The Most Iconic Scenes in Entertainment
Movies and television are filled with iconic scenes that keep everyone talking, even years after their initial release. In this listicle, Jimmy Lu and Emily McGlynn look at four of the most memorable scenes in movies and television.
Thanos’s victory - “Avengers: Infinity War”
"Avengers: Infinity War” is probably one of Marvel’s highest achievements to date, alongside “Avengers: Endgame.” One of the main reasons being that for the first time in Marvel history and the superhero genre as a whole, the villain won.
At the end of the film, Thanos snapped his finger and the audience watches over half of the MCU heroes get turned into dust one after the other. The ending left the audiences speechless, and it has generated thousands of online memes about Spiderman’s “death scene.”
It was a bold decision for a superhero movie to let its villain win, but it definitely paid off because by doing so, they made Thanos one of, if not, the most compelling villain in the MCU, and it proves that Marvel is constantly taking chances to surprise the audience and create something new in the superhero genre. – Jimmy Lu
The Bent-Neck Lady reveal - “The Haunting of Hill House”
“The Haunting of Hill House” is one of the best horror TV shows in recent years. The story itself is full of twists and turns, but no one would ever see this one coming.
In the earlier episodes, the audience learned that Nelle is being haunted by the Bent-Neck Lady since she was a little girl, but in episode five, it was revealed that Nelle herself is the Bent-Neck Lady when she jumped off of the staircase.
It was perhaps one of the most tragic, and shocking revelations in the horror genre because Nelle realized that she has been haunting herself this whole time. Her mental illness, sleep paralysis, and her grief are all caused by herself.
The reveal wasn’t done just for the shock value, it was closely tied to the whole theme of the show, which is being haunted by your past, or your “ghost,” to be more literal. “The Haunting of Hill House” is a sharply written, masterfully crafted horror show. – Jimmy Lu
The Priest breaks the Fourth-Wall - “Fleabag”
Fleabag has always been the driving force of the show, but one of the best moments of the show came from The Priest, played by Andrew Scott.
Scott played the role of The Priest with a lot of depth and complexity and he is the only person in the show who really “sees” Fleabag as the person she is. In the middle of the second season, The Priest started to notice the audiences, a tool that only Fleabag can use in the show.
As soon as The Priest also breaks the fourth wall, the format of the show starts falling apart because every time Fleabag tries to talk to the audience, it was interrupted by The Priest.
One of the best moments of the show is when he looked directly at the audience and screamed. The choice may seem funny at first, but it was used in a very clever way. Whenever The Priest looks into the camera, he disrupted the intimate and private relationship Fleabag has with the audience, which suggests that he is trying to get to know her as a person under all the facade, a.k.a. the audience. – Jimmy Lu
Final Scene - “Call Me By Your Name”
If a viewer has not seen the 2017 film “Call Me By Your Name,” it certainly should be at the top of the to-do list.
The movie is based on the 2007 book written by André Aciman.
Beautiful is an understatement to describe the movie. The scenery, the costumes, the plot, the acting, legitimately everything can come off as perfect.
A 17-year-old boy named Elio, played by Timothee Chalamet, meets 24-year-old Oliver, played by Armie Hammer, in 1980s Italy. Elio, an intelligent and advanced boy, falls in love with Oliver. As the Summer comes to an end, their relationship becomes more complicated than they anticipated.
However, they break up and Elio is heartbroken. He has a conversation with his parents explaining his relationship with Oliver and they comfort him. The parents start making him a meal, and Elio is reflecting in front of the fire.
Viewers watch Elio lightly sob with the fire reflecting in his shiny eyes. It is one long single shot and Chalamet does it perfectly. What pulls the whole scene together is the final three seconds where Chalamet accidentally looks into the camera and then looks down.
These mistakes resulted in a powerful ending that pulls the audience in to feel his pain. – Emily McGlynn
Jimmy (Chien-Hsing) Lu is a senior majoring in telecommunications. To contact him, email jfl5603@psu.edu
Emily McGlynn is a freshman majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact her, email esm5378@psu.edu.
About the Contributors
Jimmy (Chien-Hsing) Lu
Senior / Telecommunications
Jimmy (Chien-Hsing) Lu is a senior from Taiwan majoring in telecommunications at Penn State. He is a contributing writer for the CommRadio arts & entertainment department. If you’d like to contact him, please email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
Emily McGlynn
Third-year / Broadcast Journalism
Emily McGlynn is a third-year from Birmingham, Michigan majoring in broadcast journalism at Penn State. She is the Co-General Manager alongside Alex Rocco and Dylan Price. She is involved in the news, arts and entertainment, sports and production department. In the news department, she is one of the news producers. She frequently writes reviews for the Arts Department as well. Listening to music, watching movies, and staying updated with news and pop culture are some of her favorite things to do. To contact her, email her at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
