The Long Kiss Goodnight - Movie Death Explosion!

I'm a sucker for explosions, particularly giant-movie-ending-villain-killing explosions. Take The Long Kiss Goodnight for example, they do it right. Here's how:

1. Keep him alive - A classic rule. Before the big explosion, the villain must be on the brink of death. Shot, Beaten, bloody, but still alive.....barely. Keep the bad guy alive just long enough for that timer to hit zero.....otherwise what's the point?

2. Show it - When the climactic explosion goes off and the villain dies, I don't just want to see the explosion in the background as the hero runs away. No, I want to see the bad guy being engulfed by flames or exploding into pieces, no off-screen cheapness.

3. Outrun the fireball - Laws of physics? Pffft... not in this house. Another classic rule where the Hero must outrun the final explosion in a fashionable and death-defying way. The explosion must be the biggest of the film, flaming projectiles are optional.

All these rules are covered above and beyond in The Long Kiss Goodnight. The scene involves a truck bomb that is supposed to blow up the bridge at Niagara Falls. As Charly(Geena Davis) is attacked by the bad guy from a helicopter, she uses a dead body as a counterweight to lift herself into the sky and shoot him. He falls and lands on top of the truck bomb.....and the fun begins.

Jaws - “Smile, You Son of a Bitch!”

Here at Greatest Movie Deaths, we like to keep it to death scenes of humans or humanoids, but this one is just too good to ignore. A classic. The death of Jaws, well the first Jaws at least, the original Jaws.

In the film's finale, Brody(Roy Scheider) is the only one left to do battle with the giant monster. He climbs the mast of the sinking vessel with Quint's gun(R.I.P.) and aims for the pressurized air tank wedged in the shark's mouth. He fires shot after shot at the oncoming shark, but misses. Just as he takes his last shot he yells out, “Smile, You Son of a Bitch!” and hits the target. The oxygen canister explodes, destroying the shark and sending a geyser of blood and fish guts flying into the air.

Kick Ass - Bazooka Blast

Kick-Ass is based on the comic book of the same name, but does it do it any justice? The answer is no, but don't let that ruin a violent and entertaining film like Kick-Ass. Unfortunately, the movie changed the meaning of the comic and erased the whole message that it originally put forth. The point of the book was that real life doesn’t work like comics. Big Daddy was just a crazy comic-book collector who brainwashed his child, he was supposed to be the ultimate bad example of what our hero's kind of thinking leads to. The film gives us a happy ending, but in the comic Dave doesn't get the girl, his lies and manipulation actually blow up in his face. Sometimes though, change can be good....and satisfying, for example the entertaining death of Frank D'Amico, the film's main antagonist. As our villain is about to shoot an overwhelmed Hit-Girl, he is prevented when Kick-Ass, in the nick of time, shoots him with a bazooka shell at 10-foot range and blows him through a skyscraper window and across a city block of sky before he explodes in mid-air.

The Fury - John Cassavetes Explodes

Before Cronenberg made Scanners, a little underrated gem by the name of The Fury came out in 1978. Directed by Brian de Palma in his prime and composed by John Williams who is always in his. The film is a supernatural thriller involving psychic powers and government agencies. Great stuff, but let's fast forward to the best part, the ending. This could actually be the greatest ending to any movie ever. Gillian finally excepts her powers and avenges Peter and Robin's deaths. Her eyes turn a deep blue as our villain starts convulsing violently. Then suddenly our victim explodes into tiny pieces as his head pops off like a champagne cork, splat! roll credits. I just wish I was able to see this in 1978 on the big screen. After seeing John Cassavetes blowing up 13 times from every conceivable angle, I'd stand up and cheer-and I'm not one of those clapping/cheering at the end of a movie types-but I'd do the goddamn Arsenio Hall rapid double fist pump after that ending. "Whoop Whoop Whoop"

Tropic Thunder - Director Blows Up

Rookie director Damien Cockburn can't control his actors and after a $4 million special effects accident, the studio threatens to shut down production. Cockburn, in a desperate attempt to save the movie, drops the cast into the middle of the jungle to film them covertly, hoping to capture authentic emotions from a real jungle experience. Once they land, Cockburn gives a very inspirational speech to get the actors motivated. Just as Cockburn gains the actors' confidence, he steps on an old land mine and blows himself up.

The best part comes soon after when the actors think it's a stunt

Rambo: First Blood Part II - Exploding Arrow

Rambo makes his escape through a creek at the base of a waterfall when a Vietcong sergeant spots him. The solider turns and fires his automatic weapon at Rambo completely missing him. Once he runs out of ammo, he, for some odd reason, gives his weapon a final glance of confusion before tossing it and grabbing his handgun. Rambo comes out from behind the rocks with a look of confidence and slowly pulls out an explosive tipped arrow. Realizing that he is in trouble and a horrible shot, the sergeant runs away as Rambo aims his bow. The soldier turns and fires a final desperation shot before Rambo releases the arrow. The projectile pierces the sergeant's chest and explodes, sending a mess of blood and guts flying through the air.
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Léon: The Professional - A Gift from Mathilda

Léon(Jean Reno) sneaks out of the apartment disguised as a wounded ESU officer. As he almost walks out of the building unoticed, Stansfield(Gary Oldman) silently sneaks up behind him and shoots him. With his dying breath, Léon places an object in Stansfield's hands, and tells him it's "from Mathilda". Opening his hands, it's a grenade pin. Stansfield rips open Léon's vest to discover several grenades strapped to his chest. Stansfield lets out a brief and final quip, "Shit" right before a massive explosion incinerates him.

