Good Film, Great Ending

Rating: Null/10 (27 April 2000)

The most important act in any movie is the third act. It leaves the audience with their final impressions of the film, and it ties everything together that the film has been building up to. There are many decent thrillers that have awful third acts; hence the whole movie is tainted and the audience leaves with a bad view of the film. "12 Monkeys" is not one of those films. The beginning and middle of "12 Monkeys" are satisfactory, but not great. It is in the last 20 or 30 minutes that the film picks up pace and begins to tie everything together. The script is very sparse with details -- which leaves many in a state of confusion during most of the movie. But in the end, when you begin to piece everything together, the film becomes amazingly good. I would have to say the last five to ten minutes of the film contains the best ending/payoff that I have ever witnessed (much better than that other Bruce Willis film, "The Sixth Sense"). The concept behind the scene at the end that ties everything together is completely trippy, and very original and thought-provoking. Without the incredible third act, I probably wouldn't have liked this film as much as I did. Highly Recommended.