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I am surprised that no one has mentioned the astonishing one-two punch of Elmer Bernstein's final cues in "To Kill A Mockingbird." The reveal of Boo Radley is scored so perfectly, as is the final recapitulation of the main theme, that I don't see how anyone can not be moved by it.
Yes, that one (Summer's End from To Kill a Mockingbird), the Miracle and Finale from Ben-Hur and John Williams' shameless tear-jerker finale for E. T., are the cream of the crop. Although maybe not as emotionally compelling as those examples, I have always loved the way Elmer Bernstein builds the music in his finale to The Magnificent Seven, one of the best crafted ever IMO.
I know we're just talking about the music, but for my money the combination of music, visuals and the voice-over in the final scene of To Kill a Mockingbird, combine to create the #1 knock-out ending in movie history. It never fails to set my lower lip to quivering, as many times as I've seen it.
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"The Verdict/End Titles" from George Fenton's ravishing DANGEROUS BEAUTY
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Yes, that one (Summer's End from To Kill a Mockingbird), the Miracle and Finale from Ben-Hur and John Williams' shameless tear-jerker finale for E. T., are the cream of the crop. Although maybe not as emotionally compelling as those examples, I have always loved the way Elmer Bernstein builds the music in his finale to The Magnificent Seven, one of the best crafted ever IMO.
I know we're just talking about the music, but for my money the combination of music, visuals and the voice-over in the final scene of To Kill a Mockingbird, combine to create the #1 knock-out ending in movie history. It never fails to set my lower lip to quivering, as many times as I've seen it.
Not only all of the elements you list, but Mary Badham's delivery of "Hey, Boo" is so astonishingly perfect and genuine, I gave myself a slight frisson just thinking about that moment. And Bernstein's music so gently captures that sense of resolution and wonder - I'm stunned to realize that I haven't watched this movie in years, but it lingers so strongly in the memory... magnificent.
The "Ben-Hur" finale is really tremendous, and I think that when it comes to emotionally satisfying resolutions, you can't go wrong with any of the religioso style finales - the genre and style seems to lend itself to those kinds of wrap-ups. To pick a Goldsmith finale, "The Celebration" from "Capricorn One" may not only be one of my favorite pieces of his, but certainly ranks as one of his greatest conclusions (in both film and - especially - album versions).
To list another boffo Rosenman finale, I also find the conclusion of "Fantastic Voyage" to be very emotionally satisfying, as well. The gradual journey into tonality at the end really presents a great sense of completion to the film. Like the others, it's dramatically smart, and terrific music.
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Worth looking at (and listening to) yet again considering the topic here, is this from Bernard Herrmann to the finale of 'Citizen Kane'. If by some strange occurrence one has never seen this film, please do not watch this clip...this movie really needs, and deserves, to be seen from the beginning (not to mention the tremendous spoiler contained herein).
https://vimeo.com/88570715
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Another that got some play at the Olympics this year - the finale of Schindler's List, though not your "rousing hollywood finish" is fantastic and gets me every time.
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John Powell - Ready For The Big Ride Bubba (Face/Off)
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For me, it's the final minutes ("The Final Game" on the Goldsmith soundtrack CD) of "Rudy," although you need the sound effects to go along with it -- I've played my Blu-ray with the isolated score, and it just doesn't work as well without the shouting and the crowd and other noise on the football field. Brings me to tears nearly every time.
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