The Hurt Locker - Thompson's Death Scene

When the explosion goes off we get a few shots in slow motion of the shockwave ripping through the ground and an old abandoned vehicle. The blast is dusty and grey in contrast from the gorgeous reds and yellows we usually see in movies. The explosion is enormous and Thompson can't out-run it. The shockwave from the blast pulverizes the sergeant, crushing his vital organs, killing him. His death establishes the high stakes his successor will have to go through in the film. "You are now in the kill zone."

Dead Heat - Dead Again

One of the best on-screen decomposition death scenes, as if there are a lot of those. Keep in mind that this film came out one year earlier than Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Just a well done 80's B-movie special effect with no CGI.
SCENE STARTS AT 6:30


Another great death scene in the film. To evade being killed by zombie Detectives Roger Mortis(Treat Williams) and Doug Bigelow(Joe Piscopo), bad guy Dr. Ernest McNab kills himself.
"Ya cheated me....god damn you McNab YOU CHEATED ME!!!!!!"
Dissatisfied, Mortis and Bigelow reanimate Dr. McNab just to kill him again. This time they do it right and we find out what happens when you resurrect somebody twice.
SCENE STARTS AT 4:30

Did I mention horror veteran Vincent Price is in this film?

The Terminator - Hunter Killer Tank Owns

---OWNED

Avatar this and Avatar that, no matter what you think of James Cameron's newest $387m blockbuster, we've got to give the guy credit for creating one of the most mind blowing sci-fi/action films of the 80's. No, not Piranha 2: The Spawning, 1984's The Terminator. A machine sent back in time to assassinate the mother of John Connor, leader of the human resistance and wipe him from history. What a premise. This was one of those scenes that brought us into James Cameron's grim post nuclear future. We see resistance fighter Kyle Reese taking on a giant Hunter-Killer Tank by throwing a demolition charge under it's tread. A great scene with a great movie death, as one unlucky resistance fighter gets blasted to pieces when the HK-Tank shoots her with a plasma round as she attempts to throw a demolition charge.
DEATH SCENE AT 1:30

Hot Fuzz - Death Scenes

Hot Fuzz mixed the perfect blend of comedy, slasher flick, and cop-buddy movie. The over the top violence can get pretty graphic, so graphic it's funny. Similar to the Black Knight in Monty Python's Holy Grail. Another great chapter in the Blood and Ice Cream Trilogy.
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Death Wish 4: The Crackdown - Bronsoned

Big Trouble in Little China - Explosion / Reflex Death Scene

Jack Burton(Kurt Russell) takes on Lo Pan(James Hong) at the end of Big Trouble in Little China. Jack tries to throw his knife at Lo Pan but misses. Lo Pan retrieves the knife and attempts to throw it at Jack, but as they say...."It's all in the reflexes"





Another great death take place immediately after Lo Pan's death. After Thunder(Carter Wong) sees his master's dead body, Thunder gets so pissed off he starts swelling up until he burst into pieces. Which death scene did you like better?

The Last House on the Left - Microwave Safe

SPOILER ALERT!!! As you should know by now, this whole site is based on spoilers, SPOILER ALERT!!!
Krug wakes up to find himself paralyzed from the neck down and his head inside a microwave. This is the final scene from The Last House on the Left remake, a totally unnecessary remake, but what else is new in today's American cinema. At least the death scenes do some justice, observe.......

The Bridge on the River Kwai - Madness!

Classic scene where Lieutenant Colonel Nicholson(Alec Guinness) falls on the detonator plunger as he dies, just in time to blow up the bridge and send a train full of Japanese soldiers and important officials hurtling into the river.

Independence Day - Checkmate

The scene that relaunched the disaster movie genre. Independence Day was at the forefront of the large-scale disaster film resurgence of the 90s. The film used miniatures and in-camera special effects more often than CGI to create a scene that would've even made the late great Irwin Allen proud.

Man on Fire - Pain in the Ass

A remake of the 1987 film of the same name, Man on Fire is a revenge flick that celebrates torture without remorse. In the film, Creasy(Denzel Washington) tortures several "La Hermandad" members, forcing them to reveal the names of the people involved in the kidnapping of little Pita. In this scene he catches one of the kidnappers, straps him to the hood of a car and sticks C4 up his rectum. After he gets what he needs from the scumbag, Creasy walks away. "A last wish, please," begs Fuentes. "I wish you had more time," responds Creasy. And cue explosion.

Man On Fire Death

Rambo 3 - Rambo VS Kourov

There is rule that after every epic fight scene, there should be a great death scene. Well, if it isn't a rule, it should be. Take this scene from Rambo III for example, after an epic fight between Rambo and Russian soldier Kourov, Rambo wraps a rope around Kourov’s neck, pulls the pin on one of his grenades, and roundhouse kicks him down a hole.

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Hellraiser - Jesus Wept (Frank's Death)

In the film's conclusion, as a resurrected Frank Cotton tries to kill Kirsty for setting him up, dozens of hooks on chains fly through the air and hook into his flesh. Facing death and eternal damnation, Frank looks at his niece Kirsty Cotton one last time and says "Jesus wept", and then is pulled apart and torn to shreds.

Master Char |

Fulltime Killer - Too Many Grenades

Scene from the Johnnie To film Fulltime Killer. Hotshot hitman Tok, played by the always cooler than you Andy Lau,











blasts his way to the target a'la The Terminator. Once he finds the mark he tosses a bag full of grenades into his jail cell, taking the pin out of only one of them. Our victim searches frantically for the cooked grenade, but with little hope.