have been the easy way out. The whole point of the movie is that hope gets ripped away from you at the last second, which is way more realistic than a happy wrap up. Those 10 people who walked out probably just weren't ready for a story that didn't give them a win at the end.