We've all done it. The camera pans, we hear the music, that one line that just feels like a sucker punch to the gut, and suddently we're a puddle on the floor.
Movies have this incredible hold on us, because the actors are brilliant and the directors and writers have figured out how to tell the story in just the right way that pulls at our heart strings. In fact, our brains can't even tell the difference between flashing pictures on a screen from real humans, so it's natural to cry.
In fact, if you cry at movies, you actually might be more empathetic, better with people, and an emotionally stronger person.
Redditor lituponfire asked:
"What film scene absolutely destroys you every time? No matter how many times you've seen it?"
Grab your tissues, you're gonna need them.
The Green Mile
"'I am tired, boss,' scene before the execution in The Green Mile."
"Got to say the execution scene is the clincher for me. Hanks was immense."
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Homeward Bound
"Homeward Bound at the end where you think Shadow might not be coming home."
"When I graduated from college I had a set of friends after I moved and one came over one Saturday morning. He looked terrible. I asked him if he was hungover, and he said he had spent the last thirty minutes bawling over that movie. Hahahaha"
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Love Actually
"The scene in Love Actually where Emma Thompson realises that Alan Rickman is cheating on her but it's Christmas Day and the kids are happy, she gives herself twenty seconds listening to Both Sides Now by Joni Mitchell and then gets back out there to be 'happy'. Two utterly brilliant actors at the top of their game."
"Oh f*ck, took me a minute to remember the context of this."
"She'd found the necklace previously and was expecting that to be the gift she received. Instead she got a CD. Rough stuff."
- mrdotkom
"If you look in the comments to the video link above showing the scene, a commenter also gives an interesting insight:"
"phoenixfriend: What makes this even sadder is that the CD was actually a thoughtful gift. It shows that he knows something about her and what's important to her. The necklace was expensive and glamorous but also meaningless and lazy. She asked for something pretty so he just went straight to the jewellery section and picked the first thing he saw that he thought would do. It speaks to how he feels about each woman and just makes his affair all the more foolish because he's risking a genuine connection for something shallow."
- Napron
WALL-E
"The end of WALL-E when he loses his personality."
"Before that. When he's keeping the door open. He didn't owe those people anything. Eve thought he was annoying. Nobody cared about him. Yet there he was getting crushed. Giving it his all. F*ck."
"Also the scene when his memories are being played back and she finally understands how much he cared for her and what he went through."
"When I was 15, I saw it in theaters while my parents were going through a nasty divorce. I remember him looking at the stars and wishing he had someone to hold his hand. I felt the exact same. I felt so alone just like he did. I cried and was happy no one noticed."
"I'm tearing up thinking about it now but I'm no longer saddened by it. It's bittersweet and I still love the short before it. I was alone then but I did get people who cared for me like Wall-E :) Happy endings can happen and you are never alone."
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Forest Gump
"'Bubba was going to be a shrimping boat captain, but instead, he died right there by that river in Vietnam.'"
"I just get really sad thinking about all of the 'Bubbas' who have senselessly died in war and never got to live their lives and follow their dreams."
"'I wanna go home Forrest' UGH I DIE EVERYTIME."
- K4R1MM
"My answer to this post was going to be:"
"'You died on a Saturday morning, and I had you placed here, under our tree...'"
"I can't type anymore because I'll actually start crying. Every damn time, that scene."
"I remember showing my wife Forest Gump. I hadn't seen it since I was a kid, and remember it being a comedy."
"After it was over my spouse gets up without a word, goes to the bedroom, and starts crying uncontrollably."
"As a kid I thought it was about Forrest, but it was as much about Jenny and just how awful her life was. Just I was too young to understand it."
One Flew Over the Coocoos Nest
"When Jack Nicholson gets lobotomized in One Flew Over the Cucoo's Nest. I'm not a cryer and I dont feel most of the emotionally charged drama scenes in Hollywood movies but that made me cry so hard in so much anger because of the injustice. I may be more calm in my reaction now but it always gets me."
"It's one of those scenes that hits hard when you realize that has actually happened to people."
The Fox and The Hound
"The Fox and The Hound, when the sweet old lady has to leave Todd behind in the woods. Everything about it: the music, the kindness of that lady, Todd not understanding that he has to stay in the woods. Especially the moment when you see a tear rolling down her cheek as she drives off."
"Oh man. I always cry when I hear them say, 'We'll always be friends forever.'"
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If this didn't make your eyes aren't wet, we don't know what will.
Actually, maybe it's better if you do cry. It has some serious benefits like releasing toxins and emotional stress from the body.
Here's to a good cry!
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