Seeing a film's first and last shots side by side can be an illuminating experience, highlighting hidden themes or revealing whether or not a character grows over the course of 90+ minutes. To this effect, editor Jake Swinney, who previously guided us through last year's Oscar-nominated directors, cut together 55 different cinematic beginnings and endings for a new supercut called First and Final Frames.
"Some of the opening shots are strikingly similar to the final shots, while others are vastly different—both serving a purpose in communicating various themes," Swinney writes in his film's description. "Some show progress, some show decline, and some are simply impactful images used to begin and end a film." We found Whiplash, Gone Girl, and Dr. Strangelove particularly symbolic, but there's knowledge to be gleaned from every title on the list, which you can read here.
Whiplash
Gone Girl
Dr. Strangelove, Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
Watch more of Jacob Swinney's work on Vimeo.
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This Programmer Will Show You How To Make Instant Movie Supercuts